10 Most Beautiful Places in the Lednice-Valtice Area You Have to See

From the neo-Gothic Lednice Chateau to the Minaret and baroque Valtice: 10 places in the Lednice-Valtice Area worth the trip, plus history and practical tips.

10 Places You Have to See

1. Lednice Chateau

The park invites you for a walk the moment you pass the gate, but start inside the chateau. The neo-Gothic architecture, the carved ceilings of the state rooms and the history of the family that lived here for centuries give you the key to the whole area. Only then do the buildings scattered around the park make sense.

2. Palm Greenhouse

The Palm Greenhouse is where you can admire exotic plants and flowers even in the colder months. It may be freezing outside, but under the glass it's always green.

3. Chateau Pond

Koi carp gliding through the chateau pond give the park a calm atmosphere. After your chateau tour, sit down on the bank, catch your breath and let the park drift by for a while.

4. Minaret

The Minaret is an oriental pavilion that dominates the skyline of the whole park and also serves as a lookout. Climb all the way to the top and you'll see the entire park below you, the pond with its little islands and, beyond them, the surrounding countryside stretching to the horizon.

5. John's Castle (Janohrad)

John's Castle, known in Czech as Janohrad or Janův hrad, is an artificial ruin in the Gothic style. It was built as a ruin from day one, so it stands in sharp contrast to the polished buildings of the park. The meadows around it are a favorite picnic spot.

6. Three Graces

This elegant statue depicts the three goddesses of beauty and grace from Greek mythology and stands in a classicist temple that bears their name. It's one of the artistic treasures the park hides among its trees and water.

7. Temple of Apollo

The Temple of Apollo is a classicist pavilion where you can sit under the columns and rest. In front of you is a view of the chateau and the surrounding park, the ideal break between two long stretches of the route.

8. Temple of Diana (Rendez-vous)

Rendez-vous is a small hunting lodge far from the main Lednice Chateau grounds, in the woods toward Valtice. If you're looking for a bit of solitude and quiet without the crowds, this is where you'll find it.

9. Obelisk

The Obelisk is a monumental memorial and a prominent landmark in the park. Its shape references the history and culture of ancient Egypt, which romantic park builders loved to bring into their own landscapes.

10. Valtice Chateau

At the opposite end of the area stands Valtice Chateau, a grand site that's an essential part of the Lednice-Valtice Area. This baroque gem is one of the largest chateaus in the Czech Republic, and its halls show just how lavishly the Liechtensteins lived. For what to see in town, read Valtice: What to See in Moravia's Wine Capital. All the places on this list have something in common: each one takes you to a different world, sometimes the Orient, other times antiquity or the Middle Ages, and together they form a landscape full of calm and history. The list is long and it really is a lot for one day, but the visit is worth it. The Lednice chateau park is open to the public year-round, so you can visit in any season and see a slightly different park every time. The chateau, the Minaret and the Palm Greenhouse have their own opening hours and admission fees, so check them on the official Lednice Chateau website before your trip.

Unique Monuments Built Into the Surrounding Landscape

The Lednice-Valtice Area is a cultural landscape between the Lednice and Valtice chateaus, inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1996.

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It covers almost 300 square kilometers, borders Austria to the south and includes seven nature reserves.

Between the two chateaus, you'll find a large number of smaller buildings in a range of architectural styles. The Moorish-style buildings, the Moorish Water Tower and the Minaret, draw the most attention, along with the neo-Gothic St. Hubert's Chapel. On the edge of the Great Moravian hillfort of Pohansko stands a hunting lodge of the same name.

Lednice Chateau: From Gothic Fortress to Neo-Gothic Landmark

The site of the chateau was first home to a Gothic fortress, owned by the Liechtenstein family from the 14th century. In the 16th century it was rebuilt as a Renaissance chateau, which later gave way to a baroque residence with a new garden and riding hall.

The chateau got its final English neo-Gothic look only in the 19th century. It belonged to the Liechtensteins until 1945, when the state took it over.

Inside, the highlights are the state rooms on the ground floor, with carved ceilings and wood-paneled walls. With a guide, you can also peek into the cellars with their stalactite caves.

Chateau Park and Garden

The chateau flows directly into a French park and an English garden. The first mentions of the park date back to the 16th century; it got its current form in the 19th century.

The pond in the park has 15 small islands in total. The exotic trees the English garden is known for started arriving here toward the end of the 18th century.

The Palm Greenhouse, built in 1845, has one of the first cast-iron structures on the European continent.

Minaret: The Tallest Structure of Its Kind in the Czech Republic

The Minaret is 60 m tall, which makes it the tallest structure of its kind in the Czech Republic. It was commissioned by Alois I of Liechtenstein and completed in 1804.

It isn't a religious symbol; in the park it serves as a romantic accent. It's also the oldest surviving lookout tower in the Czech Republic: from the top you can see the Pálava Hills, the White Carpathians and even the spire of St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna.

Exceptional Natural Wealth

The Dyje River flows through the park and forms a loose border of the whole area to the north and east. A network of ponds, forests and farmland completes the landscape.

The landscaping followed the conventions of English parks. That's why baroque architecture meets a neo-Gothic chateau and small romantic buildings here, and carefully planned vistas open up between the trees.

Who Created the Lednice-Valtice Area?

The area was created by the Liechtenstein family. They shaped the landscape around their residences in Lednice and Valtice for centuries, and in the 18th and 19th centuries turned it into a romantic natural park. Today it's considered the largest man-made landscape in Europe.

What to Do in the Lednice-Valtice Area?

You can explore the area on foot or by bike on an extensive network of bike trails. You can also reach the monuments by boat or in a carriage drawn by a pair of horses.

Valtice is considered the wine capital of Moravia, so it's easy to wrap up your trip with a glass of local wine. One visit isn't enough for the whole area, which is why people love coming back.

Treasure Hunt Lednice takes you right through the UNESCO World Heritage site. You can play the classic version or a version extended with activities; you see the treasures on a map on a tablet or phone with our GPS app, and you choose the order yourself.

The game keeps a team busy for 2 to 3 hours, so you'll have plenty of time left for the chateau and the Minaret. The other end of the area is covered by Treasure Hunt Valtice.

For a group, a simple day plan works well: a tour of the chateau and greenhouse in the morning, the game in the park with a climb up the Minaret after lunch, and a transfer to Valtice for wine to finish. Book the game date, the number of teams and the version with activities in advance so you don't have to wait on site.

Frequently Asked Questions

What can you find in the Lednice-Valtice Area? The Lednice and Valtice chateaus and a large number of smaller buildings in various styles, such as the Minaret, the Moorish Water Tower, the artificial ruin of John's Castle, the Obelisk and St. Hubert's Chapel. You'll also find the Great Moravian hillfort of Pohansko here.

When was the Lednice-Valtice Area added to the UNESCO list? It was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1996. The protected landscape covers almost 300 square kilometers.

How tall is the Minaret in Lednice? The Minaret is 60 m tall and is the tallest structure of its kind in the Czech Republic. It was completed in 1804.

Can you play Treasure Hunt in the Lednice-Valtice Area? Yes. Treasure Hunt Lednice is played right in the UNESCO World Heritage site, in the classic version or a version extended with activities. The second game in the area is Treasure Hunt Valtice.

Is the Lednice chateau park open year-round? Yes, the Lednice chateau park is open to the public all year, so you can visit in any season.