50.44° N · 14.58° E
A fourteenth-century castle on a sandstone crag, a valley of timber houses and mushroom-shaped rocks, about 45 km from Prague, near Mělník.
What to do
Each plan says how long it takes, who it's for and whether you can book.
Castle · 1 h · 140 CZK with the tower · May to September, Tuesday to Sunday
Viewpoint · 30 min · 70 CZK · the view over the valley without taking the guided tour
Walk · 1–2 h · free · mushroom-shaped sandstone towers, the biggest 12 m high
Itineraries
Days and weekends already planned out, with how to get between each stop and who to book with.
Plan the trip
Each choice narrows the next: the season shapes how best to travel, and how you travel decides where you stay and where you eat.
When to go
From May to September the castle is open Tuesday to Sunday; in April and October, only at weekends. The valley can be walked all year, but in winter the castle opens only by appointment and the houses in the valley shorten their hours.
How you travel
Choose how you're travelling and we'll tell you where to stay, how to get around, where to eat and which services you'll need. We only show the ways of travelling that make sense here.
Kokořín is about 45 km north of Prague. You fly to Prague, with direct flights from Madrid, Barcelona and other Spanish cities, and continue by hire car from the airport, in a little under an hour, or by train and bus via Mělník to Mšeno or Lhotka u Mělníka, which is the best way to walk the valley.
By car it is about 45 km to the north, via Mělník, in a little under an hour. You park in the valley, below the castle, and walk up; with a car you can add the Pokličky of Mšeno and a tasting in Mělník on the same day.
Kokořín works very well on foot: train or bus to Mělník, regional train to Mšeno, the Pokličky, the castle and the valley down to Lhotka u Mělníka, where you catch the train again. It is 16 km. If you sleep in the valley, you can split it over two days.
Who you're with
A trip with a toddler is not the same as one with a teenager. Pick yours to see what works and what to bear in mind.
Kokořín is an easy outing with children if you do not insist on the whole walk: the castle is small, the guided tour is short and the tower has a view; the Pokličky look like giant stone mushrooms. Children under 6 go in free and there is a family ticket.
Where to stay
We show you what suits the way you travel.Change how you travel
Why we like it: Guesthouse with 14 rooms and apartments above the old inn in the Kokořín valley, with a covered terrace, barbecue, shared kitchen and a fire in the garden.
Why we like it: Restored 1840 farmhouse in the village of Ráj, in the middle of the Kokořín valley: rooms with bathroom for twenty, an outdoor hot tub and a restaurant next door.
Why we like it: Two historic wooden houses in Hlučov, in the Kokořín valley: three rooms with bathroom in the Luční chalupa and the whole Lesní chalupa for six, with a kitchen.
Services for this trip
Where to eat
From set lunch menus to Michelin stars. We mark the price level and what to order at each place.
What to order: a Czech soup or roast dish with a beer, after the castle.
What to order: the Saturday or Sunday midday meal, halfway along the walk.
Map
The places to stay and services on the map are the ones for the way you travel. Turn on the layers you want and tap a point to see its details.
Nearby
The closest places, whichever country they are in.
50.35° N · 14.47° E
By planeCar-freeBy car
50.51° N · 14.15° E
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50.53° N · 14.13° E
By planeCar-freeBy car
50.09° N · 14.42° E
By planeCar-free
Tips
The castle and the valley car park fill up on summer Sundays.
The sandstone paths have steps and roots.
In the valley mobile coverage is poor: download the map first.
It enters the castle for 30 CZK.
Kokořín is a Gothic castle built in the fourteenth century on a sandstone crag in the middle of the forest, and the valley that bears its name. After the Thirty Years' War it was among the "cursed" castles that could no longer be repaired, served as a refuge for bandits and in the nineteenth century was a ruin that attracted Czech Romantics, starting with the poet Karel Hynek Mácha. The Czech Tourist Club made it known in 1895 and in the early twentieth century it was rebuilt. Today the old palace is visited with a guide and you can climb the tower, from which you can see the whole valley. All around is the protected area of Kokořínsko – Máchův kraj: sandstone gorges, rock towers, ponds, villages of timber houses and the Pokličky, mushroom-shaped rocks near Mšeno. It stands about 45 km north of Prague, very close to Mělník.
By car, about 45 km to the north, via Mělník, in about 50 minutes. You park in the valley, in Kokořínský Důl, at the foot of the castle, and walk up through the forest for about 20 minutes.
Without a car, take a train or bus from Prague to Mělník and from there the regional train from Mělník to Mšeno, which stops at Lhotka u Mělníka and at Mšeno, the two ends of the classic route. Between Mělník and the valley there are also buses. With public transport the natural thing is to walk: get off at Mšeno, walk to the castle and leave by Lhotka. Check the timetables in the PID Lítačka app or at idos.cz before setting out.
From May to September, when the castle is open Tuesday to Sunday, from 9:00 to 16:00 or 17:00. In April and October it opens only on Saturdays and Sundays. From November to March, only by appointment for groups. Autumn is the best time for walking: the forest changes colour and there are fewer people than in summer. On Mondays the castle is closed.
If you go by car, Kokořín can be seen in half a day. Stay if you want to walk, which is what the valley asks for: arrive in the afternoon, dine in the valley and set off early for the Pokličky. There are guesthouses in the valley itself and in the village of Ráj, and two historic timber houses in Hlučov.
Tour I with the tower costs 140 CZK per adult and 80 CZK up to age 15; the family ticket, 340 CZK. The tower alone, 70 CZK. A meal in the valley comes to around 250–400 CZK. A double in a guesthouse, from about 1,820 CZK without breakfast.
Questions
About 50 minutes by car; without a car, train or bus to Mělník and a regional train to Mšeno or Lhotka.
The old palace with a guide and, on your own, the walls and the tower with a view over the valley.
No: from May to September Tuesday to Sunday, in April and October at weekends and in winter only by appointment.
Yes, to the castle for 30 CZK and along the paths of the protected area, always under control.
Mushroom-shaped sandstone towers, up to 12 m, near Mšeno.
Yes, it is less than 20 km away: castle and wine in the morning or the afternoon.
Geocaliahttps://www.geocalia.com/en/czechia/kokorin
