Ostrava.
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Overview

Ostrava is a city in the borderland of Moravia and Silesia in the Czech Republic. With a population of 290,000 (2019), it is the third largest city in the Czech Republic and the centre of the second largest urban agglomeration after Prague. It has several former industrial areas that have become cultural centres and tourist attractions.

Understand

Ostrava had been a predominantly industrial city since the 18th century, when the discovery of extensive coal deposits in the area led to an industrial boom. Ostrava quickly grew from a small provincial town of around one thousand inhabitants to one of the largest cities in the region.

As a major steel manufacturing centre, Ostrava suffered heavy destruction during the Second World War, and holds the sad distinction of being one of the most polluted cities of the European Union. Ostrava City Council website

Visitor information For a small city, Ostrava has surprisingly large number of tourist information centres. The centres are called Ostrava Info. One is located at each of the main train station (Ostrava hl.n. and Ostrava-Svinov). Two more are located downtown, one at the new City Hall and one at the Elektra transit station.

Get in

By train On cross-border routes, look out for split-ticket deals. 3 hr, Czech Railway's SC Pendolino every one or two hours (prices as above plus 100–200 Kč compulsory reservation fee, around 300 Kč altogether if bought online) 3½ hr, RegioJet several times a day. Tickets are generally sold online and start at 230 Kč. Brno: 2½ hr, hourly fast trains Olomouc: 1 hr, IC/EC trains and SC Pendolino (compulsory reservation) every two hours. Some fast trains (rychlík) from Olomouc to Ostrava go longer way through Jeseníky mountains for more than 3 hours. Katowice: 2 hr, usually with a change at the border Warsaw: 4½ hr, three ECs a day

Moreover there are direct connections from Poprad, Vienna, Bratislava, Žilina, Krakow and Budapest. All of them are best bought online.

There are two main stations, in the north and at the far western end of the city. Fast and international trains stops at both of them. None of the stations are within walking distance from the historic city centre. However a few trains also call at , located next to the old town.

The main bus station in Ostrava is . Student Agency offers five buses a day from Brno, the journey time is 2¾ hours.

Leo Express operates a bus that links the train station at Ostrava-Svinov with the main train station in Katowice, Poland.

FlixBus would be operating in Central Bus Station Ostrava (Ústřední autobusové nádraží Ostrava)

Local bus lines are served from Hranečník, which provides trams to city centre.

Many travelers fly to Katowice Pyrzowice Airport in Poland. This airport is northeast of Ostrava, and can be reached by A1/D1 motorway in about an hour. The airport has direct connections with over 30 destinations across Europe and Asia. FLiXBUS offers bus service to and from Katowice Pyrzowice Airport.

Get around

By tram and bus Tram and bus travel in Ostrava is operated by Dopravní podnik Ostrava. Service is fast, frequent and inexpensive.

Ticketing Tickets are sold by tapping your credit card on the ticket machine onboard the vehicle. English menu is available in these machines. For the 60-minute ticket, you only need to tap your card each time you board a vehicle and do not need to tap when exiting.

See

Mining Museum in Landek Park. Inside the former Anselm Mine (one of the first to be established at the end of the 18th century in what is today the Petřkovice District of Ostrava), the Mining Museum was opened in the early 1990s. It is the largest mining museum in the Czech Republic. The coal seams of the former Anselm Mine surface at the Landek National Nature Reserve, a world famous site in terms of geology, archaeology, history, natural sciences and mining. People were using black coal here more than 25,000 years ago. A unique exhibition of the Mining Museum highlights the evolution of coal mining in the Ostrava-Karviná region, as well as mining technology, and rescue services. The Long Tour is recommended. It is the largest exhibition of its kind in the world. The Mine Train is a small circuit for children. The site includes sports and recreation facilities, aquarium, bowling, cycling trails and a children’s corner.

Landek hill. A wooded elongated 280m high hill, national natural monument comparable to other famous Czech hills (Říp, Blaník etc.). There is a lookout tower on place where castle used to stand. The Venus of Landek was found here.

The Vítkovice Area. This had been an industrial area since the first half of the 19th century. In 2002, in view of its exceptional character, the entire ground was declared a site of National Cultural Heritage. There was the complete technological flow: the mining of coal, a coke plant, and iron and steel production, all of which was unique to the Czech Republic. This historic landmark was listed as the European Cultural Heritage in 2008. The Vítkovice complex Dolní oblast is set to undergo extensive reconstruction. The giant gas container for blast furnace gas (around 70 m wide and 33 m high) will be modified into a concert hall for 1,500 visitors, a gallery, café, etc., based on design by leading Czech architect, Josef Pleskot. Blast Furnace no. 1 was to become the start of a tour route, and the sixth energy central office was to become an industrial museum (project authored by Václav and Helena Zemánkovi). The expected date for completion of reconstruction was 2013.

