The white neo-Gothic towers of Hluboká Castle above its terraced gardens and the Vltava valley in South Bohemia

Book the English guided tour of Bohemia's fairytale white château above the Vltava

Hluboká Castle skip-the-queue entry — the snow-white, Windsor-inspired neo-Gothic palace of the Schwarzenbergs, 140 rooms and 11 towers rising over the river and its English park. We reserve your English-language tour of the state Representation Rooms so you arrive with your timed ticket already in hand.

See ticket options
  • 140 Rooms in the château
  • 11 Towers and turrets
  • 1841–71 Windsor-style rebuild
  • 60 min English guided tour

Choose your ticket

Youth ticket (18–24)

Live availability

One visitor aged 18–24

€24

  • English guided tour of Circuit I — the state Representation Rooms — for one visitor aged 18–24
  • Reserved timed departure — we secure your English-language slot
  • 5-minute audio history sent before your visit
  • Booking handled in your own language
Reserve my youth ticket

Senior ticket (65+)

Live availability

Visitors aged 65 or older

€24

  • English guided tour of Circuit I — the state Representation Rooms of the Schwarzenberg family
  • Reserved timed departure — we secure your English-language slot
  • 5-minute audio history sent before your visit
  • Booking handled in your own language
Reserve my senior ticket

Child ticket (6–17)

Live availability

One child aged 6–17 · under 6 enters free

€14

  • English guided tour of Circuit I — the state Representation Rooms — for one child aged 6–17
  • Reserved timed departure — we secure your English-language slot
  • 5-minute audio history the whole family can listen to
  • Children under 6 enter free — no ticket needed
Reserve my child ticket
  • Book in your languageYour currency, final price.
  • English tour securedWe hold the limited English departure for you.
  • Ready before you flyMobile ticket, ready in your inbox.
  • 24/7 human supportReal people, instant answers — any hour, any time zone.
4.8 from 87 verified travellers
Helen P.
Bristol, England
“We showed up with our English tour already booked and walked straight to the meeting point while others were told the next English slot was hours away. The Representation Rooms are jaw-dropping — the carved ceilings and the library especially. The little audio history beforehand set it up perfectly.”
May 2026
Mark D.
Melbourne, Australia
“Booking the English guide in advance was the best decision of our South Bohemia trip. The château looks like something out of a fairy tale from the park, and the hour inside flew by. Ticket arrived within minutes with a QR code.”
April 2026
Stefan K.
Munich, Germany
“Did the tour in the morning and spent the afternoon in the enormous park photographing the white towers. Everything was handled in German for us up front and the tour itself was in clear English. Smooth from start to finish.”
June 2026

5-minute audio guide

Your 5-minute Hluboká Castle pre-visit briefing

A short, calm narrative — what this white Windsor-of-Bohemia château is, the Schwarzenberg family who reimagined it, what to look for on the Representation Rooms tour, and how to read the towers from the park. Listen on the walk up from the town.

Included with your booking — your full guide arrives with your ticket.Get your guide
  • 13th century — a royal guardian castle first raised on the rock above the Vltava
  • 1660s onward — the Schwarzenberg family make Hluboká their principal residence
  • 1841–1871 — remodelled in the Tudor-Gothic style of England's Windsor Castle
  • 140 rooms and 11 towers, set in a 1.9 km² English landscape park
  • Inside on Circuit I: carved wooden ceilings, the panelled library, the armoury and Princess Eleonore's apartments
  • Best timing: the first English tour of the day, or a weekday outside July and August

Recorded for Hluboká Castle Tickets concierge. Free to download.

About Hluboká Castle

Hluboká Castle is one of the most beautiful and most photographed châteaux in the Czech Republic — a snow-white palace of pinnacles, battlements and traceried windows standing above the Vltava river in South Bohemia. Its story begins in the second half of the 13th century, when Bohemian kings raised a guardian castle on the rock; but the building you tour today is a work of Romantic imagination, remodelled between 1841 and 1871 by the Schwarzenberg family in the English Tudor-Gothic style of Windsor Castle.

The Schwarzenbergs, who had held the estate since the 1660s, made Hluboká their principal residence and poured the taste of the age into it. Prince Jan Adolf II and Princess Eleonore returned from journeys to England determined to rebuild their Bohemian seat in the manner of Windsor, and their architects gave them 140 rooms and 11 towers set in a vast English landscape park. Inside are hand-carved wooden ceilings, a Renaissance-panelled library, an armoury, and reception rooms hung with tapestries, chandeliers and paintings by old European masters.

Entry to the state interiors is by guided tour only, and the headline route is Circuit I, the Representation Rooms — the family's grandest reception and dining rooms and the private apartments of Princess Eleonore. We handle the ticketing and secure your place on an English-language departure, so you can give the hour to the château and its park rather than to the queue at the box office.

