A Few Tips for Summer Music Festivals in the Czech Republic
- martina
- Feb 19, 2020
- 6 min read
Updated: Mar 29, 2020
The best way how to enjoy #music and absorb the Czech culture is to explore open air music festivals that take place in summer all over the Czech Republic.
No matter what style of music you like, you will certainly find one that suits you the best.
From classical music, contemporary folk, blues, jazz to hip hop, reggae and rock, Czech Republic is home to truly great musical events that keep music fans entertained throughout the whole summer.
Colours of Ostrava | photo credit: martina
Tips to Go & Dance Barefoot in Summer
Listening to great music, dancing under the stars and meeting new interesting people - those are the synonyms of summer music open air festivals in the Czech Republic.
That all embracing magical atmosphere attracts thousands of people each year. While traveling in the Czech Republic in the summer, it is always worth a google search for possible festivals or other events.
There is always something going on. I will focus on two music festivals in this post I go to every year. However, the Czech summer has much more to offer, so feel free to explore.
Colours of Ostrava Open Air Festival
Colours of Ostrava is the biggest music festival in the Czech Republic and its popularity is growing each year. This multi-genre festival takes place usually in the middle of July on recultivated Brownfields of Dolní Vítkovice. A town, nowadays part of the city of #Ostrava, which until a decade ago served to black coal mining industry and important production of steel.
The industrial architecture of this national heritage site is impressive and gives the settings of the festival a unique style and originality. The festival is also one of the most expensive ones in the Czech Republic.
Ticket sale starts in autumn and the closer to the festival summer opening the more expensive get the tickets. It is worthwhile to plan ahead.
#Colours of Ostrava welcomes great musicians from all over the world every year. There were 130 bands from 31 countries playing on 24 stages in 2019. The various spaces between the performance stages offer bars, cafés, food and beer stands, shops with original jewellery, clothes and other handicraft products.
You can just sit on the grass, relax or play games, dance or go to see an art exhibition. If you need a break from the crowds take one of the tours that explore the fine examples of functionalistic architecture in the city, go to watch a rare movies or join one of the clubs for various discussions about contemporary hot topics.
The festival is also very family friendly with playgrounds and #kids activities. Children under 140 cm go free. There is a climbing gym in the area too offering a rental service for climbing equipment.
photo credit: martina
If you do decide to come to the festival, I recommend to reserve an accommodation as soon as possible because it gets sold out quickly. If you are not successful in making a hotel reservation, there should always be a spot to pitch a tent in designated camping area.
Ostrava is easy to reach from Prague. The fastest way to get there is by train. The train is comfortable and you can make it from Prague to Ostrava in three and half hours.
You can also take a bus or drive a car. However, the main highway D1 has been undergoing a serious reconstruction in recent years, which sometimes makes travelling on it a hell on the Earth.
When the Colours are in town, Ostrava turns into a bustling city full of music lovers and young people.
Ostrava is a vibrant university city. It is the third largest city in the Czech Republic and the cultural and economic capital of the Moravian-Silesian Region.
Nestled at the meeting point of four rivers Odra, Opava, Ostravice a Lučina Ostrava's history has been marked by coal mining and ironworks.
photo credit: martina
Hiking the highest peak of Beskydy Mountains - Lysá Hora (1 323m)
Ostrava lies in a flat land positioned between two spectacular mountain ranges - #Jeseniky and #Beskydy - both ideal for #hiking and #biking. Once you visit Ostrava, they are definitely worth visiting .
For hiking and biking trails look for the Czech Tourist Club (Klub Českých Turistů) topographic map number 96 called Moravskoslezské Beskydy.
The best way how to reach Beskydy and hit the trail up to its highest mountain is by car. Alternatively, take a train to Frýdlant nad Ostravicí and then bus to Malenovice.
Malenovice will be your starting point. A tourist trail marked blue will lead you up to Hradová, Ivančena, Malchor Peak and Lysá Hora, the highest peak of Beskydy.
The hike up to Lysá Hora is 7 kilometres long and it takes about 3 hours.
Lysá Mountain - Beskydy Mountains | photo credit: pixabay.com
Open Air Festival Folk Holidays in Náměšť nad Oslavou
Folk Holidays Festival in Náměšť nad Oslavou (Náměšť in short) is a popular festival held right in the middle of summer break at the turn of July and August.
Concerts take place in the chateau park gardens under the full-grown trees providing shade in hot summer days. Set on the hill near the Renaissance chateau this festival blurs, indeed, the lines between holidays and festival.
#Náměšť nad Oslavou Chateau | photo credit: martina
The festival literally takes over the town. It is 8 days of great music accompanied by interesting workshops throughout the day.
You can learn to draw, paint, write a poetry, enamel jewelry or play an unusual historic music instrument. Folk Holidays is a non-commercial festival. Most of the organizers are volunteers.
It is a multi-genre festival. Both Czech and international bands play rock, indie, jazz, bluegrass, contemporary folk and other styles.
Pack a picnic blanket, buy yourself some goodies and cup of coffee, lemonade or local craft beer in the local stand and enjoy the music.
photo credit: karel
This festival is a great place for young families. Children can dance, run around, play tag or hide and seek, and watch afternoon theatre shows. Sleeping in the tents over night can be also a great adventure for them.
To get to Náměšť nad Oslavou, you can take a train. Check the schedules on idos.cz. It takes about three and half hours to get there from Prague. If you go by car and you hit the highway D1, you will be in Náměšť in just about two hours.
photo kredit: karel
Most festival visitors stay overnight in tents. Festival organizers set up an inexpensive provisional camping site on the bank of the #Oslava river. If you have your own camping gear, you will certainly have a place to stay.
The camping site provides basic facilities like washrooms, showers and small kitchen. It is another great place to socialize and meet new friends.
Camp is unattended so please, do not leave any valuables in the tent. Apart from camping you can always make a reservation in one of the small local hotels, places are limited though. These are inexpensive and certainly comfortable.
Naměšť nad Oslavou Chateau is a beautiful Renaissance chateau situated on the rock outcrop above the Oslava river. The chateau has not changed since the 16th century and it offers a unique display of tapestries and an amazing library with highly regarded fresco decorations. When visiting festival I would certainly recommend to take a guided tour in the castle.
In the Gardens of Náměšť Chateau | photo credit: karel
Hiking the canyon along the Oslava river
Combining some culture with a little bit of hiking adventure is a good way how to explore the countryside around Náměšť. For this particular hike, you will need a topographic map issued by the Czech Tourist Club (Klub Českých Turistů) number 83 called Okolí Brna a Ivančicko.
This trail is only for experienced hikers and if the water level is too high, the trail might not be accessible.
The valley of Oslava river is one of the wildest and the most beautiful in Moravia. Its deep canyon is home to many protected species of plants and animals.
If you want to explore this spectacular canyon and meet some ancient ruins on your way, then follow the red marked tourist trail from Naměšť towards the south.
The nicest part of the trail starts from the crossroads U Vlasáka. At the crossroads Pod Pastýřkou you can choose whether to continue further along the river or take the blue marked tourist trail and then bike trail number 5106 to get back to Náměšť.
The whole round-trip can be about 20 kilometres. I recommend you to take enough drinking water with you and snacks. There is no restaurant on your way and no place to refill your bottle.
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