Tourism

The town of Varnsdorf is situated at the foot of the Lusatian Mountains in the valley of the Mandava River and is surrounded on three sides by the border with the Federal Republic of Germany. This area is characterised by a fairly favourable environment, which is based on the location of the town and the structure of industrial production. The local industry has always been oriented towards light textile and engineering production. The town's location, nature and interesting cultural monuments attract domestic and foreign tourists to Varnsdorf and its surroundings.

The nearby Tolštejn hill with its romantic castle ruins, the Stations of the Cross or Jedlová mountain with its lookout tower attract interest. In winter there is ideal terrain for downhill and cross-country skiing. You can get around Varnsdorf and its surroundings on foot, by bike, by car, by train or by public transport. We wish you a lot of vigour, good health, pleasant well-being and beautiful experiences while wandering around our region.

For cross-border hiking, you can use the road crossing to Seifhennersdorf and Grossschönau, the railway crossing at the railway station and, for hikers and cyclists, the hiking trail to Seifhennersdorf. It is necessary to carry valid documents required for crossing the border.

From the point of view of hiking, Varnsdorf is a convenient starting point for trips to the protected landscape area of the Lusatian Mountains and the surrounding area. There are many historical monuments and natural attractions, many cultural and sports facilities. Since 1980, Varnsdorf has been part of Studánka, the highest village in the region with the pseudo-Romanesque church of St. Francis of Assisi from 1872. There are also many timbered buildings with the so-called "podstávka", demonstrating the development of folk architecture.
The hiking trail leads to the nearby Jiřetín(www.jiretin.cz), where the extensive ruins of the medieval castle of Tolštejn (hence Tolštejn Manor) are of interest. Křížová hora is a granite hill with a chapel and a Stations of the Cross consisting of 11 rococo niche chapels with stone reliefs. The lookout tower on Jedlová hora (774) and the mountain hotel with year-round operation are among the most visited tourist places in the area. For winter sports enthusiasts, a ski lift leads to the top. The ski area in Horní Podluží with artificial snow is very popular.

The dominant feature of Varnsdorf is the Jedlová hill with an altitude of 774 metres, a lookout tower and a restaurant.

In nearby Rumburk(www.rumburk.cz) there is a Capuchin monastery complex with the Church of St. Lawrence and the northernmost Loreto in Europe, built according to the Italian original. The Dymník lookout tower (516 m) with a restaurant offers a beautiful view of the surroundings. The Plague Column in the middle of Lužice Square is an early Baroque building from 1681.

The town of Krásná Lípa is the seat of the Administration of the Czech Switzerland National Park. The local museum has a permanent exhibition of tourism, glassmaking and the history of the town. An interesting tourist place is the nearby hill Vlčí hora (580m) with a lookout tower.

Other attractions

• Summer and winter sports complex in Jiřetín pod Jedlovou
• Swimming pools and sports centres in Varnsdorf and Rumburk
• Winter resort in Horní Podluží
• Žofín goat farm in Horní Podluží
• Mining nature trail Valley of the Milířka in Lower Podluží
• St. J. Evangelista's Cave in Jiřetín pod Jedlovou
• Regional Museum in Jiřetín p/J about mining and Tolštejn
• T. Haenke Regional Museum in Chřibská
• Kyjov valley, rock castles of Bohemian Switzerland.

Monuments, nature reserves

• Kyjovské údolí - the canyon of the Křinice river in the national park
• Nature reserve Marschnerova meadow
• Springs of the Mandava and Křinice rivers
• Sandstone formations throughout the region
• Maple Gate in Šluknov
• Geological map in Zahrady (technical monument)
• Vápenka Nature Reserve with the occurrence of Jurassic limestone
• Světlík Pond Nature Reserve with a former windmill
• Kögler Nature Trail near Krásná Lípa

Lusatian Mountains

Visitors to Varnsdorf are attracted by the surroundings, which are dominated by the Lusatian Mountains(www.luzicke-hory.cz). They offer many opportunities for hiking and cycling. Hiking has a long tradition in the Lusatian Mountains. Hiking trails were marked out as early as the end of the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century. The highest point of the Lusatian Mountains and the highest peak in Germany east of the Elbe is Mount Luz (793 m). On the other hand, the lowest altitude can be reached if you visit the valley of the Kamenice River (290 m above sea level).

The most visited places in the Lusatian Mountains Protected Landscape Area are the surroundings of the cross-border hiking trails (Dolní Světlá - Waltersdorf, Krompach - Jonsdorf, Krompach - Hain, Petrovice - Lückendorf). The peak landmarks Jedlová, Luž and Klíč offer distant views. The unusual shape, which resembles the backs and heads of elephants, is a natural monument called the White Stones. In 2001, the international nature trail "Lusatian and Zittau Mountains" was reconstructed, which follows the geological conditions and natural attractions in the eastern part of the protected area. The Zlatý vrch National Monument, where basalt columns more than twice as long as those at Panská skála near Kamenický Šenov can be seen, is one of the stops on the "Around Studenc" nature trail. The restoration of the peat meadow is presented by the educational circuit marked in 1999 in the area of the Brazilka natural monument (Mařenice village).

The National Park Bohemian Switzerland was declared the fourth national park of the Czech Republic on 1 January 2000. The beginnings of tourist exploration of the area date back to the second half of the 18th century. Today, the territory of the National Park Bohemian Switzerland is accessible by a traditional network of marked trails and three nature trails. The most famous places include the Pravčická brána National Natural Monument - a unique rock bridge in Europe. The Tichá a Divoká gorge of the Kamenice river, where the boating has been practised since the end of the 19th century, is attractive for visitors. The Jetřichovice rocks are also popular, especially the viewpoints of Mary's Rock, Vilemínina Stěna and Rudolf's Stone or the former rock castles of Šaunštejn, Falkenštejn, Brtnický and Kyjovský. The Kyjov valley with the Křinice gorge and the valley of the Brtnický brook are also well known. There are more than 45 km of marked cycling routes for cyclists.

Become a wanderer on the Tolštejn estate!

For those who prefer to walk alone in the mountains and forests, we recommend the Tolštejn Manor hiking map (more at www.tolstejn.cz), which you can use to discover interesting places in the region of the manor, as well as to collect original stamps and glass Tolštejn krejcars for the Vander Passport, or the map from the KČT Czechoslovakian Switzerland edition, which allows you to get to know the whole region.

In October 2008, the Czech Tourist Club of Krásná Lípa published a new tourist map "Varnsdorfsko" in the scale of 1:25 000 with a print run of 3000 copies. The back side describes 15 important places of Varnsdorf region accompanied by pen drawings. The map is enriched with a detailed plan of the town centre, walking, cycling and skiing routes are marked, the text is in Czech-German.

In 2008, a new marked tourist route (yellow) was marked, which comes from Grossschönau and continues on Czech territory via Špičák and Hrádek and leaves for Seifhennersdorf. There is a shaped turn-off to both peaks. Another improvement on the hiking trails was the repair of the ascending historical trail - the green shaped branch to Hrádek. This repair was arranged by the Czech Tourist Club. An information map was installed at the crossing to Grossschönau. Everything was done in cooperation with the Varnsdorf Municipality and in cooperation with German tourists. The new trail can be found on the map No. 13 of the KČT edition and on the map of the Varnsdorf region.

Accommodation

An overview of accommodation in Varnsdorf and its surroundings can be found on the MIC website here