Podebrady Czechia
Czech Rep
Frequently Asked Questions
On the Elbe — called the Labe here — below a garden town about fifty kilometres east of Prague. The landing sits beneath the gardens; the castle faces the river and the spa park begins a few minutes' walk away.
Because of a borehole. In 1905, drilling in the castle courtyard uncovered a sparkling mineral spring, rich in iron, with a pronounced metallic taste. Within a few years the small town became one of the most fashionable spas in Bohemia, specialising in heart treatment.
Poděbrady is less visited than practised. Sitting on a park bench with a cup of mineral water, watching the spa guests stroll by, crossing the bridge to see the castle reflected in the Labe: that is the real programme, and it fills a call better than a list of monuments.
Yes. The Boček spring fountain runs in the spa park, near the colonnade. This is the famous Poděbradka that Czechs buy bottled across the country. The iron taste is startling at first, then you go back for more, if only to say you drank at the source.
A singular figure in Czech history: in the 15th century this Hussite lord was raised to the Bohemian throne by election, with no dynasty or foreign crown behind him. The castle, his presumed birthplace, holds an exhibition on his reign and his strikingly modern plan for an organised peace among European princes.
A long building raised in 1936 in an unapologetically functionalist style, running along the spa park lawns. Around it, formal flowerbeds laid out with a ruler and a floral clock replanted with the seasons, a meeting point for generations.
Renaissance and Baroque houses with carefully kept facades, in a historic centre protected as a whole. The 16th-century old town hall now houses the municipal library. The equestrian statue of the elected king still watches over his people, a few steps away.
The Czech koruna. Cards work in the cafés, ice cream shops and boutiques in the centre. Keep a few korunas for the spring cup and the park kiosks.
Czech. The town has long welcomed spa guests, often Czech and German: English works in hotels and at the sights, German reasonably well. French is rare.
The Film Legends Museum, in the heart of the spa district, displays props, models and costumes from Czech and international cinema. Boat excursions also run to neighbouring Nymburk or upstream to the confluence of the Elbe and the Cidlina, between the willows.
