E-biking in Sumava national park.

I just spent a few days exploring southern Bohemia. Both with e-bike and by foot. I was based in a lovely little village with a fantastic local brewery.

I am an avid cyclist. I have Tour cycled on five continents and love cycling. But this week I tried e-biking for the first time.

I was staying at an absolutely wonderful place called Bed and Bike in the village of Prachatice. Prachatice is located in southern Bohemia in the Czech Republic. Bed and Bike rents out quite luxurious apartments right on the main square in Prachatice. And just around the corner from the apartments is a building where they have their e-bikes waiting for guests. They are included in the price you pay for the apartment. Nice accommodation with bikes included is totally my cup of tea. 🙂 

I stayed in an apartment on this square in Prachatice.

Bed and Bike in Prachatice.

Everyone can cycle mountain roads with  e-bikes.

E-bikes are a funny thing. I had actually never tried one before I came to Prachatice. And I was a little sceptical at first I must say. The bike has a little electrical engine that powers the bike as long as you keep pedalling. This means that you are only powered when you pedal. So it’s not like a moped. But it’s really perfect for people who have problems riding up steep hills. On an e-bike you can just lower the gear and turn on the engine. Then you will be going up the mountain with some easy pedalling. Some avid cyclists will say that this is cheating. And maybe it is. But it’s a fun way of cheating 🙂 . It’s certainly something that especially senior citizens can benefit from and make them choose an e-bike instead of just sitting in a car when touring. I really think the e-bike has great potential for active tourism in the future, as it makes mountain regions accessible by bike, for all ages. Personally I will still stick to my old fashioned mountain bike. But I have certainly become quite positive about e-bikes. They are a really good solution for many people. 

Sumava by e-bike.

Exploring Sumava national park.

One day I was out with my friends e-biking around Sumava national park. The next day we were also out hiking in the park. Sumava national park is located right on the German border and has some of the most dense forest in Europe. The area is also protected by UNESCO as a biosphere reserve. Sumava national park is located in a mountain range. So you are up at an altitude of 500 to 1400 meters when you are hiking and biking there. The area used to be off-limits to ordinary people in the cold war area. The forest was bordering West Germany and was heavily guarded. These days you can still see some of the old cold war bunkers in the forest, as a reminder of bad old times, when Europe was sharply divided into east and west.

Sumava national park.

The trails and roads in the Sumava national park are perfect for cycling. and you see many local cyclists there. The Czech people are in general an outdoor population. and you see them out and about on the trail, with their kids, especially during weekends. They often end up at a local brew pub by the end of the day. In the Sumava national park, we also found a brew pub, where we stopped for lunch and fantastic local beer. Just like many of the locals on bikes also did.

Having lunch and beer at the Lyer Brewery.

We spent half a day hiking around the Sumava national park. A local guide took us to some lookout posts and told us about the park. He also showed us some of the old cold war bunkers.

Hiking around Sumava national park.

Cold war bunker at Sumava national park.

Prachatice makes fantastic beer.

Back in Prachatice we gave the local brew pub/restaurant a try. This was a good idea. I am a big beer geek myself and love to try different beers. I tried many small local breweries when I was in the Czech Republic. Pivovar Prachatice is one of the very best places I have been to for beer in the Czech Republic. Very tasty unfiltered beer. All brewed on the main square in Prachatice. If you go there, then this is something I can highly recommend.

One of the finest beers I ever had.

All in all I can really recommend Prachatice and the surrounding area at Sumava national park, if you like me love the great outdoors, but also like a bit of the good life. With quality lodging and quality beer.

Bike statue in Prachatice.

Prachatice by night.

Getting to Prachatice.

You can of course drive to Prachatice by car, bicycle or motorbike, if you travel that way. But if you use public transport, then you can also go by train. If coming from Prague, then you need to change trains in the small town of Cicenice, or go via the bigger town Ceske Budejovice. All in all, it should take you around 4-5 hours to get from Prague to Prachatice.