Pisek Stone Bridge

Pisek grew on river gold and on the trade road south, and its bridge is the oldest stone crossing left standing in the country, older than Charles Bridge in Prague though far shorter and lower. Squat arches carry a narrow deck a short way above the Otava, with baroque statues added later above the cutwaters. It has been closed to traffic for decades, so you can stand on it and look along the water rather than dodging cars. The town around it kept a wing of its royal castle, now the regional museum, an arcaded main square, and a river frontage of weirs and gravel banks where people swim through the summer.

What you actually see

• The Gothic arches - the low stone spans, the oldest surviving bridge structure in the country.
• The baroque statues - weathered figures standing above the cutwaters, added centuries after the bridge.
• The Otava frontage - weirs, gravel banks and riverside paths on both sides of the crossing.
• The castle museum - the surviving wing of the royal castle beside the bridge, now the regional museum.

When to go

April to October, when the riverbank paths and the swimming spots by the weir are in use and the square has terraces open. The bridge itself takes minutes, so the reason to linger is the river. Summer evenings are the pleasant time. High water in spring occasionally closes the riverside paths.

Honest expectations

It is a small, plain bridge, and anyone arriving with Charles Bridge in mind will be puzzled by how modest it looks. The statues are heavily weathered and some are copies. Pisek is a quiet provincial town with few other sights, so it works better as a stop on a route than as a destination.

Nearby

Zvikov castle stands at the river confluence upstream, and Ceske Budejovice is an hour south.