After my week on Syros I tried to get back to my pre-pandemic pattern of traveling once a month. I also wanted to travel alone again for a week. So, giving this a go again, I started with a weekend in Znojmo which basically just across the border from Austria. Znojmo is a small town, but still the second largest in South Moravia, which makes it ideal for a short weekend trip. Not sure though why I made it a super early trip but my bus left Vienna shortly after 6am. What’s cool about arriving early is, that you have the town all to yourself (almost but still).
the market stands are set up @Znojmo
For a small town Znojmo has quite a lot of sightseeing places, but before I could start doing that I needed to check into my hotel. Which was actually still closed at the time of my arrival. Since the Penzion Austis, also called Hotel Clemar, only opens its doors at 8am, I strolled a bit through the empty streets.
empty streets in the morning @Znojmo
cobbled alleys @Znojmo
But I wasn’t in Znojmo just to stroll through empty streets, which is actually kind of fun. I was there to get some sightseeing done. So after checking into my hotel (never book the single room there!) I headed to the castle. A big advantage of arriving early is the lack of tourists in the morning. I booked my castle tour and a visit of the St. Catherine Rotunda, which features frescoes from the 12th century. No pictures are allowed inside, totally understandable. Since I was also the only visitor inside, there was no chance to get one despite.
St. Catherine’s Rotunda with the castle in the back @Znojmo
After admiring the impressive frescoes, I mean it’s kind of unbelievable that you can still see something after 800 years, we headed back to the Znojmo Castle. Which actually looks more like a manor than a castle to me. But whatever.
Znojmo castle @Czechia
Inside it was rather meh but I got a picture of the formal room while it was still empty. It is nowadays used for weddings.
formal room inside the castle @Znojmo
Znojmo boasts also a Town Hall Tower from the 15th century. The town hall itself was damaged during the WWII, but the tower kept standing. The view from up there is worth climbing the stairs.
Town Hall Tower and beautiful old houses @Znojmo
St. Nicholas’ Deanery Church and all the way on the right side is the castle @Znojmo
The St. Nicholas’ Church looks massive, especially next to these two-story houses. I quite liked it that the interior matched my first impression.
St. Nicholas’ Church from inside @Znojmo
Last but not least I descended into the underground of Znojmo. And no, it’s not a metro system. Underground tunnel, built for defense purposes in the 14th and 15th century, are open for tours. The tunnel system covers quite a huge area, and the tour alone lasted about an hour. The tour is only available in Czech but you can get an audio guide in your language.
skeleton on the underground tour @Znojmo
I covered the main sights in a couple of hours and spent the rest of the time walking around. Znojmo is a quaint little town, especially the old part. It’s well worth a weekend trip. Yours, Pollybert
