Cesky Krumlov and Divci Kamen Czech Republic- Girls' Trip 2014

We were sad to leave Hallstatt because we realized that half our vacation was over. To make the most of the time we had left we decided to save time and spend a little extra to have a private van shuttle us from Hallstatt to Cesky Krumlov.  We used a shuttle service called CK Shuttle. http://www.ckshuttle.cz/bus-cesky-krumlov-transfer/.... this turned out to be a great idea.  The 3 hour ride was about 38 USD pp (8 of us- but you can do shared rides for less money) for curb to curb service.  We had an awesome driver who was originally from Krumlov so his navigation was spot on.
Back seat girls!!

 

We stayed in 2 apartments (4 each) called Residence Muzeum Vltavinu

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g274688-d3365823-Reviews-s1-Residence_Muzeum_Vltavinu-Cesky_Krumlov_South_Bohemian_Region_Bohemia.html

 

There were 2 kinds of apts. modern and old world...needless to say the old world apt was full of wood- even the toilet seat was wooden!

These apts were cheap- 26 USD pp (a little over 100USD a night per apt). We paid extra to have breakfast delivered to the room in the morning...WELL WORTH IT!!

The apts. were well located but noisy...Krumlovians love to party way into the night- we couldn't decide to keep our windows open and put earplugs in or shut the windows- be warm, but quiet.

 

Cesky Krumlov was a charming village- shopping heaven.

The "thing" to buy there are garnets and moldovite- which is a meteor rock specific to the region.  Our apts. sat over the official moldovite museum- go see it -interesting.  The jewelry is beautiful and I think we each bought a piece.

 

Krumlov Castle (above) was beautiful at night.  During the day, while you are touring, take notice that there is tons of faux painting ie stones, shadows etc. It is very good faux, but faux no the less.

There is a portion of the castle that resembles an aqueduct - you can walk across the third floor of this faux aqueduct.  -lol

And at the entrance to the castle in the moat are the guard bears- the bear have been castle guards for years.  Kind of felt bad for them.

 

 

A visit to the gardens (a big hike uphill) was quite rewarding.

 

Our favorite restaurant- which we ate at twice was called Pappa's Living Restaurant.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g274688-d2170218-Reviews-Papa_s_Living_Restaurant-Cesky_Krumlov_South_Bohemian_Region_Bohemia.html

We enjoyed sitting riverside watching the rafters and kayakers go by.

My only regret was that I didn't raft or kayak.

 

We stayed 2 nights which was enough to see the sights. We loved this town as well!

This turned out to be our relaxation city.

 

I had read about a castle ruins just outside of Cesky Krumlov. I found we could take a local train out there, but we were pressed for time in Krumlov so I inquired if the van driver for CK Shuttle could stop for 2 hours on our way to Prague and let us hike the ruins.  For a few dollars more (like $5.00 each) the company made this stop for us. CK Shuttle rocked! http://www.ckshuttle.cz/bus-cesky-krumlov-transfer/. 

The hike up to the castle was beautiful, paved path through quiet woods

The ruins were spectacular.

http://www.mydestination.com/prague/travel-tips-to-czech-republic/132046/divci-kamen-castle

There was a small entrance fee. Read about the fee and the many legends of the castle in this link.

 

 

The last part of the hike to the ruins got a bit more difficult. But it was so cool to see the ruins up close and personal.

 

Just as we were all needing a "pit stop" a small tavern appeared on the trail.  We stopped in and bought beers, used the potty and continued on our trek- which is now dubbed beer hiking.  The hike according to the tavern lady was the short cut- but it was straight uphill- it was hard not to spill the beer. Kelley found the tavern's beer opener in the beer garden!

Back to the shuttle van, and we continued our journey to Prague.