Štítová kolonie. A colony of originally 32 single-story semi-detached houses, built at the end of the 19th century.

The Michal Mine. Michal Mine, whose history goes back to 1843, is an extremely valuable authentic industrial site in terms of construction and technical equipment. The area was declared a National Cultural Landmark in 1995. Today, the museum provides visitors with the chance to look over all of the above groundwork areas that a miner would have to go through to get to his shift. The tour includes the dressing rooms, washrooms, registry, dispatching, and most importantly, the machine room, with its original and unique equipment that had worked until 1993, when the mine was permanently closed. The scene, intentionally left intact, without any artificial arrangements being made, gives the impression as if work there has just ended.

Silesian Ostrava Castle. The Silesian Ostrava Castle is the city's most historic cultural monument. It was built in the second half of the 13th century, close to the confluence of the Lučina and Ostravice rivers, where a fortified Slavonic settlement had once stood. In 1872, the castle burnt down, but was later re-built. The main cause of its destruction was coal-mining, with seams worked directly beneath the castle. The whole structure sank 16 m into the ground! The castle has been reconstructed and visitors now can view in its interior several permanent exhibitions telling the history of the building and the city of Ostrava, an exhibition of torture instruments, the castle’s vaulted cellars with witches, fresh-water fish aquaria and the castle gallery.

The Ostrava Zoo. The Ostrava Zoo was founded in 1951. It covers an area of 100 hectares and is the home to nearly 360 different species of animals. One of the most popular attractions is the seasonal, commented feeding of animals, evening guided tours and a number of accompanying events, not only for children (Children’s Day, lampion parades, decoration of the Christmas tree, etc.) There are several children’s corners inside the Zoo compound. When there is enough snow, visitors may go cross-country skiing directly inside the Zoo.

Slavic Gods statues. A group of six wooden sculptures on the Cesta vody educational trail.

The Ostrava Museum. The museum is in one of the oldest buildings in Ostrava, the Old Town Hall on Masaryk Square. A new permanent exhibit opened here in June 2009, containing art history collections, history of the city and the nature and landscape of the local area. The unique exhibit, and the pride of the Ostrava Museum, is the indoor astronomical clock, 225 cm high – a work by Jan Mašek. The astronomical clock offers 4 parts – its own clock face, the calendar, and the astronomical and planetary parts.

The Viewing Tower of the New City Hall. The Viewing Tower is one of the city's most popular tourist attractions. On a clear day, it is possible to see the entire city, the nearby Beskids, and neighbouring Poland. The Viewing Tower has dominated the Ostrava skyline since it was built at the New City Hall (the largest in the Czech Republic) in 1930. The strict functionalist style of the tower creates, in the opinion of its designers, a noble beacon of concrete, metal and glass. The tower reaches 298.05 metres above sea level, or roughly 85.60 metres above ground level. The tower is equipped with an illuminated clock face, an elevator, and a lookout deck 72 metres above the ground. The Ostrava City Information Centre, located directly beneath the tower, provides information about the city, in several languages. The building also has an operating paternoster lift, one of only about a dozen in the country.

Kunčický bludný balvan. The largest known glacial erratic in the Czech Republic, most likely somewhere from northern Europe.

Věžičky. A residential complex which got its name thanks to the ornamental elements that were placed on the roof of the ensemble.

Heap Ema. An artificial conical mound, around 315m high and apparently also highest point in Ostrava. This popular tourist destination is covered with forests and offers a view of Ostrava and the surrounding towns, villages and mountains. It was created as a landfill area for mined material, so it contains fragments of coal that continuously self-ignite inside the mound and on few places, there are pipes to let produced gas ventilate.

Poruba district. A large district built whole in architectural style of Socialist Realism ("Sorela"), now mostly renovated but very well preserved. It was meant as a brand new city centre to replace the old town in the 1950s. Besides very monumental main boulevard it boasts many unique architecture.

Poruba castle. A small castle from around 1573. Not accessible to public.

Do

Football: FC Baník Ostrava play soccer in Fortuna or First League, the top tier. Their home ground Městský Stadion (capacity 15,000) is off Hwy 11, south edge of the city. MFK Vítkovice also play here in the third tier.

Golden Spike Ostrava. Athletics meeting, part of the IAAF World Challenge. Normally held at the end of May or beginning of June. Usain Bolt has competed here from 2007 to 2010.

