Things to See and Do in Brno, Czechia
Brno has a beautiful city and there is lots to see and do. It’s a bit rough around the edges in places, but that can sometimes make a place more interesting.
We were only there for 4 days, so bear in mind that there is much more to the city than what you’ll find here. These are the interesting attractions for me.
Astronomical Clock
The Astronomical clock in Brno took 3 years to build at a cost of 12 million CZK (around $550,000). It’s located in Brno’s main square, Náměstí Svobody (Freedom Square). Every day at 11:00 the clock releases a glass marble that a lucky spectator can keep as a souvenir.
Deckchairs Around the Fountain
There’s a fountain in the main square that’s surrounded by deckchairs. It looks like people are having a day out at the beach. I liked it. It’s quirky things like this that make cities interesting.
There are deckchairs in squares all around the city. See Cabbage Market below for more of them.
The Town Hall
If you take a walk to the top of the Town Hall Clock Tower, you’ll have some amazing views of Brno.
There are 173 steps to the top which take you up 63 meters. The clock tower is open to the public from June to September 10:00-22:00.
On the way up you’ll pass the mechanism for the clock tower.
That’s the Church of St. James in the distance. See below for an interesting statue on the church tower. It’s also where the Ossuary is – see below.
That’s St. Michael Church.
Above you can see a view of the Cathedral of St. Peter and Paul.
Above is the view of Cabbage Market. Again, note the deckchairs.
This appears to be a cooling tower and two chimneys. I don’t know what they’re for though.
The Crocodile
When wanted to take a walk up to the top of the Town Hall Clock Tower and saw this crocodile at the entrance.
This crocodile is thought to be the “dragon” that once plagued Brno.
Cabbage Market
Cabbage Market is a farmers’ market selling fresh fruit and vegetables every day. It also has lots of deckchairs.
One of the monuments at Cabbage Market.
This is in the center of the market.
Brno Ossuary
This is the second-largest ossuary in Europe. If you’ve never been to one, this may be interesting for you. If you’ve already been to the one in Paris, which is the largest in Europe, you’ll likely be disappointed.
It only takes 5-10 minutes to see everything so I don’t think it’s good value for money. Entry fee is 160 CZK (around 6.75 EUR). You can get a 10% discount if you buy two tickets for different Brno underground attractions. This is what we did.
The Ossuary is open Tue-Sun 09:30-18:00.
Labyrinth Under the Vegetable Market
This was a major disappointment for me. The tour was in Czech but booklets were available in other languages. You could also hire audio guides, which is what we did. The audio guides cost an extra 50 CZK (2 EUR).
Listening to the audio guide reminded me of boring history lessons in school.
It was difficult to take an good photos because the lighting was so bad.
There is a guided tour once an hour and our group had around 12 people, all adults.
This was the dullest tour I’ve ever been on. It cost 180 CZK (7.50 EUR). There’s a 10% discount if you book two different underground tours in the same day. Audio guide is extra.
The Indecent Man on the Church of St. James
I don’t have any idea what this is all about. It’s not a great photo because it’s high up on the church tower and this is the most my camera will zoom.
Equestrian Statue of Margrave Jobst of Luxembourg
There are lots of weird and wonderful statues and artwork around Brno. I like this one a lot. Note the deckchairs in the background. They’re a feature of the city.
Church of St. Thomas
The Church of St. Thomas is next to the equestrian statue which you can also see in the image above.
Statue of Justice
The Statue of Justice is across the road from the man-on-a-horse statue.
Weird Water Sculpture
This weird water fountain sculpture was at the back of the Church of St. James.
I much prefer Brno to Prague. It’s way less touristy a more interesting city. I plan to come back again.
Book your hotel in Brno
When not staying at Airbnb apartments, our favorite booking website is agoda.com.
