karlstejn castle tour

Karlštejn Castle: How to visit & what to see

• David Angel
• Czech Republic

About the author: David Angel is a British photographer, writer, and historian with 30+ years of experience exploring Europe. His work is regularly featured in the BBC, the Guardian and Conde Condé Nast Traveler. He currently lives in Prague.

Karlštejn Castle is one of the best places to visit in the Czech Republic, and one of the easiest day trips from Prague. It’s also one of the mightiest castles you’ll ever see.

From wherever you see it, Karlštejn Castle is a fearsome, forbidding sight. It does exactly what any decent medieval Castle should do, frightening the wits out of anyone who dared approach.

It’s one of the greatest castles in Europe  and its proximity to Prague makes it a great day trip and one of the most popular Czech castles to visit.

My Karlštejn Castle guide shows you everything you need to know before you visit, with details on tour content, how to get there from Prague, and other things to see in pretty Karlštejn village below the ramparts.

I’ll also guide you to what is possibly the best viewpoint of Karlštejn Castle, from the forests above the village.

Table of Contents

Karlštejn Castle – An Introduction

Karlstejn Castle was begun by Bohemian King and Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV (Karel IV in Czech) in 1348 – he was also responsible for the famous Charles Bridge in Prague

It’s of great significance to Czechs as it’s where Charles decided to store the Bohemian Crown Jewels

Karlštejn Castle is only 30 km (19 miles) from Prague , making it one of the easiest Prague day trips

Along with Křivoklat and Konopiště , Karlstejn is one of the three principal Bohemian castles near Prague 

It is also known by its German name, Karlstein Castle

The pronunciation of Karlštejn in Czech differs considerably from the German (‘Karl-shtine’). the ‘a’ is sounded the same as in the word ‘flat’, the ‘r’ is rolled with the front of the tongue and the letter ‘š’ is sounded as ‘sh’. So it’s pronounced ‘Karrl-shtain’.

Karlštejn Castle History

Karlštejn Castle was founded by Charles IV in 1348, initially as a residence for himself and later as the depository for the Bohemian Crown Jewels. It took 17 years to complete, and this included digging out a (state secret) water supply which originated from a nearby stream.

Charles IV died in 1378, but the Crown Jewels remained in situ for much of the next few centuries, and were only removed when the castle was considered to be in danger. The first time this happened was in 1421, in advance of a prolonged siege by Hussite forces.

During this siege the Hussites resorted to launching dead bodies – both human and animal – and copious amounts of dung and excrement at and into the mighty Karlštejn Castle, but to no avail.

Karlštejn Castle was partly rebuilt in late Gothic style towards the end of the 15th century, and further changes were made in the 16 th century Renaissance period.

Swedish forces fared considerably better than the Hussites in 1648, entering the Castle but, finding precious few treasures to pillage, left the Castle without bothering to take the Great Tower. 

The most recent restoration was at the end of the 19 th century, when architect Josef Mocker sought to return Karlštejn to something approaching its original Gothic appearance. 

Karlštejn Castle Tours

There are three tours of Karlštejn Castle, all of which are guided.

Tour 1: Takes you around the Imperial Residence of Charles IV, including the Imperial Palace and the adjacent Marian tower. The chambers that you visit have an austere grandeur about them, all very impressive in size and scale.

Some of them are decorated with beautiful medieval wall paintings – worth the admission price alone – while others are lined with a series of portraits, mainly of noblemen, some of which date from after the Middle Ages. 

T our 2: is the highlight of any Karlštejn Castle visit, and to give you some idea of its prestige and prominence among castles in the Czech Republic , admission costs more than for the entire Prague Castle complex.

This tour covers the extraordinary Karlštejn Castle Chapels, including the Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, St Catherine’s Chapel and the famous Holy Cross Chapel in the Great Tower, where the Crown Jewels were kept.

This tour is exclusive, and as they state on their website , they prefer to take bookings by phone (+420 311 681 617). It’s a long tour, clocking in at 1 hour 40 minutes, and at 520 CZK (US $24) is one of the highest prices you’ll pay for a tour in the Czech Republic.  

But it’s worth every koruna, as you get to see some of the greatest Gothic ecclesiastical art of the Middle Ages.

Tour 3 : is the shortest of the three Karlštejn tours, and probably the best one for kids. this one takes you to the viewing gallery at the top of the Great Tower.

My 7-year-old son and I stood at the base of the massive tower, some of whose walls are an astonishing 7 metres thick, looking up at the formidable, awe-inspiring building above us. “So we’re climbing that ?” he asked.  I answered that we were, and he couldn´t wait to start the climb.

