The first time I drove into Bohemian Switzerland, I genuinely did not know what to expect. The name conjured images of alpine meadows and cowbells, which is not what you get. What you get instead is a landscape of vertical sandstone walls, narrow gorges, and a natural arch so large that it looks like something from a fantasy novel. It took me about twenty minutes of walking before I stopped reaching for my phone and just stood there.
Bohemian Switzerland National Park — Národní park České Švýcarsko in Czech — was established in 2000, making it the youngest of the country's four national parks. It covers 79 square kilometres in the Děčín District of northern Bohemia, bordering the Saxon Switzerland National Park in Germany. The two parks together form one of the most distinctive sandstone landscapes in Europe.
The Landscape and What Formed It
The park sits on a sandstone plateau that was shaped over tens of millions of years by water erosion. The Elbe River and its tributaries carved the deep gorges and valleys you see today. The result is a terrain of flat-topped mesas, vertical cliff faces, and narrow canyons that feel genuinely wild even though you are never more than a few kilometres from a village.
The dominant rock is Cretaceous sandstone, the same formation that extends across the border into Saxony. It is softer than granite, which is why the erosion produced such dramatic shapes — arches, pillars, and overhanging walls that would not survive in harder rock.
Pravčická Brána: The Centrepiece
Pravčická brána is Europe's largest natural sandstone arch, with a span of 26.5 metres and an inside height of 16 metres. It has been a protected national nature monument since 1982, which is also when access to walk on top of it was closed to prevent further erosion. You can still walk beneath it and around it, and the viewing angles from the surrounding trails are excellent.
The arch is privately owned — an unusual situation for a national monument — and there is an entry fee to access the immediate area. In 2025 this was around 150 CZK for adults. The Sokolí hnízdo (Falcon's Nest) restaurant sits right next to the arch and has been there since the 19th century, which adds a strange but pleasant historical layer to the visit.
The most popular approach is from Hřensko village, about 3 kilometres to the northwest. The trail climbs steadily through forest and takes roughly 90 minutes at a moderate pace. You can also approach from Mezní Louka to the east, which is a longer but less crowded route.
Practical Information: Pravčická brána
Entry fee: approx. 150 CZK adults, 80 CZK children (2025 prices, privately managed)
Opening: April to October, daily from 9:00 to 18:00
Approach from Hřensko: 3 km, approx. 90 min one way
Dogs: allowed on leads
Note: The arch itself is closed to foot traffic to prevent erosion
The Kamenice Gorge
The Kamenice River has cut a series of narrow gorges through the sandstone, and the most accessible section runs through the park near Hřensko. The gorges are too narrow and wet to walk through on foot, so visitors cross them on flat-bottomed ferries — small wooden boats that are poled by hand through the canyon. It is a slow, quiet experience that gives you a completely different perspective on the rock walls.
There are two main gorge sections: the Edmundova soutěska (Edmund's Gorge) and the Divoká soutěska (Wild Gorge). The Edmund's Gorge is calmer and more accessible; the Wild Gorge is narrower and more dramatic. Both require separate tickets, and you can combine them into a loop with some walking sections in between.
The gorge ferries operate from April through October. In high season, queues can be long — arriving before 10:00 or after 15:00 significantly reduces waiting times. The entire combined route takes about three hours including walking sections.
Hiking Beyond the Main Attractions
Most visitors to Bohemian Switzerland see Pravčická brána and the gorges and consider the park done. That leaves a lot of excellent terrain unexplored. The park has over 150 kilometres of marked trails, and the areas away from the main tourist circuit are noticeably quieter even in peak summer.
The Gabrielina stezka (Gabriela's Path) is a 14-kilometre loop from Mezní Louka that passes through some of the park's most varied terrain — forest, rock formations, and views across the Elbe valley. It is well-marked and not technically demanding, but the distance and some elevation change make it a full-day outing.
For something shorter, the trail from Jetřichovice village to the Mariina vyhlídka (Maria's Viewpoint) takes about 45 minutes each way and offers one of the best panoramic views in the park without requiring a full-day commitment.
Getting There and Getting Around
The main gateway village is Hřensko, which sits at the confluence of the Kamenice and Elbe rivers right on the German border. It is about 90 kilometres from Prague by road — roughly 90 minutes in normal traffic. There is a direct bus from Prague's Florenc station that takes around two hours.
Within the park, a shuttle bus service runs between Hřensko, Mezní Louka, and Mezná during the main season (April to October). This is useful because parking at trailheads fills quickly in summer, and the shuttle allows you to do linear rather than circular routes.
The park website at npcs.cz has current trail conditions and shuttle timetables in English. The Mapy.cz app is the best tool for navigation in Czech parks — it has detailed trail data and works offline.
When to Visit
The park is accessible year-round, but the gorge ferries and most facilities operate only from April to October. Winter visits are possible and genuinely beautiful — the sandstone walls take on different colours in low light, and the trails are almost empty — but you will need to be self-sufficient and check trail conditions in advance.
July and August are the busiest months. The Pravčická brána area in particular gets crowded, and parking in Hřensko can be a real problem. If you are visiting in peak season, consider arriving on a weekday rather than a weekend, and plan to be at the arch before 10:00.
Late September and October are my preferred time. The crowds thin out, the light is better for photography, and the forest takes on autumn colours that complement the sandstone beautifully.
