61 km Around Třeboň by Bike: Route, Pubs and Where to Stay

The Třeboň region (Třeboňsko) is flat as a pancake, and you can ride all day without getting out of breath. Ponds, dykes, forest tracks and in between villages where time runs differently. I rode my own loop, not the marked one, and it paid off - even though I had to cut it short from the planned eighty kilometres (50 miles). Here is everything I'd tell you so it works first time.

Where does my route around Třeboň go?

A closed loop that starts and finishes at the Svět pond in Třeboň. First north-east past the Vítek pond and Stará Hlína, then through Stříbřec, Lutová, Žíteč and Mirochov to the east, down through Staňkov, Chlum u Třeboně and Hamr, and back in a long forest arc through Cep, Kojákovice and Domanín.

• Km 0 - Třeboň, Svět pond: The start on the dyke, a short way from the accommodation.
• Km 7.5 - Vítek pond: A historic bridge and lots of waterfowl. The first place where it makes sense to stop.
• Km 8 - Stará Hlína: A north-eastern arc around the pond system, still on the marked trail.
• Km 13.5 - Stříbřec: The first real stop for food. The pub is right on the route.
• Km 19.5 - Lutová: Village architecture, a stop on the educational trail. This is where I leave the marked loop.
• Km 21-23 - Žíteč and Mirochov: The easternmost point of the route. Quiet, forest, almost nobody.
• Km 30 - Staňkov: The best place for lunch on the whole route. Two places side by side.
• Km 33 - Chlum u Třeboně: The biggest village on the route, a safe bet for an open pub even on a weekday.
• Km 35 - Hamr: The last place where you can buy anything.
• Km 45 - Cep: In the middle of that long empty stretch. A village, but without services.
• Km 50 - Kojákovice: The westernmost point of the loop.
• Km 55 - Domanín: The last village before Třeboň, a pub right by the road.
• Km 58 - Schwarzenberg Tomb: A hundred and fifty metres from the route, three kilometres before the finish. The nicest place for a last stop.
• Km 61 - Třeboň: Back where you started.

The profile is practically flat: between 430 and 490 metres above sea level, with roughly 200 metres of climbing in total. In the Třeboň region you don't climb, you just ride.

A short reel from the trip: Around Třeboň by bike (Instagram).

How does it differ from the Around Třeboň trail?

The marked educational trail Around Třeboň (Okolo Třeboně) is a closed loop 39 km (24 miles) long with 22 information boards, starting on the dyke of the Svět pond. My route shares only the eastern part with it and then goes much further south.

The marked loop stays closer to Třeboň and returns via Majdalena. I left it after Lutová and made a big southern loop through Staňkov, Chlum and Hamr. There was a reason: I avoided the notorious concrete-panel road between Třeboň and Majdalena, which people have complained about in discussions for years - cracked concrete panels with gaps that catch narrow road tyres. My route bypasses it in an arc through the forest.

What to choose:

• Marked loop, 39 km - shorter, with information boards, good for half a day or with children. Expect the panel road.
• My route, 61 km - a full-day trip, a calmer surface, but about twenty kilometres with no services at all.
• The loop around Rožmberk (22 km, 14 miles) or the Ema Destinn Trail (48 km, 30 miles) - if you want to set off from Třeboň somewhere other than where I went.

One more thing about the marking: it's the most common complaint about the whole region. People describe how the signs simply disappear after some of the stops. That's why the GPX below is not a bonus but a necessity.

What bike do you need?

A gravel or mountain bike. You won't enjoy it here on a road bike with narrow tyres.

I rode my Cannondale Topstone Carbon 3 L and it was the right choice. Part of the route goes along pond dykes and forest tracks, and some sections are covered in gravel. The rest is tarmac, so it isn't off-road riding - just a surface that narrow tyres don't like.

Where to stop for a beer and food along the way?

Realistically you have four stops: Stříbřec at kilometre 13, Lutová at 19, Staňkov with two places at 30, and Chlum with Hamr between kilometres 33 and 35. After that nothing for another twenty kilometres.

This is the thing I underestimated. It's not that there are no pubs in the Třeboň region - there are. But they all pile up in one short stretch in the middle of the route, and several of them are open only from Friday to Sunday. If you set off on a weekday or on a Monday, half of the choice disappears.

My stop: U Sumečka in Staňkov. A fish bistro at kilometre 30, right by the route. I stopped there and recommend it without hesitation - it's clearly the best food on the whole route, and a rating of 4.7 from over three thousand reviews is no accident. Catfish, zander, blueberry dumplings. The only catch: they are open only from Friday to Sunday, 11 am to 8 pm.

