With Kutná Hora or Karlovy Vary, Olomouc is amongst the destinations that you should not miss while visiting the Czech Republic. The historical centre of the Moravian capital offers a great snapshot of the history and architecture that this city has to offer. Walk around the centre and discover monuments such as the Holy Trinity Column, which was built in 1740 and is now part of UNESCO’s world heritage list.
Get to Olomouc
From Prague, you find frequent connections to Olomouc. You may decide to go either by bus or by train, even though the second option offers more frequent connections but is also much quicker. This train journey make take you slightly more than 2 hours, while a bus ride will definitely take you more than 3 hours.
The 3 Czech train operators (Ceske Drahy, Leo Express and Regiojet) all offer regular connections to Olomouc. RegioJet is currently the operator offering the best value for money on this destination. To get more information on your journey, have a look at our article on trains in the Czech Republic.
Olomouc central station is located east of the centre, and a short 10-minute tram ride will take you right next to the historical centre.
A beautiful historical centre
Even though Olomouc is one of the largest city in the country with more than 100,000 inhabitants, visitors always enjoy the fact that the majority of touristic sites and places of interest are located close to the old town square. Thus, you may just walk around Horní náměstí (main square) and Dolní náměstí (lower square) and will still be able to enjoy most of Olomouc’s treasures.
On Horní náměstí, after a visit of the Town Hall (one of the best examples of Olomouc great architecture) you may want to stop and contemplate the famous Holy Trinity Column, a 32-metre-high piece of architecture where you sill see 18 statues of saints. On the same square, don’t miss the astronomical clock, which was once as famous as Prague’s.
When getting to Dolní náměstí, slightly less busy than the main square, you will see the impressive baroque fountains of Neptune and Jupiter. If you feel like trying the local cuisine, the lower square offers numerous restaurants where you may be tempted to try Olomouc’s traditional cheese, the delicious Olomoucké tvarůžky. Despite its rather strong taste, it is definitely worth it, especially you’re a cheese fan!
Some websites to check before leaving
– Information, restaurants and videos of Olomouc on Czech Tourism’s offcial website: http://www.czechtourism.com/t/olomouc/
– Official website of Olomouc’s tourism office, a great source of information
http://tourism.olomouc.eu/welcome/en