Vyšší Brod

Vyšší Brod is a town of 2,600 inhabitants (2026) in South Bohemia, in the Czech Republic, on the Vltava River. The town is a popular river tourism spot. The main landmark of the town is the Vyšší Brod Monastery, which is protected as a national cultural monument. The historic town centre with the monastery complex is well preserved and is protected as an urban monument zone. It is also a popular starting point for river tourism.

Vyšší Brod was founded in the 13th century at the latest and became a town in 1870.

About two thirds of the municipal territory lie in the Bohemian Forest Foothills, only the western part lies in the Bohemian Forest. The highest point is the mountain Jezevčí vrch at 984 m (3,228 ft) above sea level. The municipal territory borders Austria in the south and the Vyšší Brod Pass is on this state border. Vyšší Brod is the southernmost municipality of the Czech Republic.

The Vltava River flows through the town. The streams Menší Vltavice and Větší Vltavice flow into the Vltava in Vyšší Brod. The Lipno II Reservoir, built on the Vltava, is on the northern outskirts of the town.

Vyšší Brod is about 21 km (13 mi) south of Český Krumlov and 40 km (25 mi) south of České Budějovice.

Vyšší Brod lies on regional railway line from Rybník to Lipno nad Vltavou.

You can use connections from České Budějovice, there are direct local train connections and the trip takes about 1 hr 20 min; from Prague, you can go by an EC train to Rybník and transfer here, this trip takes about 3 hours. For more details look at IDOS.

The train station 48.623614.30891 Vyšší Brod klášter is north-east of the monastery and north of the town centre; the walk takes about 10 minutes to the monastery or 20 minutes to the town square.

There are direct bus connections for České Budějovice (1 hr 20 min to 1 hr 40 min).

• 48.62055614.3066671 Vyšší Brod Monastery (Vyšebrodský klášter) (on the right bank of the river Vltava, in the south-west part of the town of Vyšší Brod). The Cistercian monastery with the Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary is the most important building and the main landmark of the town. For its value, it is protected as national cultural monument.[13] The monastery complex also houses a postal museum, a branch of the Prague Postal Museum.  
• 48.61396314.3123342 Church of Saint Bartholomew (Kostel svatého Bartoloměje) (on the town square). This early Gothic building was documented already in 1259 when the monastery was founded. The oldest preserved part of the church is the chancel, which dates from the second half of the 13th century. Modifications were made in the 16th and 17th centuries. In 1715, the church was extended. In the second half of the 19th century, the tower was restored to its Gothic appearance.  
• 48.614714.31183 Old Town Hall (Stará radnice), Namesti 104 (on the town square). It was built as a house in 1524, and rebuilt into the town hall after the 1569 fire. Its present neo-Gothic form is a result of the reconstruction from 1883. Until 1947, the building served as a town hall. Today it houses the tourist infocentre.  
• 48.6082214.2954 Our Lady resting on the stone (Maria Rast am Stein), Loučovice (southwest of the Vyšší Brod Monastery). A Marian pilgrimage site. The pilgrimage tradition began there in 1844. The complex of the pseudo-Gothic buildings with the Chapel of Maria Rast was built in 1888–1890. The way to the chapel is lined by the Stations of the Cross dating from 1898.  

If you like hiking, you can follow a yellow hiking path from townsquare and go about 10km to the southernmost point of the Czech republic.