CAMPSITES in
CZECH REPUBLIC:
Top
of page
|
Campsites: there is a ready
availability of campsites (Kemping or Autocamp
abbreviated to ATC) across the Czech Republic especially in the more
touristy parts of the country where many are ultra luxurious with every form of
distraction and prices to match. Many however are still relatively undeveloped,
having evolved from chalet-huts (chaty) encampments which provided cheap
holiday accommodation dating back to
the Communist era. Many campsites still have chaty,
some now looking rather woe-begone, but still used; other
campsites form an annexe to hotels, pensions or leisure
complexes. Even in the less visited parts of Moravia and
Northern Bohemia, it is still possible to find campsites, albeit of variable
standards. We toured the whole country in late summer 2009 and our experience of
campsites is summarised in our Campsites Review:
Review
of Czech campsites
We attach great significance to
the attitude shown on arrival and standards
are variable: there is no national accreditation process for
campsites and despite the transition to market economy since
1990, commercial
competitiveness seems to have made variable impact. Where campsites were private
or family-run, campsite owners generally were hospitably welcoming and helpful;
at larger sites however, employed staff tended to show
casual and indifferent attitudes
clearly indicating no awareness of the link between
commercial success/failure, and therefore their jobs, and levels of hospitality towards their guests. As the
number of Western European visitors increases, demanding higher
standards and bringing greater competitiveness, some Czech
campsite owners are going to have to attend a charm course
or go out of business.
With some notable exceptions,
the majority of sites we experienced had fairly basic and old-fashioned standards of facilities
but generally were clean with hot water, and many had
cooking facilities (common in Eastern Europe) with wash-ups
(kuchyna lit. kitchen).
Websites
listing Czech campsites: there is no single
organisation or web site listing all campsites to help with pre-trip planning. The Dutch camping organisation ACSI web site selectively lists its favoured sites
and includes the Google mapping facility as a helpful means of
pinning down a campsite's location. ACSI accreditation however does not
guarantee acceptable standards: some of our lowest rated sites were ACSI
recognised, which maybe says something about its dubious value. They also
tend to attract hoards of noisy Dutch caravaners in August - be warned.
The most useful web sites we found, none of them complete and
often missing essential details of opening/closing dates,
were: Czech-Camping
Europe Camping Guide - Czech Republic
Interhike - Czech Republic
Camp CZ
Campsite opening
dates: the camping season is quite short with
campsites opening from April/May to September; outside these
times, it is still possible to find a few open sites as our review shows; there
are even a few all-year-round sites. ACSI -
Czech Republic
Campsite prices: prices charged varied
enormously and generally reflected the greed of the owners
rather than the standards offered, with the most reasonable prices at campsites graded at 2 stars or less.
The cost of living in the Czech Republic (reflecting much lower
income levels) still represents remarkably good value by our inflated West European
standards. Expect to pay between
250Kč and 380Kč (with the exchange rate at around 30Kč, this translates as Ł8.30 and Ł12.60) for a night's camp, although in August the more elaborate sites will
charge considerably more. In our
Campsites Review,
we give the nightly charge we paid; prices
may include a local tourist tax.
Wild-camping: in the more remote and hilly areas, with awareness of potential
security issues and basic common sense and courtesy,
wild-camping is certainly practicable though with the number of reasonably
priced campsites, rarely necessary.
|