The Best Day Trips from Prague: Kutná Hora, Karlštejn, and Beyond

Kutná Hora is the trip most visitors haven't heard of and end up talking about the most. Its Gothic St. Barbara's Cathedral rivals anything in Prague, and the Sedlec Ossuary — a small chapel decorated with the bones of an estimated 40,000 people — is genuinely unlike anywhere else in the country. Both are reachable on the same regional train from Prague's main station, about an hour each way.

Karlštejn Castle is the postcard version of a Bohemian castle: a steep, dramatic silhouette on a wooded hill, built by Charles IV in the 14th century to guard the crown jewels. The train station sits at the bottom of the hill, and the walk up — about 25 minutes — is part of the experience rather than an inconvenience.

Both make comfortable half-day trips; if you want to combine sightseeing with a slower pace, treat yourself to lunch in the town before heading back.

For something bigger, Český Krumlov — a UNESCO-listed medieval town built around a river bend — is worth a full day or, better, an overnight; it's roughly three hours from Prague by train or bus, further than the other two but the kind of place that rewards not rushing it.