Tourist Attractions

The first written record of Planá dates back to 1251. The town was founded on an important trade route leading from Nuremberg to Cheb and further on into Bohemia.

About two kilometers south-southeast from the town of Bečov Nad Teplou, not far from the road to Chodov, is a natural monument. It was established to protect the rock formations made of basalt chimney formation with typical column cleats.

Hauenštejn Castle was founded by the Czech King in the second half of the 13th century and was generously enlarged and remodeled in the neo-Gothic style by the Buquoys family during the 19th century.

This is group of sulphur dioxide gaseous effluences at Milhostov. It was declared a natural monument to protect the mofette, or discharge of gaseous sulphur dioxide.

The shallow basin between the Vonšovský and Sooský Creeks (at the Nový Drahov train station, 6 km from Františkové Lázně) is divided by a mound of silicious sand into two parts.

A Jewish enclave existed in Mariánské Lázně from around 1824 and by 1861 it had its own hospital with a small chapel. The Jewish cemetery close to the road to Velká Hleďsebe was founded in 1875. By 1930 it had been extended and is still used today.

You won't find a single place in the entire Slavkovský Forest that suffers a lack of moisture. Often in times when wandering through the woods you might find yourself endlessly jumping over creeks and little streams as well as extensive wetlands.

"Skalnikovy sady" park dominates the town and is one of the most popular among tourists. It was created at the end of the 19th century at the same time as the town.

In 2010 the cinema Slavia underwent a large technical modernization. This upgrade included acquiring new equipment for both audio and video including 3D technology. This was the first single auditorium cinema in the Czech Republic to instal the most up to date Dolby Surround 7.1 audio system. The interior of the cinema was totally renovated.

'Goethe's Retreat' is a sandstone obelisk and two stone resting places on the side of Hamelika Hill. Goethe used to sit here on a bench, sometimes with Ulrika von Levetzow, or alone, spending many hours in contemplation here. The obelisk was built in August 1848 to recall Goethe's three sojourns in Mariánské Lázně between 1821 and 1823.

The church was built in the year 1790 on the foundations of an earlier parish chapel. The first mass was held on Christmas Eve 1790. The interior of this late Baroque church is relatively simple in design.

The best-known and most significant granite rock formation in the Karlovy Vary massive is undoubtedly the Svatoš Rocks (Svatošské Skály), part of the Jan Svatoš National Nature Park (NPP).