• Km 13.5 - Hostinec Stříbřec: a village pub with a garden right on the route. Cyclists have been recommending it for years in discussions about the loop.
• Km 19.4 - Kovárna Lutová: quick refreshments, sausage and beer in the garden. Open only 12-17, closed on Monday. Google 4.2 (424 reviews).
• Km 29.9 - U Sumečka, Staňkov: my stop and the best food on the route. Only Friday to Sunday, 11-20. Google 4.7 (3,223 reviews).
• Km 29.6 - U Trpaslíka, Staňkov: right next to U Sumečka and open every day - a backup for weekdays. Google 4.5 (753 reviews).
• Km 33.1 - Restaurace Na Poště, Chlum: a classic Czech pub, open daily, cash only. Google 4.2 (850 reviews).
• Km 34.9 - Restaurace penzion Hamr: a big terrace and a place to leave your bikes under supervision. Again only Friday to Sunday. Google 4.7 (251 reviews).
• Km 54.8 - Hospoda Domanín: the last beer before Třeboň. A small village pub, unreliable opening hours. Google 3.6 (11 reviews).

The practical conclusion: plan your main meal in Staňkov around kilometre 30, and from Hamr carry water and something to eat for the next twenty kilometres. The ideal day for this route is Saturday - everything is open, including U Sumečka.

Where to eat in Třeboň after the ride?

I ended up at Šupina a Šupinka and I don't regret a single koruna. But Třeboň is a fish town through and through - carp in ten ways, zander, catfish, pike - and the bar is high even outside the best-known place.

What to do in Třeboň besides cycling?

You can walk around Třeboň in half a day, so a run around the Svět pond, the spa and the brewery all fit comfortably into the same weekend.

A run around the Svět pond: 12 km along the dyke, fields and forest

This is what I took away from Třeboň the most. The loop around the Svět pond follows the educational trail Cesta kolem Světa (The Way Around Svět), is 12 kilometres (7.5 miles) long and is all on soft ground. You run along the dyke, across fields, through the forest and through the Třeboň park. One condition: it mustn't rain, because a large part goes along field and meadow paths that turn to mud after rain.

• Start and finish: I started on the Svět dyke by the Šusta monument. Officially the trail starts in the park by the Aurora spa, but the dyke is more practical and the loop closes there anyway.
• Length: 12 km, 16 information stops. On foot you'll do it in two to three hours.
• What you'll see on the way: The Schwarzenberg Tomb, the Ostende beach, the Vimperky peat bog and one of the biggest oaks in the Třeboň region by the little Dolní Zlatník pond.
• Watch out: the trail is officially for pedestrians, not cyclists. Runners and walkers have priority.
• Bonus: this route also hosts the charity run around Svět for the St Cleopas Hospice (Hospic sv. Kleofáše).

My reel from the run: 12 km around the Svět pond (Instagram).

And if you don't want to do sport

You pass the Schwarzenberg Tomb on the bike at kilometre 58 and also on foot on the loop around Svět - it has 4.8 from 1,216 reviews, is open 10:00-15:30 (closed on Monday), and even if you don't go inside, the park around it is worth a stop.

• Aurora Spa - a peat spa with wellness and pools. After sixty kilometres in the saddle it makes sense.
• Regent Brewery (Pivovar Regent) - a historic brewery right in the town, with tours.
• Třeboň Castle (Zámek Třeboň) - one of the largest castle complexes in Czechia, right by the square.
• The Aquarium by Svět (Akvárium u Světa) - freshwater fish of South Bohemia, insurance for a rainy afternoon.

How to get to Třeboň - and what to do with the bike?

From Prague there is a direct fast train with no change, and the journey takes roughly two and a quarter hours.

• By train: Třeboň lies on line 226 (Veselí nad Lužnicí - České Velenice). Direct fast trains from Prague run several times a day, the route is roughly 123 km (76 miles) and takes about 2 hours 20 minutes.
• With a bike: the main station Třeboň is used to cyclists - bike carriage, left luggage and a rental of bikes and scooters are available. The second stop, Třeboň lázně, is closer to Svět, but only slow trains stop there.
• By bus: the ČSAD station on Jiráskova street, a short way from the centre, with a covered bike stand.
• By car: along the D3 motorway south and then to Třeboň. You can park by the Aurora spa or by the Regent hotel - both are a short way from the Svět dyke, that is from the start.