Anyone looking for a holiday apartment in Čechy Pod Kosířem for a cultural getaway can plan their trip around the town’s different highlights: painting and architecture, carriages and restoration, or a walk along a marked educational trail. The main attractions are the castle and its park, two museums with very different collections, and the Church of St John the Baptist.
Castle, Mánes and a Romantic Park
Čechy pod Kosířem Castle offers a guided tour of the rooms in the south wing. Furnished in the style of the period of František Josef II Silva-Tarouca, it is decorated with works by Josef Mánes. The castle’s interiors also house the largest publicly displayed collection of Mánes’s paintings in the Czech Republic. A visit to the castle therefore focuses both on the design of the south wing and on the painter and his works: two different ways of exploring the house’s cultural history.
The castle park covers 21.5 hectares and is one of the most valuable examples of romantic landscape design in the Czech Republic. Its named structures include the pseudo-Gothic Romantic Červená věž lookout tower and the Neoclassical Mánesův pavilon. Their different architectural styles give the park further distinctive features, bringing together Romantic forms and Neoclassicism. Those interested in architecture can see these styles embodied in specific structures, while the park’s size and classification indicate its significance in comparison with other parks in the Czech Republic.
Carriages, Restoration and Firefighting History
The Muzeum kočárů displays 50 carriages, including sleighs. The collections include hearses, bishops’ carriages and carriage lamps. A visit also takes in a restoration workshop and a gallery of documents, printed materials and plans. Sound, light and film projections complement these exhibits. The museum therefore offers a perspective ranging from the vehicles themselves to their restoration and related materials; a visit is not limited to a series of displayed carriages.
The Hasičské muzeum explores a different historical subject. It is located on the site of a production hall belonging to the oldest fire-engine factory in the former Austria-Hungary. The factory was founded in 1820. Its connection to the production hall links the museum site to the history of the factory, while the Muzeum kočárů focuses on different types of historic carriages and their restoration. Visitors can choose their focus: vehicle history and the workshop on one hand, and fire engines and their industrial history on the other.
Church and Film Exhibition
The Church of St John the Baptist offers two specific connections to art. Inside is a main altarpiece depicting the Baptism of Christ, painted by Viennese artist F. A. Maulbertsch. Outside the church stand two Baroque statues by Olomouc sculptor Ondřej Zahner: St Paul is depicted with a book, and St Peter with keys. The altarpiece and the outdoor statues therefore differ both in location and in what they depict.
On 18 June 2025, the second part of the film exhibition by Jan and Zdeněk Svěrák opened. It is aimed, among others, at children and focuses on the films Kuky se vrací and Tři bratři. For trip planning, the film theme adds another perspective focused on cinema to the artistic and technological-historical highlights.
Along the Trail over Velký Kosíř
Those who would like to complement cultural attractions with an outdoor activity can follow a marked route suitable for hiking and mountain biking. The Naučná stezka Velký Kosíř runs from Čelechovice over Velký Kosíř to Čechy pod Kosířem, then returns via the dirt track known as “Hraběcí cesta.” The route is clearly laid out: it passes over Velký Kosíř to the town, and the return leg follows the named dirt track. This offers a different way to spend your stay from visiting paintings, historic vehicles or religious art.
These differences can help when choosing accommodation: the key question is whether you want to plan your stay mainly around the castle and park, the collections and their history, or the educational trail. Čechy Pod Kosířem thus offers several clearly distinct themes without requiring them to be combined into a single itinerary.
Discover more destinations: Lešany, Ptení, Slatinky, Ivaň, Dobrochov, Brodek U Konice, Stínava, Ondratice
For the broader travel overview: Okres Prostějov.
