A 4 km tour around the historic spa town of Poděbrady on the river Labe

• The town of Poděbrady, located on a scenic stretch of the river Labe some 50km east of Prague, has a rich and long history. Inhabited since Neolithic times, the settlement was clearly an important trading outpost throughout its long history. A significant number of Roman coins have been unearthed in the town centre, despite it being over 200 km from the borders of the Roman Empire.
• The town is, however, perhaps most closely associated with the 15th century medieval ‘Hussite’ king, Jiří of Poděbrady, who was born locally. Poděbrady’s powerful medieval fortress, originally built by king Otakar II in the 13th century, dominates the riverbank. The castle was updated frequently since then, most notably into its current Baroque chateau form, by Empress Maria Theresa in the 18th century. The empress stayed frequently in Poděbrady.
• In 1905, during the drilling of a well in the castle courtyard, a significant source of carbonated mineral water was discovered. Over the next two decades, the town was transformed into a major spa, with art nouveau buildings and hotels constructed around newly drilled springs, which delivered the famous ‘Poděbradka´ mineral water.
• Today, the town is a popular tourist destination, not just for is curative waters, but also due to its varied architecture, embankment paths along the Labe and variety of quality restaurants and cafés. The suggested short tour of the spa and park area, together with a stroll along both sides of the river Labe is around 4 km long, all on flat asphalt pathways. Poděbrady is on a main railway line with trains direct from Prague.
• Although the main castle interior is not open to the public (it is a branch of Charles University) there is a small museum dedicated to the history of Jiří of Poděbrady. For more a more modern cultural experience, a branch of the popular Film Legends Museum is located on the main town square. There are several excellent refreshment options in town – try the Cucina jídlo&víno restaurant in the pedestrian spa area or the boutique café on the main square located in the highly rated Design Pension Twenty.

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Directions

• Starting at the railway station, walk through the pedestrian spa and park area (directly opposite the station) and enter the main town square through the Divadelní walkway which starts at the southeast corner of the park
• Cross the main square towards the chateau and enter the car park beside the chateau. At the corner are steps down to the river embankment
• Turn left and take the walkway along the river for 300m. Cross the river using the pedestrian bridge
• At the south side of the river, continue for 100m on the path away from the river to reach the BLUE hiking trail. Turn right onto this path and continue for 500m to reach the main road
• Cross the road to visit the small park area, with pond, where in the 15th century ten miners were executed for going on strike
• Return back to the town using the main road bridge
• Immediately after crossing the bridge, turn left and walk along the embankment for 300m and then turn right up some steps past the Evangelican church to re-enter the spa park area along the Na Valech street
• Return back to the train station through the park (the Cucina restaurant is halfway down the park)