Karlovy Vary & the Spa Triangle in 2 days, on foot

This 2-day self-guided walking plan for Karlovy Vary & the Spa Triangle covers 13 narrated sights in an easy day-by-day order. Each day is split into a morning and an afternoon loop, and every stop has a two to three minute audio story in the Gingerguide app.

You set the pace: this is a suggested order, not a schedule. Walk it in 2 days, or stretch it out. Reorder freely; Karlovy Vary & the Spa Triangle rewards a detour.

The Karlovy Vary & the Spa Triangle route at a glance

• Day 1
• Day 2

Day 1

Day 1 covers 7 stops and about 2.6 km on foot, from Diana Lookout Tower and Funicular to Spa Cups and the Drinking Cure. ≈ 2.6 km of walking, about 30 min

Morning

1. Diana Lookout Tower and Funicular: The Diana funicular in Karlovy Vary, opened in 1912, climbs through the spa forest to a lookout tower of 1914 with a lift and a wide view over the spa town and its hills. 1.2 km on foot (14 min) to the next stop
2. Grandhotel Pupp: The Grandhotel Pupp in Karlovy Vary, a grand neo-Baroque hotel on the river Teplá, linked with the Pupp family since the eighteenth century and the traditional hotel of the film festival. 0.3 km on foot (3 min) to the next stop
3. Imperial Spa (Císařské lázně): The Imperial Spa in Karlovy Vary, a Neo-Renaissance bath house by Fellner and Helmer opened in 1895, restored and reopened in 2023 as a cultural centre with tours of its imperial bath. 0.7 km on foot (9 min) to the next stop
4. Church of St Mary Magdalene (kostel svaté Máří Magdalény): The Church of St Mary Magdalene in Karlovy Vary, a Baroque church by Kilian Ignaz Dientzenhofer built from 1732 to 1736 on a small hill by the Hot Spring, with twin towers and an oval dome. 0.2 km on foot (2 min) to the next stop

Afternoon

1. Vřídlo (Hot Spring) and the Hot Spring Colonnade: The Vřídlo in Karlovy Vary, the hottest spring in Czechia at about 73 degrees Celsius, whose jet of water rises inside a glass colonnade of 1975 on the river Teplá. 0.1 km on foot (1 min) to the next stop
2. Market Colonnade and Park Colonnade (Tržní and Sadová kolonáda): The Market Colonnade in Karlovy Vary, a carved white wooden hall of 1883 over the Charles IV Spring, and the cast-iron Park Colonnade of 1881 in the Dvořák Gardens nearby. 0.2 km on foot (2 min) to the next stop
3. Spa Cups and the Drinking Cure: The spa cup of Karlovy Vary, a small porcelain cup with a spout for sipping the hot mineral springs, and the old custom of the drinking cure along the colonnades.

Day 2

Day 2 covers 6 stops and about 4.8 km on foot, from Mill Colonnade (Mlýnská kolonáda) to Mariánské Lázně and Františkovy Lázně. 2 longer hops are best done by public transport or taxi. ≈ 4.8 km of walking, about 1 hr

Morning

1. Mill Colonnade (Mlýnská kolonáda): The Mill Colonnade in Karlovy Vary, a hall of 124 sandstone columns by Josef Zítek, built from 1871 to 1881 over five springs, with statues of the twelve months on its roof. 0.7 km on foot (9 min) to the next stop
2. Church of Saints Peter and Paul (Russian Orthodox Church): The Russian Orthodox Church of Saints Peter and Paul in Karlovy Vary, consecrated in 1897 for Russian spa guests, with five gilded onion domes above the Westend villa quarter. 1.2 km on foot (15 min) to the next stop
3. Jan Becher Museum (Becherovka): The Jan Becher Museum in Karlovy Vary, in the old Becher distillery, tells the story of Becherovka, the herbal bitters made in the town since 1807 to a secret recipe. 2.8 km on foot (34 min) to the next stop

Afternoon

1. Moser Glassworks and Museum: The Moser glassworks in Karlovy Vary, a maker of fine glass since 1857, with a museum of its history and tours of the hall where glass is still blown by mouth. 7.5 km to the next stop: take transport
2. Loket Castle and Town (Elbogen): Loket, a small town in a tight bend of the river Ohře near Karlovy Vary, crowned by a royal Gothic castle on a granite rock once called the key to the Kingdom of Bohemia. 24 km to the next stop: take transport
3. Mariánské Lázně and Františkovy Lázně: Mariánské Lázně and Františkovy Lázně, the two other towns of the West Bohemian Spa Triangle, with a cast-iron colonnade, a Singing Fountain and spa parks, part of the Great Spa Towns of Europe.

Walking distances and times follow streets and footpaths (routing by openrouteservice.org, map data © OpenStreetMap contributors). Times are walking only, at an easy pace; add time at each stop.

Updated: October 27, 2026

Full Karlovy Vary & the Spa Triangle guide and all stops →