Ceske Budovice - the home of Budvar and relaxation (Ceské Budejovice)

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Product:	Ceské Budejovice
Date:	08/10/00 (593 review reads)
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Advantages: Restful, beautiful town square, handy base for Bohemia

Disadvantages: Shops ALL shut on late Saturday until Monday, making the area towards the station seem like a ghost town

Travellers to the Czech Republic are certainly on the increase. The call of incredibly cheap beer and beautiful architecture is compelling and the advent of inexpensive, no-frills flights have added to the influx.

But many holidaymakers choose only to visit Prague and its environs, and, perhaps, Cesky Krumlov in South Bohemia.

If you are making the trip to that Fairytale place (beautifully described by cow-lover elsewhere on dooyoo) may I recommend that you don't rush to get in and out of Ceske Budevice (Budvar) but rather stick around and soak up the atmosphere.

Budevice is the largest town in South Bohemia and, unfortunately, the area just by the station, as is the case with many European cities, can be off-putting. Quite simply, the place looks closed, particularly if you arrive on a Saturday afternoon when all the shops are shut up for the weekend.

Persevere, however, and walk directly straight on from the station through the shopping precinct and within five minutes you will have a pleasant surprise.

For behind the more modern facade lies a beautiful gothic and baroque town with a picturesque square lined with inexpensive eateries.

For once, I would advise against heading straight to the tourist information office (Cedok) for accommodation. They are likely to recommend the horrible edifice that is the huge Hotel Gomel (I'm sure its lovely inside and great for business travellers, but like most holiday travellers, I prefer something more personal and culturally atuned) situated a good ten or fifteen minutes clip from the 'pretty bits'.

Instead, keep your eyes peeled as you come out of the main shopping street and cross the river towards the heart of the old town, as you cross you will see adverts for two or three pensions which are cheap (from around 12 pounds a night including breakfast per person), individually furnished and family run.

Once accommodation is out of the way
head to the town square and take in the sights.

If you are able, do make the effort to climb the Black Tower of St Nicholas Church.

Situated at the Station end of the town square the, fairly strenous, climb offers as a reward, not only a fabulous view of the extensive town square - it is about the size of two football pitches - but also of the countryside beyond.

Once you have gathered the strength to climb down again, rest your weary legs outside one of the cafes and take in the beautiful sight of the baroque Samson Fountain and the pastel-coloured town hall with its ferocious dragon-like gargoyles spouting out over the street.

If you do this on a Saturday or Sunday you will probably witness an entire string of wedding parties leaving the town hall after the nuptials with dolls in wedding dress strapped to the front of their cars, sounding their horns and driving once around the square for luck.

After you have regained your energy, take one of the side streets from the square and poke around the vast array of antique shops situated there. Look out for Krajinska street in particular and, more specifically, Masne Kramy (Czech for meat shops).

Dating back to the 16th century this huge and typical Czech beer hall has cast off its butchering past and swapped its sausages for steins - selling the locally-brewed Budvar and fabulous goulash soup and other basic eats to locals and tourists alike.

Incidentally, wherever you are in the Czech Republic, make sure you try the dark beer (pivo tmave) as well as the light, most breweries do both, including Budvar, and it makes an interesting change.

If you don't want to spend all your time drinking (though at around 25p a pint it may be tempting), check out one of the regular concerts at the churches in town or something more classical at the theatre.

And if you tire of Ceske Budevice itself, it is the perfect base from which to reach many of
the other gems in Bohemia, including, of course, Ceske Krumlov and the neo-gothic chatau of Hluboka nad Vltavou.

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