Lužické hory
mountains
A borderland range where sandstone meets volcanic cones — Luž and Klíč above villages of timber-framed houses, quiet even in high season.
Rail lines on both flanks of the range — around two hours from Prague towards Nový Bor or Jedlová — make crossings and one-way ridge days the natural format here. A day strings the volcanic cones together through deep beech and spruce woods: the bare phonolite pyramid of Klíč above Nový Bor is the best single viewpoint, Luž (793 m) the highest point, and the woods between them stay quiet even when the neighbouring sandstone parks overflow. The range has been a CHKO since 1976.
Its villages are half the reason to come: this was a glassmaking and weaving borderland, and places like Kryštofovo Údolí or Jonsdorf across the border keep whole streets of timber-framed and slate-clad houses. Nový Bor with its glass museum is the natural southern base.
At a glance
- Countryside
- Sandstone meets volcanic cones in border woods
- Protected as
- CHKO Lužické hory, since 1976
- Highest point
- Luž, 793 m
- From Prague
- Around two hours by train towards Nový Bor or Jedlová
- Best time
- May to October
- Bases
- Nový Bor, Cvikov, Jiřetín pod Jedlovou