Správa národního parku Podyjí

Please plan your route very carefully. Do not overestimate your strength – your trip should be suitable for your time and physical possibilities.

Podyjí is a friendly place, the nature is pleasant and not dangerous. Nevertheless, it is essential to follow the basic rules for staying in the countryside. Of course you will need good strong boots or shoes and a windstopper or a rain jacket in case the weather changes suddenly. High temperatures and relatively intensive sunshine are typical in the summer season, so do not forget your sunglasses and sufficient non-alcoholic drinks. We recommend that you use repellent and wear long trousers to protect yourself from ticks, which can carry Lyme Disease (Boreliosa) and Encephalytis.

Most of the accidents every year happen to cyclists. So please remember that the nature in Podyjí is not a race track, and don´t forget to be considerate to other visitors. Every cyclists´ “compulsory equipment“ should include a helmet, a sensible style of riding and a suitable bike in good technical condition.

Plaques with the caption “Pomoc v nouzi“ (Emergency contacts - Hilfe fűr den Notfall) and the telephone numbers for the emergency services are situated at many key localities on the territory of Podyjí National Park. If you get into trouble tell the operator the number of the place you are calling from and an Ambulance, the Fire Brigade or the Police will come to that point. An English-speaking operator will be available if you call 112 - the international combined emengency number.

• The First Zone consists primarily of the core territory of the national park in and around the incised valley of the Dyje river. The nature here is undisturbed or very little influenced by human activities. This territory is not used for commercial forestry or agriculture, but in exceptional cases invasive plant species may be liquidated here. Entrance to the First Zone is only permitted along marked tourist trails.

• The Second Zone includes the majority of the forest complex, meadows and heathland. These areas are managed with the aim of protecting valuable biotopes and renewing the natural processes.
• The Third Zone is the most affected by man´s forestry and farming activities. This zone mainly covers the areas which are used for agriculture and the fringes of the forest stands. These areas are managed using near-natural methods.
• The Buffer Zone surrounds the whole territory of the national park. Its function is to protect the territory of the park from civilisational influences from outside.

• There are no rubbish bins on the park territory. We request that visitors take their rubbish home with them.
• Visitors can find wooden information panels, with tourist maps and trilingual texts from the Terrain Information System, at the most interesting localities in the national park.
• Six wooden shelters have been built at the main trail crossroads, to allow tourists to relax and take cover from unpleasant weather.
• Three new suspension footbridges cross the Dyje river in Podyjí National Park (1 at the Hamry locality near Vranov nad Dyjí and 2 at the Šobes locality). These footbridges serve visitors and tourists to Podyjí. They were built in the places where the bridges used by the Communist Border Guards once stood. These older bridges were destroyed by the floods in 2002. The stone bridge at Hardegg has been open for tourists since 1990.
• The natural springs in the park serve visitors for refreshment. The quality of the water is regularly monitored and some of them are of drinking water quality.
• You can obtain more information at the Podyjí National Park Visitor´s Centre in the village of Čížov and in the Thayatal National Park House on the edge of the forest and by the road above the small town of Hardegg.

We wish all visitors a pleasant stay and many unforgettable experiences on the territory of Podyjí National Park.