The first part of the climb is the hardest, up a steep set of deep stone stairs. Our Little Man left us all trailing as he stomped his way up past a series of original 14th century murals to two halls, before the brief final climb to the wooden gallery.

You can open the windows to admire the amazing views down onto the rest of the Castle and the village.  It’s a 289-step climb in all, but it gets easier the higher you go.

Karlštejn Castle Tours From Prague

It’s also well worth considering a Karlštejn Castle tour from Prague, especially as something else is often included in the package.

One way to experience it is to join a small guided bike tour to Karlštejn Castle, following a predominantly flat route through the bucolic Bohemian countryside, travelling back to Prague by train.

A quicker option is a half-day tour from Prague to Karlštejn, which includes pick-up and drop-off. This includes tour 1 of the Castle – see the section above for more information on that.

If you want to try something a little different, this tour departs Prague in the morning and as well as Karlštejn Castle takes you to the nearby Koněprusy Caves and Velka Amerika quarry (see below).

Karlštejn Castle Opening Times

Unlike many castles in Czech Republic, Karlštejn Castle remains partly open in autumn and winter. From November through to the end of April, the Castle is open from 1000 to 1500, Tuesdays to Sundays in November and Fridays to Sundays in December and January, and tour 1 is the only one running – the Royal Chapels tour is only available between May and October.

During spring and summer the Castle is open from 0930 to 1730. Check the Castle opening hours web page for specific information.

The Famous View of Karlštejn Castle    

A short, popular Karlštejn Castle hike leads high above the village to give a superb view of the Castle, surrounded by mountains and forests.

At the junction in the village, just below the Pod Hradem restaurant, turn right up the hill and continue along the shaded path until you reach an open field, with more woodland on your right.

Walk across the field and turn around and you’ll get the spectacular view of the Castle. The first time I walked up there, I met a couple from India seeking out the same spot, where a scene from the Bollywood movie Rockstar was shot. 

It is very close to a statue of the Crucifixion of Christ, and Google Maps currently mark a ‘Vyhlidka na Karlštejn’ very close to this spot. Click on this link and you won’t go wrong – you can also reach it by climbing the hill through the residential part of Karlštejn. 

How To Get To Karlštejn Castle From Prague

Travelling from Prague to Karlštejn Castle is straightforward, with hourly trains (21 minutes past the hour at the time of writing) making the 40-minute journey from Prague main train station (Praha hlavni nádraži).

The train also calls at Prague-Smichov station (Praha Smichovske nádraži) seven minutes later – the final destination is usually Beroun .

Once you arrive in Karlštejn, most visitors walk up from the station to the Castle. It’s roughly 25 minutes between the two – head right out of the station, then left towards (and then over) the bridge.

Then turn right, continuing 200 metres to the entrance to the village, where no cars are allowed.  So if you’re driving, this is where you’ll need to park.

The walk up to the imposing Castle continues through the village, which is full of souvenir shops, a couple of quirky exhibitions and a few hotels, cafes and restaurants.

The latter part of the walk is steep, and on a hot summer day if you’re not fairly fit you could be in for a struggle. One option (with a tired child in tow, I took this) is to take a shared carriage ride from the car park to the Castle.

Near the top of Karlštejn village the road swings left, passing the Pod Hradem restaurant on the right. Within 50 metres or so, level with the Adamu restaurant, a wide, paved footpath branches left off the road. this path takes you very close to the Castle – from the top, it’s only around 150 metres to go.  

The ticket office is in the courtyard, a short walk along the walls.

As for getting back from Karlštejn Castle to Prague, trains leave from the far platform, which you can only access via the subway.

They tend to leave every 30 minutes – at 27 and 57 past the hour at the time of writing (March 2023). Check the Czech Railways – Ceske drahy – site for up-to-date information.

Other Things To Do in Karlštejn

Karlštejn is a very touristy, chocolate box village (think   Betws-y-Coed in Wales, or Rudesheim in the Rhine Valley) which largely owes is existence to the mighty Castle looming above i t .

In the shadow of the Castle, there is a small wax museum which delves into Bohemian history, with figures of Charles IV, his four wives and figures from the legendary Golem to the last Habsburg Emperor, Franz Josef I. The same people also run the Wax Museum in Cesky Krumlov .