Practical information

Opening hours
Open for the main season roughly April to October, typically 09:00–17:00 and usually closed on Mondays outside the July–August peak, with a shorter winter tour on selected weekends. Entry is by timed guided tour only, and English-language departures run a limited number of times each day. Confirm the current season's tour times when you book.
Address
Zámek Hluboká, Bezručova 142, 373 41 Hluboká nad Vltavou, Czech Republic.
Getting there
The château is about 10 km north of České Budějovice — roughly 15 minutes by car or a short regional bus or train to Hluboká nad Vltavou, then a walk uphill to the gate. From Prague it is about 140 km, around two hours by car, or reachable by train or coach to České Budějovice and a local connection on to Hluboká.
Accessibility
A 19th-century château on a hill: the approach and terraced gardens involve slopes and steps, and the guided tour passes through historic rooms with staircases and thresholds. Visitors with limited mobility should contact the château ahead about which parts of the route can be adapted, and allow extra time for the walk up from the town.
Bag policy
Large bags and backpacks are not taken into the interiors; use the cloakroom at the château before your tour. Leave suitcases at your accommodation.
Photography
Photography rules inside the state rooms are set by the château and can change; interior photography is often restricted or subject to a separate permit. Photography of the exterior, towers, courtyards and gardens is welcome.

About our service

Hluboká Castle Tickets is an independent concierge service that helps international visitors reserve and receive their guided-tour tickets in English. We are not the château and we are not an official vendor — we obtain genuine timed tour tickets on your behalf from the official box office, and our service fee is included in the price you see. If you prefer to buy directly, the château runs its own ticket office at the gate and its own website.

Frequently asked

Is this a skip-the-line ticket?

Your place on a guided tour is reserved before you arrive, so you go straight to the tour meeting point at your booked time instead of queuing at the box office and hoping an English departure still has space. On busy summer days the English tours are the first to fill, so arriving with a confirmed slot is what saves the wait.

Do I need to visit at a specific time?

Yes. Entry to Hluboká Castle is by timed guided tour only, so your ticket is for a specific English-language departure rather than open all day. We secure your slot and send you the time; please arrive 15–20 minutes before it so you are ready when the group is called.

What's included in the ticket?

The English-language guided tour of Circuit I, the Representation Rooms — the Schwarzenberg family's state reception and dining rooms, the panelled library and armoury, and the private apartments of Princess Eleonore. The tour lasts about an hour and is led by a château guide through the historic interiors.

Is the tour really in English?

Yes. We book you onto an English-language departure specifically. Most tours at the château run in Czech, and English slots are limited, which is exactly why reserving ahead matters — we hold the English tour for you so you are not left waiting for the next one.

How and when do I get my ticket?

We send your ticket to your email as a mobile ticket with a QR code once your booking is confirmed. There is nothing to print — show it on your phone at the tour meeting point. You'll also receive a short 5-minute audio history to listen to before you go.

How do I get to the château?

Hluboká nad Vltavou is about 10 km north of České Budějovice — roughly 15 minutes by car, or a short regional bus or train, then a walk uphill to the gate. From Prague it is about 140 km, around two hours by car, or by train and coach via České Budějovice.

How long does the visit take?

The Circuit I guided tour lasts about 60 minutes. Add time to walk up from the town, explore the terraced gardens and the huge English park, and photograph the white towers from the grounds — most visitors spend a half-day at Hluboká in all.

Can I take photos inside?

Photography inside the state rooms is controlled by the château and is often restricted or requires a separate permit, so please follow your guide's instructions. The exterior, the courtyards, the towers and the gardens are wonderful to photograph and freely open to your camera.

Is Hluboká Castle good for children?

Yes. Children are fascinated by the fairytale white towers, the armoury and the grand rooms, and the surrounding park gives them space to run before or after the tour. Children under 6 enter free and don't need a ticket; the child ticket covers ages 6–17, the youth ticket covers ages 18–24, and the adult ticket covers ages 25–64.

Do children under 6 need a ticket?

No. Children under 6 enter free and you don't need to book anything for them, though on a guided tour they must stay with your group. The child ticket is for ages 6 to 17, the youth ticket for ages 18 to 24, and the adult ticket for ages 25 to 64.

Do seniors need to prove their age?

The senior rate is for visitors aged 65 and over, and the château may ask to see photo ID showing your date of birth at the meeting point. Carry ID and choose the matching ticket type to keep entry smooth.

When is the best time to visit?

Late spring and early autumn are ideal — mild weather, the park at its greenest or turning gold, and lighter crowds than the July–August peak. For the quietest tours, aim for the first departures of the morning on a weekday. The château is generally closed on Mondays outside high summer.

Can I walk in the park and gardens without a tour ticket?

Yes. The terraced gardens around the château and the large English landscape park are open to walk through, and the classic photograph of the white towers is taken from the grounds. Only the state interiors require a guided-tour ticket, so many visitors combine the tour with a long stroll in the park.

Is there anywhere to leave bags?

Large bags and backpacks are not taken into the historic interiors, but there is a cloakroom at the château where you can leave them before your tour. Leave suitcases and large luggage at your accommodation rather than bringing them up to the gate.

Can I change my mind after booking?

Because your ticket is for a specific timed English tour, please choose your date and departure with care. All bookings are final once confirmed; we only issue a refund in the rare event we are unable to secure your ticket. See our terms for the full policy.

Are you the official château ticket office?

No. We're an independent concierge service for international visitors. We obtain genuine guided-tour tickets on your behalf from the official box office and handle the booking in your own language, securing an English-language departure for you. Our service fee is included in the price shown, and you can always buy directly from the château if you prefer.

What currency am I charged in?

The price you see is the price you pay — we show it in your local currency where we can and charge exactly that amount, with no surprise fees at checkout. Payment is by card on a secure page.