Pavlovské vrchy can be found in the warmest and almost driest area of the Czech Republic, on the south border of Moravia with Austria. The local countryside protects the ancient secrets of the mammoth hunters, the Celts, as well as the forgotten fates of Legio X Equestris soldiers, who as the legend goes started to grow grapevine here.
In 1976, Pálava was declared a protected landscape area, and later a UNESCO biosphere reserve. The most important starting points for tourism are Mikulov and Pavlov. The area with many unique plant species also has an excellent location for growing grapevine. But the fertile area around Pálavské vrchy offers so much more than what you can see from your bike along the trails through large vineyards.
The local “land burned by sun” was popular among the ancient people, which we can see from the remains of bonfires, deposits of mammoth bones and, above all, the world-famous Venus of Věstonice sculpture. Tourists in Pálava also admire colourful flowers such as the irises at Děvín or Kočičí skála, sandwort (not found anywhere else in the country), Mediterranean sage and alpine oatgrass, which has been growing near Mikulov since the end of the last Ice Age.
You can visit the ruins of Sirotčí hrádek and Dívčí hrady. The various kinds of dry rock grasses, fringe communities, drought-tolerant shrubs and thermophilic oakwood on the hillsides of Děvín are known as karst forest steppe. On the west bank of the Nesyt pond near Sedlec, there are surviving remnants of halophilic vegetation, which used to be quite common in the salty pastures of South Moravia in the past. Tourists usually visit the ruins of three castles in the area, and the local educational trail.
The local “land burned by sun” was popular among the ancient people, which we can see from the remains of bonfires, deposits of mammoth bones and, above all, the world-famous Venus of Věstonice sculpture. Tourists in Pálava also admire colourful flowers such as the irises at Děvín or Kočičí skála, sandwort (not found anywhere else in the country), Mediterranean sage and alpine oatgrass, which has been growing near Mikulov since the end of the last Ice Age.
You can visit the ruins of Sirotčí hrádek and Dívčí hrady. The various kinds of dry rock grasses, fringe communities, drought-tolerant shrubs and thermophilic oakwood on the hillsides of Děvín are known as karst forest steppe. On the west bank of the Nesyt pond near Sedlec, there are surviving remnants of halophilic vegetation, which used to be quite common in the salty pastures of South Moravia in the past. Tourists usually visit the ruins of three castles in the area, and the local educational trail.