Down in the village, t he Bethlehem Museum ( http://www.muzeumbetlemu.cz/ ) has the largest collection of Nativity scenes in the country, with the added attraction of alchemists at work. The Museum is open every day in July, August and December, and on weekends the rest of the year.

Across the river from the Castle, Zoopark Karlstejn is open through spring and summer, and is home to a white lion, two white tigers, several other big cats, camels, bison and many more.

Many who visit Karlštejn Castle also seek out the nearby Velka Amerika (Big America), an abandoned quarry sometimes referred to as the Czech Grand Canyon.

We are yet to visit it, and according to the Czech tourism website access to the quarry is banned, but you can see it from close to the car park. Nonetheless many decide to descend, completely ignoring the warnings. We’d just get our shot from the top and go.

Karlstejn Castle in Winter

It’s open Tues-Sun in Nov and Fri-Sun in Dec-Jan. Only Tour 1 runs; the Royal Chapels tour is May-Oct only. In December they ofen run special advent tours on the weekend. There is also a traditional Christmas mass of Jan Jakub Ryba held in the Knight’s Hall of the Imperial Palace of Karlštejn Castle. This usually happens in the first week or two of December.

You can also visit the Nativity Museum Karlštejn in the village. You can see gingerbread nativity displays in our museum from early December to early January.

Karlštejn Castle – Final Thoughts

My son and I thoroughly enjoyed our trip to Karlštejn Castle. It really captured his imagination, probably more so than any other castle we have visited except Česky Krumlov and Kokořín .

I’ve been visiting castles for over 40 years, and Karlštejn is an absolute monster of a castle. For sheer size and the impression of intimidation I had the moment I first saw it, very few come close to it – Malbork Castle in Poland , Caernarfon Castle in Wales and Krak des Chevaliers in Syria.

Karlštejn is one of the easiest day trips from Prague, and one of the very best. Don’t miss it.

Discover more Czech Castles and historic sites in our guides below:

Take a look at my Czech Republic Travel Guide to see all the guides I have written on Prague and the Czech Republic.

• Křivoklát Castle – awesome royal castle in picturesque forest country near Prague
• Konopiště Castle – medieval castle-turned-palace, the favoured residence of Archduke Franz Ferdinand
• Vyšehrad Prague – gorgeous park, Basilica and Cemetery full of Czech notables, within the walls of a citadel founded over a thousand years ago
• Troja Castle Prague – splendid Baroque palace with gardens to match
• Kutna Hora Bone Church – The Amazing Art of the Sedlec Ossuary
• Mělník  – beautiful Bohemian wine town with fine Castle owned by the Lobkowicz family
• Kokořín Castle  – romantic castle surrounded by forest and landscape with amazing sandstone rock formations
• Hluboká Castle  – ornate white ‘wedding-cake’ castle in South Bohemia
• Lednice Castle  – superb English-inspired chateau rebuilt by the Princes of Liechtenstein in the 19th century
• Blatna Castle – beautiful South Bohemian water castle with a wonderful deer park

Explore these beautiful Czech towns in our series of guides:

• Telč Czech Republic  – A Gorgeous UNESCO World Heritage Town in Moravia
• Mikulov  – A Beautiful Moravian Wine Town Near The Austrian Border
• Things To Do In Mariánské Lázně  – A Splendid Bohemian Spa Town and World Heritage Site
• Best Things To Do In Český Krumlov  – Possibly The Most Beautiful Town In The Czech Republic
• České Budějovice  – South Bohemia’s Undiscovered Capital
• Holašovice  – The Unique Folk Baroque UNESCO World Heritage Village
• Slavonice  – Border Town With Incredible Renaissance Sgraffito Townhouses

And While You’re In And Around Prague…

• 17 Prague Streets Not to Miss
• 20 Most Beautiful Churches In Prague
• Vltava River In Prague – Everything to See And Do Along the River
• Vyhlidka Maj – Astonishing Viewpoint Over A Horseshoe Bend In the Vltava River South Of Prague

David Angel is a British photographer, writer and historian. He is a European travel expert with over 30 years’ experience exploring Europe. He has a degree in History from Manchester University, and his work is regularly featured in global media including the BBC, Condé Nast Traveler, The Guardian, The Times, and The Sunday Times.  David is fluent in French and Welsh, and can also converse in Italian, German, Portuguese, Spanish, Czech and Polish.

