Top 10 Gardens in the Czech Republic
The Czech Republic preserves an extraordinary density of Renaissance and baroque gardens, many tied to the great aristocratic houses of central Europe — the Lobkowicz, Schwarzenberg, and Lichtenstein families. UNESCO has inscribed two Czech gardens for their landscape importance.
1. Wallenstein Garden, Prague
Built between 1623 and 1630 for general Albrecht von Wallenstein, the first baroque garden of central Europe, with the famous Sala Terrena loggia and astonishing stalactite grotto.
2. Lednice–Valtice Cultural Landscape, South Moravia
A 200-square-kilometre designed landscape between the Lednice and Valtice palaces of the Liechtenstein family, with romantic structures dotted across forest and lake. UNESCO World Heritage Site.
3. Kroměříž Archbishop's Garden
The Pleasure Garden (Květná zahrada) and the Castle Garden of Kroměříž together represent the finest seventeenth-century Italian-influenced ensemble in the country. UNESCO World Heritage Site.
4. Royal Garden, Prague Castle
Italian Renaissance garden begun in 1534 by King Ferdinand I, with the Singing Fountain, the Royal Summer Palace and the Ball Game Hall.
5. Petřín Hill, Prague
Public hilltop park with rose gardens, the Mirror Maze, and the iconic Petřín Tower, modelled on the Eiffel Tower.
6. Vrtba Garden, Prague
An exquisite small terraced baroque garden in the Lesser Town, with sculptures by Matthias Braun. UNESCO World Heritage as part of historic Prague.
7. Konopiště Rose Garden, Central Bohemia
The garden of Archduke Franz Ferdinand's hunting castle, with formal terraces and one of the most photographed rose collections in central Europe.
8. Botanical Garden of the Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague-Suchdol
A working teaching garden with extensive perennial trial beds and a strong native flora section.
9. Průhonice Park, near Prague
An English landscape park of 240 hectares laid out by Count Sylva-Tarouca from 1885, with one of central Europe's largest rhododendron and azalea collections. UNESCO World Heritage Site.
10. Žofín Garden, Prague
A small island garden in the Vltava, with a nineteenth-century concert hall and mature plane trees — Prague's most romantic urban refuge.
Where will you go first?
All of the gardens mentioned in this article are pinned on the interactive map. Use it to plan a route, group nearby sites into a single trip, or compare gardens by style and season.