Watchtowers are an attractive destination, and the trend is unique constructions

Prague - A selection of information about architecturally interesting lookout towers that have opened recently (a new Dalimil lookout tower, which will be a replica of the former tower on Králický Sněžník, will open on July 9 on the Větrov hill above the Old Town in Šumperk):

- Lookout towers have long been among the most attractive tourist destinations in the Czech Republic. Although the lookout tower boom has slightly subsided recently, the Czech Republic can still be classified as one of the lookout tower superpowers on a global scale. Currently, it is reported that there are over 450 lookout towers and observation towers in the country.

- Lookout towers experienced a true renaissance after 1989, when many derelict buildings were repaired and subsequently opened to the public, and a large number of completely new towers were built. While at the turn of the millennium, standardized iron constructions were often built for telecommunication purposes, which also featured an observation platform, in the last few years the trend has shifted towards visually more imaginative lookout structures.

- Among the uniquely shaped lookout towers from recent years is the Růženka viewpoint above the village of Růžová in the Děčín region of Czech Switzerland, which was opened in April 2018. The six-meter-high concrete structure resembles the design of Kaplický's National Library, while the shape of the viewpoint was conceived long before Kaplický’s library and originated from the idea of young architects from Liberec. Růženka received the title of Lookout Tower of the Year 2018. The 23.5-meter-high Doubravka lookout in the Čihadla nature park in Prague 14, designed by architect Martin Rajniš, also has an unconventional shape and was made accessible to tourists in June 2018.

- In April 2019, the Veselská lookout tower near Odry in Nový Jičín opened, symbolizing the watchtower featured in the city’s coat of arms. The concrete bunker is reminiscent of the reinforced concrete lookout tower Šibenice in Stěbořice in the Opava region, which opened in June 2019. The exhibition inside the 12.5-meter-high tower presents the life and legacy of resistance fighter Jan Kubiš, who served in Opava, as well as the project for the construction of concrete fortifications in the Czechoslovak border area before World War II.

- The Chalupská Štěpánka observation tower in the Plzeň region, which has been accessible since last year, resembles a historical defensive tower. In December 2020, a lookout tower was opened on the Šibeník hill above Nový Hrádek, built from the tube of a former wind turbine. A sought-after tourist destination since the end of last year is the 35-meter-high steel lookout tower Holedná in Brno, which received the title of Lookout Tower of the Year 2020.

- Climbing to viewpoints and surveying the landscape can also be part of industrial tourism. An example of this is the glass observation platform with a balcony on the right tower of the Ledvice power plant near Bílina, which is considered by some to be the highest lookout tower in the Czech Republic. The path to the distant views leads from April 2018 by elevator through 28 floors to a height of 144 meters above the ground. Recently, several water towers and water reservoirs have also been modified for tourist purposes. These include former water towers in Třebíč, Kolín, České Budějovice, and Kladruby nad Labem, as well as observation water reservoirs near Žďár nad Sázavou and in Šilheřovice.

- In recent years, several lookout towers have also been restored, sometimes as replicas of the original towers. This is the case with the tower on the highest peak of the Ore Mountains, Klínovec, where the original lookout tower deteriorated so much that the structure had to be taken apart stone by stone and then carefully reassembled. The replica of the original lookout tower was opened to the public in October 2013. Among the most famous lookout towers of its kind was the wooden Hýlačka lookout, which completely burned down in January 2012, and three years later a new lookout tower, with a steel structure, was built in its place. The shape and appearance of the original tower are also respected by the new steel lookout tower on Žaltman, the highest peak of the Jestřebí Mountains, which was opened last September at the site of the previous structure that was dismantled due to poor technical condition.

- The stone Dalimil lookout tower on the nearby Větrov hill is a replica of the former lookout tower on Králický Sněžník (which stood on the hill until the early '70s) and will open on July 9. However, the Králický Sněžník will also welcome a new tower; the Polish side is building a concrete-stone structure as part of cross-border cooperation. The construction of this lookout tower, however, is the subject of a dispute, as ecological organizations have repeatedly pointed out that the construction violates established environmental protection conditions.

- In recent times, various lookout trails have also gained popularity. In the Czech Republic, there are, for example, the Tree Top Trail in Lipno nad Vltavou, the Tree Top Trail near Janské Lázně in the Krkonoš mountains, the Cloud Trail near Dolní Morava, the Trail above the Vineyards in Kobylí near Břeclav, and the observation tower in the Beskids at Pustevny as part of the panoramic Valaška Trail.