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Karlstejn Castle Tour

The tour is a guided visit to one of the most picturesque Gothic castles in the Czech Republic. We offer a great historical culture trip with a guide and admission to the castle included. Located just 35km southwest of Prague Karlstejn Castle is one of the most famous castles in the Czech Republic. This is a most outstanding example of a gothic style medieval castle. It is easy to understand why, sitting high above the town of Karlstejn. Built between 1348 to 1355 by Charles IV, King of Bohemia and Holy Roman Emperor. The Castle served as a depository for the safekeeping of royal and Empire coronation jewels, relics of saints and an archive of state documents.

The journey to Karlstejn Castle from Prague should take about 35 to 45 minutes depending on traffic. The drive will take you through some nice scenic Czech countryside to the town of Karlstejn. On arrival the coach will park at the bottom of the hill and with the guide you will enjoy a lovely walk up to the castle past many little quaint shops and restaurants. The tour includes entry to the historical interiors of the 1st and 2nd floors of the Imperial Palace and the 1st floor of the Marian Tower.

The tour comes in a choice of standard languages which are English, German, Russian, French, Italian, Spanish and Czech. you should let us know which language you prefer when booking.

Karlstejn Castle Tour main details :

Minimum group size – 2 people Start time and length of tour   – The Karlstejn Castle Tour is available i n the summer season   (1st April to 31st October) from around 08.45am on Tuesday, Friday and Saturday. It lasts about 5 hours, including transportation. In the winter season   (1st November to 31st March)   it is closed.   Price per person   – Adults 1390 CZK, children from 3 to 6 years old: 1090 CZK, students from 7 to 18 years old: 1290 CZK. Transfers and guide included   – Yes, you will be picked up at your accommodation and dropped back in the center of Prague. To book or to find available dates: Just fill the BOOKING ENQUIRY FORM below or send an EMAIL. We will reply as soon as possible.

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The Karlovy Vary spa tour will take you through the picturesque West Bohemian countryside.  We offer the tour either using a smart phone app and an audio guide, or with an official guide in person . This world famous spa has been known for its 12 medicinal mineral springs which attract many tourists yearly.

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The Kutna Hora Bone Church tour is a 7 hour excursion including the baroque ossuary in nearby Sedlec. With a choice of either using a smart phone app and an audio guide, or with a qualified guide in person . Kutna Hora is a UNESCO listed town and a popular Czech Republic tours selection.

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A romantic trip to Prague, let us arrange everything for you and your partner. From the airport your private driver in either a private taxi or one of the luxury limousines. The chauffeur will take you to one of our fine Hotels especially selected for a romantic feel and setting, the trip continues from there with more delights. In this section we have listed 4 Romantic Break offers including a Wedding Anniversary offer.

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Everything you need to know about visiting karlstejn castle.

Karlstejn is definitely the most popular and maybe also the most beautiful castle in the Czech Republic. This is saying a lot because Czech is known for being the “King of Castles” with over 200 castles and chateaus! After visiting the castle we can say that this is absolutely true.

Walking up the streets and paths towards the castle will bring your imagination back to the medieval days. It almost feels like a fairytale walking up to this enchanted castle if you take away the tourist shops that have popped up over the years.

One of our favourite parts about visiting Karlstejn is that it is out in nature and gives you a completely different experience than the one in Prague. We love Prague and have a list of 38 things to do in Prague you can check out – but it is also fun exploring outside of the city sometimes! Being able to take a train for 50 minutes to end up in such a gorgeous place is just another reason why we love exploring the Czech Republic. 

This ends up being a perfect day trip because along with the castle tour, and exploring the area you can even go for lunch at one of the delicious restaurants down below and see some of Czech’s beautiful countryside. In this post, you’ll find all the information that you need for this day trip from Prague to Karlstejn Castle! 

Table of Contents

How to get to Karlstejn Castle .

One of the reasons why going to Karlstejn is one of the best day trips from Prague is because of its proximity to the city. With public transport, it is less than 1 hour from Prague to Karlstejn. The easiest way to go there is by hopping on a train from the central train station (Hlavní nádraží) in the direction of Beroun.

To buy your tickets, we recommend using an app called Muj Vlak or the one called IDOS . You can also go to the main train station beforehand and purchase your tickets at the office there. We find using the app much easier though.

The trains from Prague to Karlstejn and Karlstejn back to Prague run quite frequently so whenever you get to the station you rarely have to wait for more than 30-ish minutes. During the day and on weekends the train runs every 30 minutes or so. In the evenings it’s less frequent. You can check the train times on Google Maps on your phone or on České dráhy right here .