Colours of Ostrava. The Colours of Ostrava international music festival features many domestic and world renowned musical acts. The festival is organised in the Ostrava city centre and in clubs on Stodolní Street every year, with the participation of more than 100 bands and DJs from around the world. The pleasant summer atmosphere is enhanced with a movie theatre presenting musical video clips and movies, a special dancing stage, drums, salsa, and belly-dancing workshops, and the Children's World, enjoyed especially by parents and kids. It was awarded the 2005 Festival of the Year.

The International Music Festival Janáček's May Ostrava. The Janáček May International Music Festival is the oldest and largest music festival in Ostrava, founded in 1975. It is organised by the City of Ostrava and the Janáček Philharmonic Orchestra. The festival attracts not only renowned musical talent from Europe and around the world, but also hosts musicological conferences, exhibitions and theatre performances.

Spectaculo Interesse. In 1995, Ostrava's Puppet Theatre held the first Spectaculo Interesse International Puppet Theatre Festival, establishing the city on the map of European puppetry. Every two years, puppet masters from such diverse places as France, Russia, Hungary, Switzerland, Poland, South Korea, Slovakia, and Austria come to perform. The festival holds a competition, and many of the performances are held in the city's modern, custom-designed Puppet Theatre, and out on the streets among the public.

There are many activities and business that cater to children and families in Ostrava. Many restaurants have playrooms for children and offer crayons and coloring books. Skalka Family Park offers a zoo, summer amusements, and winter skiing and tubing. JOJO Park is an indoor children's amusement center with food and drinks.

Buy

Ostrava is the shopping centre of the region. You can find small specialised shops, hypermarkets and shopping galleries. Souvenirs are sold in branch offices of the Ostrava City Information Centre. Forum Nova Karolina, a large and modern shopping mall close to the city centre with many stores from international chains, a hypermarket, specialty stores and a food court. Laso, a shopping centre containing many smaller shops just off the main city square. If you are staying in Ostrava for at least 2 nights, consider getting an 'Ostrava!!! card'. It gives good discounts for some tourist attractions. It is available for free from select accommodations.

Eat

In such a big city the number of restaurants is naturally enormous, ranging from the very famous restaurants to the less expensive trattorie or pizzerie. Whether you are looking to enjoy classical Czech food, regional specialities or international cuisine, Ostrava probably has what you are looking for. A visit to the region would not be complete without a pint of the local beer, “Ostravar”, which has been brewed in the city since 1897. The main street for wining, dining and having a great time is Stodolní Street, in the heart of the city. It boasts over 60 bars and restaurants in an area covering just a few blocks.

La Petite Conversation. Close to the Stodolní tram stop, the only real Belgian café in Ostrava. Very good sandwiches and coffee.

Taverna na Rynku. Greek cuisine in a serene setting.

Café au pere tranquille (French café).

Harenda u Barborky - stylish restaurant at the Mining museum.

Koras - culinary specialities, International cuisine.

Moravská chalupa - stylish restaurant with regional specialities.

The secret sweet treats of Ostrava are the katowicke rurki, named after the nearby city of Katowice in Poland - although they are arguably a version of a similar treat popular in the entirety Poland, and not peculiar to Katowice at all. The katowicke rurki consist of a sweet wafer rolled into a tube, and then filled with pařížská šlehačka, both using a specially-designed machine. Pařížská šlehačka, in turn, is a filling vaguely resembling chocolate-flavoured whipped cream, although quite often having nothing to do with either cream or chocolate when it comes to its ingredients, and obviously having no obvious connection to the city of Paris after which it is ostensibly named.

Katowicke rurki are usually made by specialized confissers in possession of one of the unique machines, who often have been operating their specialized businesses for decades. One of those is hidden in the Hornická street.

Drink

Ostrava is home to the famous Stodolní street, the biggest strip of bars and pubs in the country. Drinks are generally cheaper than in Prague and atmosphere is more local.

E99. Friendly pub at the end of Stodolní street, near the train station.

Sleep

The city offers a wide variety of accommodation covering all kinds of travel budget and level of service.

Imperial Hotel Ostrava. Hotel with restaurants, relaxation centre and meeting facilities in the city centre.

Park Inn Ostrava. Maybe Ostrava's most modern hotel, and something of a flagship for the brand given the standard and quality compared to the chain's older properties.

Mercure Ostrava Center Hotel. Located in a historic building with an impressive dining terrace.

Hotel Brioni. A four-star hotel on the Stodolní street, with a unique military-themed bar.