Melnik Czechia
Czech Rep
94
Cruises availables
At departure or passage at this port
CroisiEurope (94 Cruises)
MS Elbe Princesse
94 Cruises
Frequently Asked Questions
At the foot of the hill, about 600 metres from the centre. The climb, steep in places, takes a good quarter of an hour. No shuttle is needed, but this is not a level call: wear shoes that grip on cobbles.
Yes, entirely. Once the hill is behind you, the central square, the chateau, the church and the cellars are all minutes from one another. No shuttle, no timetable: just cobblestones and time to linger.
The Lobkowicz chateau and its terrace, a tasting in the cellars, the tower of Saints Peter and Paul church and a coffee under the square's arcades fill the afternoon. The ossuary in the crypt takes only minutes, if you are so inclined.
The confluence of the Vltava and the Labe — the Elbe — with the shifting boundary between their waters clearly visible when the light is right. Beyond: orchards, rows of vines and, on a clear day, the distant outline of Mount Říp, the founding hill of Czech legend.
Because it was long held in dower by the queens of Bohemia, who drew both income and residence from it. The small town keeps a quiet elegance from that status: an arcaded square, freshly repainted Renaissance and Baroque facades, and lanes that always open onto a view.
Yes, in the century-old cellars beneath the hill. Tradition credits Emperor Charles IV with bringing Burgundy vines here in the 14th century, making Mělník the capital of the Bohemian vineyard. The Ludmila cuvée, named after a sainted princess, is best drunk on a terrace facing the vines.
An ossuary holding the remains of thousands of the dead, skulls and femurs arranged into compositions by an anthropologist in the early 20th century. The visit lasts a few minutes. It gives this pretty wine town a sudden depth, but it is not for every visitor.
The Czech koruna. Cards work in restaurants, shops and the cellars open for tastings. Keep korunas for small purchases on the square — local wine and the round spa wafers.
Czech. The chateau, the cellars and the restaurants on the square receive foreign visitors and English works fine there, as does German. Elsewhere it is an ordinary small Czech town, and French is not spoken.
No, and that is precisely the appeal. Prague is only 35 kilometres away, yet no tour coaches crowd the scene. Mělník keeps its own pace, and a day visitor becomes a guest rather than a customer.
