Film Trail via Mořina and Karlštejn

The Bohemian Karst is a jewel of natural beauty and historical monuments that come to life on the silver screen. The Film Trail takes you to the locations that served as backdrops for films with medieval themes. Join us on an adventurous journey between Mořina and Karlštejn, where the stories of film heroes Jan Žižka, Jan Hus, Charles IV or the mysterious Crusader order come to life.

Start your medieval journey in Mořina, a former royal court owned by the Bohemian kings. Important painters, including Magister Theodoricus, who contributed to the decoration of the Chapel of the Holy Cross at Karlštejn Castle, also resided here.  From Mořina, follow the yellow trail marker to the Velká Amerika (Great America) quarry. From the height of the quarry, through which the hiking trail passes, the retinue of the film hero Jan Žižka witnessed the murderous attack on Boreš’s delegation, which was heading to Prague.

• Tip for you: The quarries belong to a joint-stock company, and access is prohibited. Don’t despair, though— even the film’s hero, Jan Žižka, played by Ben Foster, preferred to watch the ambush of Mr. Boreš’s entourage from the safe distance of a cliff, from where he had a better view of what was happening in the quarry. A marked hiking trail with several viewing platforms runs right along this route. Furthermore, the Hagen Mořina Association occasionally organizes guided tours through the underground.

From the quarries, continue your journey along the yellow-marked trail to the fork in the path at The Seven Brothers’ Oak (U dubu sedmi bratří), a memorable boundary tree under which, according to legend, the robber brothers divided their loot. After five kilometres, you can take a break in a shelter by an oak tree; from there, it is only one more easy kilometre to Karlštejn Castle. Looking at the imperial residence and the surrounding hills, it is interesting to note that the Karlštejn Castle walls were subjected to attacks by the Hussite besiegers, who, however, never conquered them.

• Tip for you: Even movie heroes need to rest and recharge before their next adventure. Visit the Stodola (Barn), where you can replenish your energy and enjoy a meal that would have pleased even a medieval pilgrim.

Karlštejn Castle has earned a reputation as an impregnable fortress, but this is far from the case for filmmakers. They used not only the castle grounds but also its interiors for filming. As soon as you climb to the castle courtyard and head towards the entrance Clock Tower, you will find yourself on the very path on which the film’s protagonist, Master Jan Hus, played by Matěj Hádek, rode on horseback on his way to the Council of Constance. His entourage pounded furiously on the Clock Tower gate to announce the arrival of Hus’s delegation to the council.

Few people would not recall the film musical Night at Karlštejn directed by Zdeněk Podskalský in connection with the castle. The film’s exterior shots were filmed at Karlštejn over the course of a year. The filmmakers used days off during the tourist season for filming, so the individual scenes are not chronologically connected. The characters in the film thus move from summer to autumn and from the autumn chill to sunny spring days.

• Interesting fact: The Holy Cross Chapel is the only interior room in the castle where the film “Night at Karlštejn” was shot. The other interior scenes were filmed at the Barrandov Film Studio. This is also evident from the opulent paintings depicted in the film’s interiors, which corresponded to historical reality. However, the walls of Karlštejn Castle have been whitewashed over the years, causing them to lose their historical character. Currently, access to the Holy Cross Chapel is limited to 15 people per tour. If you would like to see these locations, we recommend booking tickets for the second tour – the Karlštejn Castle Chapel – in advance.

If you want to visit the Big Tower, you will see the rooms where the film The Valley of the Bees was filmed. The filmmakers tell the story of the soldiers of the Teutonic Knights who lived behind locked walls on the upper three floors of the tower. The scenes were filmed in the chapter house, the refectory, and the private chambers. Here, the filmmakers used the white walls of Karlštejn Castle, which better suited the austere atmosphere of the monastery.

After visiting the castle, drive along the winding main road towards the lower part of the market town of Karlštejn, called Budňany. On the way down, you will come across the Church of St. Palmatius, which was built around the same time as Karlštejn Castle. This saint is very closely associated with Karlštejn. Do you remember Pešek’s famous saying: “Holy patron saint, Palmatius, I’ll give six-score groschen for a woman!”?

• Tip for you: What better way to end a medieval hike than with a delicious beverage? In that case, on your way to Budňany, don’t forget to visit the 1st Karlštejn Microbrewery and enjoy the Karlíček beer – the perfect reward after a strenuous expedition

Crossing the steel bridge, you’ll reach Karlštejn Station, where our film hike ends. However, if you still have some energy, you can extend your route. We have one more suggestion for you – the fortified settlement of Tetín. Although it’s not a particularly popular filming location, you can at least end your hike with a symbolic connection. It is significant that along the Berounka River, there was a princely castle of the Přemyslid dynasty on one bank, and an imperial summer residence of the Luxembourg dynasty on the other bank.  These sites are therefore associated with the high points of Bohemian statehood and the emergence of the Bohemian kingdom in the Middle Ages.