The stop you will get off at is called Karlstejn so that makes it easy. From there we got you covered down below! =)

Here are the directions to Karlstejn Castle

• Once you get off the train, turn right.
• Follow the trail across the bridge.
• Turn right again and follow the road into Karlstejn.
• From there you can take the road up towards the castle.
• Here are the exact directions from the train station up to the castle. It’s a nice 2.1 km / 1.3 mile walk up to the castle.

Make sure when finding the train tickets, that you search from Praha hl. n to Karlstejn. The train ride should cost 59 CZK or just under $3 each way. So for $6 you can get to Karlstejn Castle and back into the city. Not too bad for a gorgeous day trip.

Information about Karlstejn Tours

Tours run quite frequently Tuesday through Sunday. There are a few different tour options that you can see here. They run more frequently during the summer months and when the tourism season is high.

There are a few different tours you can pick from and the price is slightly more expensive for the tourist (English) version of the tour.

It’s definitely worth it if you love castles and history but we actually found exploring the grounds and the city of Karlstejn was enough for us and we didn’t even need to take a tour to experience the beauty of the castle and the area.

So don’t feel like you’re missing out if you don’t want to take a tour of the inside of Karlstejn. If you do though, do feel free to comment on the post and let us know what you think! Either way, whatever you decide you will have a great time we’re sure.

Exploring the area around Karlstejn Castle

The town of Karlstejn is beautiful in itself and gives such a fairytale vibe to it. We definitely recommend exploring the town and wandering around the streets to try and get a unique picture of the castle. We roamed around and even found a pet pig in one of the backyards (for real).

One thing we wanted to share with you is the backside behind the castle where lots of tourists don’t really visit. There’s a super cool area to explore and also a delicious traditional Czech restaurant that is absolutely worth visiting!

We actually just randomly stumbled upon the path to the restaurant and it’s quite easy to miss if you’re not looking for it. The path is marked with a green diamond. You can see the exact directions towards the restaurant here . It’s a short walk through the forest on this gorgeous path that gives you a feel for medieval times.

You can enjoy lunch at the restaurant mentioned above: Penzion Pod Skalou Restaurant before heading back up to town and back towards the train station. The restaurant even has wifi so it’s a good place to check the train times back to Prague and anything else you may need to do 😉

To get back to the train station, you can take the main road back from the restaurant towards where you started the day trip. To make sure you don’t get lost here are the directions . Or else you can take the marked trail back up to the castle and then back down to town.

Some history about Karlstejn

Here is also a little bit of info you may be interested in before embarking on your day trip from Prague.

• Karlstejn was founded in 1348.
• Served as a place for safekeeping valuable jewels and artifacts.
• This castle is the 5th most visited castle in the Czech Republic.
• Over 200.000 tourists visit the castle every year.

On top of all this, if you go on a tour, you’ll learn a bunch of interesting facts on who ruled the castle during certain eras and the purpose of the castle.

If you didn’t know already, Prague is the perfect place to take day trips from . Now you’ll have another day trip to add to the list. Karlstejn is honestly one of our favourites because of how close it is to Prague and the nature surrounding the area.

In one afternoon you can go see a magical castle and also go explore some beautiful countryside while enjoying authentic Czech food. By the time the day’s over, you’ll only have a short train ride back to the city!

Now you should hopefully have all the information you’ll need to have a fantastic day out in Karlstejn. Feel free to leave a comment if you have any questions about the journey or want any other tips for things to do in the area. We’re always looking forward to sharing information with fellow adventures.

Dom & Jo

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Karlštejn Castle

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Official web presentation

The Karlštejn Beer Festival on Saturday 18 May 2024 - entrance fee is collected for the entire town of Karlštejn. On this day you cannot enter the castle without the entrance fee to the Beer Festival.

• Opening hours

There are guided tours only.

The last tour starts at the same time like opening hours .

1. Imperial Residence of Charles IV (basic tour)

The last tour starts at the time of the closing hours

The tour includes historic interiors of the 1st and 2nd floors of the Imperial Palace and the 1st floor of the Marian Tower with valuable furnishings from the 14th–19th centuries (Courtiers Hall, Knights Hall with the St. Nicholas Chapel, Marian Tower Courtyard, Karlštejn Castle Deanery,...

Information about starting times of individual tours can be found in their descriptions

2. Karlštejn Castle Chapels (exclusive tour)

Both most valuable and impressive rooms of this medieval castle with original and unique decoration. What will you see? Eastern wing of the Imperial Palace, the 2nd floor of the Marian Tower with the Church of the Virgin Mary and the St. Catherine Chapel, the Great Tower – stairway with...

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