The Punkva caves in Czech Republic are pretty epic! The great thing is you can get to the Punkva caves from Prague in one day. On arrival too the Punkva caves everyone is put onto tours including both boat rides and walking. This blog will tell you everything you need to know to plan your trip independently upuntill the point of arrival where you join their Punkva cave tours.

What do Punkva Caves tours include?

The Punkva caves tours covers 1250m distance and takes 1 hour and includes walking, boat trip and very impressive cavern entrance called the Macocha abyss which is a breathtaking 138.4m deep. You will need a fisheye lens or 360 camera to capture it. They offer tours in English. The cave is well lit and you get to see stalactites, stalagmites, pools and an underground river

How long do you need to visit the Punkva Caves from Prague?

It is possible to visit the Punkva caves as a day trip from Prague by train. It would be a long day. You could also do it as a day trip from Brno. There are 5 different cave tours in the area. Similar prices and times (40-70 minutes and 100-180kc). We will focus on the Punkva cave system.

Punkva Caves: How to get there

If you are having to rely on public transport to get to Punkva caves, it can seem daunting at first. We will help you break it down step by step to help you get to the Punkva caves from both Prague and Brno to join the on arrival tour at the lowest possible cost.

How to get to the Punkva Caves Tour from Prague?

Direct train from Prague central train station to Blansko takes around 2.5 hours and costs around 1200kc (GBP40 / USD55). This is probably the nicest way to get to the Punkva caves from Prague. The trains are modern and have WiFi. No food served on board. 1st and 2nd class seats available- but there is very little difference. Train ticket prices don’t increase closer to the time. You pay based on the distance of the route but can generally travel on any train on the route. If you are travelling as a group of 2 or more ask about group discount tickets. If you buy a return ticket it may be slightly cheaper.

You might like a useful Train and bus website to check routes and times getting to Punkva Caves, it’s worth noting the page can be translated to English with Google translate if it doesn’t do it auomatically.

Krasobus stops outside train station and other places around blansko. You can buy your ticket on the bus. Bus 226 goes up to ticket office for the caves. 10kc (GBP0.3 or USD 0.5) between Blansko and the ticket office. Regularity of buses depends on season.

Taxis also available. There is also parking available by the ticket office. The ticket office and information centre is next to the Skalni Mlyn hotel where you can buy tickets for any of the cave tours. The ticket office is marked on the map below.

From ticket office walk around 2km up road (beautiful 20 minute walk) or take small “train” bus. You can purchase tickets at the office with your cave tickets. 90kc (GBP3.00 or USD 4.50) return or 80kc one way.

If you plan to walk there is one fork in the road a short distance after the ticket office. You need to go left at this fork. There are lockers for small and big bags by the cave entrance, 10kc coin needed.

Top Punkva Caves tour tip: if you are traveling by bus find out what time the bus returns to Blansko when you buy your ticket for the cave tour. The bus picks passengers up outside the hotel next to the ticket office. It takes about 20min to walk from the cave to the bus stop. You may need to take the mini train to make it in time.

How to get to a Punkva Caves Tour from Brno

To get to Punkva Caves from Brno, you can take a local train that gets you from Brno to Blansko in under 50 Minutes and costs around 500Kč.(15 GBP) From here you need can follow similar instructions to the later part of arriving from Prague or you can pay for a private taxi. A Taxi is however quite expensive, it typically costs around 1000 Kč (30 GBP)

How much is the ticket entrance fee at Punkva Caves?

You are not allowed to explore the caves without buying a ticket to go on a guided tour with a group.

Entry to the Punkva caves for an adult is 250kc (9 GBP / 12 USD)  + 40kc photo fee (photo fee not strictly enforced in the cave). Child ticket 6-15 years old 150kc (around 4.20GBP / 6USD). Children under 6 free. Randomly, students under 26 years old may be able to get a discount with student ID.

They regularly update the latest on their own cave tourism page.

What are the opening times of the Punkva caves?

Opening times and seasons for the Pukva caves Tours:

• Low season is from start of November- end of March. Open Tuesday – Sunday 8.40am first entry – 2pm last entry and roughly every hour between. Closed on Mondays.
• End of high season. October: Tuesday – Friday 8.40am first entry – 2pm last entry and roughly every hour between. Saturday – Sunday 8.20am first entry – 4pm last entry and roughly every hour between. Closed on Mondays.
• High season is from start of April – end of September. Monday 10.00am first entry – 4pm last entry and roughly every hour between. Tuesday – Sunday 8.20am first entry – 4pm last entry and roughly every hour between.
• Annual closure: Dec 24th-26th and 1st Jan.

Depending on water levels in the cave the boat tour may be cut short or not included and the cost and time may be reduced.

Do you need to buy tickets for Punkva Caves in advance?

We were able to turn up and buy tickets an hour before the tour in mid March without booking in advance. It may be advisable to book in advance in high season, or be willing to wait for a tour. To book in advance: +420 516 413 575 / +420 516 410 024 / +420 602 205 584, info@caves.cz, www.caves.cz There are English speaking staff at the ticket office.

The only place we could see to buy food was the hotel by the ticket office. We would recommend bringing a packed lunch unless you want to eat at the hotel.

Responsible Sustainable Tourism when visiting Punkva Caves

The Punkva Caves and all the surrounding caves in the area are beautiful and deserve to be well cared for and protected from overtouirsm. Thankfully they are very mindful of this in the Czech Republic which is why they run well organised and affordable tours. Limiting the numbers this way and ensuring there is always staff around to encourage and even enforce respectful behaviour when visiting is a well established Eco friendly approach to ensuring sustainable enjoyment of these beautiful caves. So please make sure you follow their guidance and are as respectful as they are of their caves.

What else can you do in the area?

There are several cave systems that you can visit in the area. You can also trek and enjoy the scenery. If you have time you could travel down to Vranov, a beautiful alpine village around 6km south west of Blansko.

There are many lesser known, fun unique things to do in Czech Republic, so don’t miss out!