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Vltava river

The Vltava river is the longest Czech river. It springs in the wooded hills of the Šumava National Park and after having run 430 kilometres, near the town of Mělník, it joins the Labe river. Seventynine kilometres of the upper part of the river – from Vyšší Brod down to České Budějovice – satisfies conditions of touring by water. This river passage belongs to the busiest ones in Europe.

Year-long navigability from Vyšší Brod is ensured since the Lipno lake dam was built in the early 60´s. With a classification of WW I, flow rate between 3 – 5 kms/hour and even the weirs ( most of them passable ) allow a real novice to enjoy a boat trip.

The Vltava mostly runs through beech, spruce and pine forest. The woods are natural housing for a large animal community, such as wild-boar, pine marten,badger, hare, roe-deer and others. With some luck you can meet an otter or a muskrat. Subaqueous fauna offers plenty of fish – common and rainbow trout, carp, pike, bream, perch or pikeperch. The river banks are not stony.

Lenora - Nová Pec (km of the river 395.9 - 363.6)

An open canoe trip can be started in Lenora. Here the Vltava passes through the national park, so canoeists must abide several regulations. Entering the river is allowed from May 1st to October 31st unless the water-level stage shows 55 cm ( water gauge in Lenora ). It is also forbidden to get out of the river and step out on the riverbank except in permitted locations. These 31 kms of the river can be done in a day or two and an overnight stay can be spent at the camping site in Soumarský most.In Lenora and Nová Pec you can find the site of IngeTour Base.

Nová Pec - Vyšší Brod (km of the river 363.6 - 318.9)

In Nová Pec the Vltava flows into Lipno Lake. From here to Vyšší Brod we arrange transportation of boats and our clients.

Vyšší Brod - Boršov (km of the river 318.9 - 248.6)

The most frequented part of the Vltava. The Lipno dam lake guarantees navigability in very dry periods and the river is also optimally regulated in periods of heavy rains. In 1997 this part of the Vltava river and its surroundings was declared a Natural Preservation Site. The route from Vyšší Brod to Boršov is usually managed in 3 – 5 days and offers several camping sites and numerous pubs and buffets. The trip can be enriched with visits to the Cistercian monastery in Vyšší Brod, medieval castles in Rožmberk or Český Krumlov, the monastery in Zlatá Koruna or the ruins of Dívčí Kámen. This is also the site of the main Ingetour Bases.

Boršov - Hluboká nad Vltavou (km of the river 248.6 - 228.4)

From Boršov you may carry on as far as Hluboká nad Vltavou. The river leaves its romantic river-basin, surrounded with woods, and runs through the city of České Budějovice, where passing some of the weirs requires canoe skills. For experinced canoeists we recommend an artificial slalom waterway in České Vrbné, where training in kayaks and rafts and with sufficient equipment is allowed. It must be prearranged.