Cvikov: Hotels and accommodations

Cvikov combines geologically unique natural monuments with historic religious buildings, brewing history, and marked trails through the town and surrounding area.

Nature

Part of the Cvikov area belongs to the Lužické hory Protected Landscape Area. This includes part of the Cvikov cadastral area as well as the entire cadastral areas of Trávník u Cvikova and Naděje. The protected area was designated in 1976.

The Dutý kámen Natural Monument is located in the Drnovec cadastral area and the adjacent cadastral area of Kunratice u Cvikova. It was designated in 1963 and covers 6.63 hectares. Protected features include a sandstone ridge with rock formations created by erosion or human activity. Among the notable geological phenomena is the transformation of Upper Cretaceous sandstone at its contact with a basic Tertiary eruptive rock, manifested in the sandstone's columnar and slab-like jointing.

The Naděje Natural Monument is a fissure cave with pseudokarst features in a scree field on the northern slope of Suchý vrch, near the Naděje reservoir. It was designated in 1966 and covers 0.75 hectares. Cvikov also has several ponds, including Cvikovský, Třeťák, and Veselák, which are used for fish farming and recreation.

The Schillerova vyhlídka rock viewpoint has survived to this day, although it is partly overgrown with trees. From there, there are views of the surroundings of Mařenice and the peaks of Luže, Hvozd, and Jezevčí vrch.

Culture and history

The Church of Saint Elisabeth of Hungary is a protected cultural monument (ÚSKP 44721/5-4522). Its original Gothic building was converted into a three-nave church in 1553–1558 by the Italian architect Benedikt Ferrvi. Its present appearance reflects the Baroque reconstruction of 1726–1728, based on a design by the Prague builder Václav Špaček. It has been protected as a monument since 3 May 1958.

Křížový vrch, also known as Kalvárie, has a rocky basalt summit where the first religious sculptures of the Way of the Cross were installed in 1729. The Křížová cesta–Kalvárie complex on Křížový vrch is a protected cultural monument (ÚSKP 18501/5-4524), with a history dating back to 1730. The originally wooden Chapel of the Holy Sepulchre was replaced by a stone building in 1847; in 1830, the complex was expanded with the Calvary group above the chapel, and the Stations of the Cross date from the end of the 19th century.

The Marian column in Cvikov was erected in 1697 and moved in 1995 from its original location near the town mill on Mlýnská Street to the church. It is probably the work of the Zittau sculptor Johann Christian Ulrich.

The Lesní divadlo was built in 1920 by an amateur theater group from Cvikov in a quarry at the foot of Zelený vrch; its stage even featured two wooden houses. Among the surviving remains are a room carved out of the rock with a window, a short passage with a niche in the opposite wall, and remnants of the audience area on the low slope of the quarry.

The Skalní kaple Panny Marie stands at the edge of the forest and features a pointed-arch vault and distinctive relief decoration inside. The Niessnerova vila served as the family residence of textile factory owner Josef Niessner. The historicist building in Alpine style has an original Art Nouveau interior; in 2017, proceedings began to designate it a national cultural monument.

Trails and orientation

Cvikov offers a red walking trail leading to the town's monuments. A green hiking trail takes visitors past the area's most important rock viewpoints, rock cities, and rock reliefs.

In Cvikov, you can orient yourself using tourist information boards with maps, access digital information via QR codes on the town or cultural website, and obtain printed materials at the information center.

Cvikovsko and its immediate surroundings are used for hiking and cycling in summer; in winter, they offer suitable conditions for cross-country skiing and downhill skiing.

Brewery

The Pivovar Cvikov craft brewery at the foot of the Lužické hory is credited with a brewing tradition dating back to 1560. The brewery closed in 1968 and resumed operations in 2014 after extensive reconstruction.

At Pivovar Cvikov, traditional bottom-fermented beers mature in original stone cellars, including the pale lager Klíč with 12 % malt extract, as well as Luž with 10 % and Sklář with 8 % malt extract.

The guided brewery tour lasts approximately 40 minutes. It covers the entire beer production process, from the basic ingredients to the finished product, provides interesting information about the brewery's history and present day, and includes a tasting of the beer brewed there.

Pivovar Cvikov offers brewery tours for groups of 10 or more: on weekdays between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m., on Saturdays and Sundays from 10 a.m., and outside these hours by prior arrangement. The date must be arranged and booked in advance.

Trips

During the summer holidays, the Horský expres offers a full-day trip from Cvikov to the German towns of Jonsdorf and Oybin.

Other places: Luka, Volfartice, Nový Oldřichov, Žďár, Doksy, Ralsko, Krompach V Cechách, Novy Bor

To the higher-level travel overview: Okres Česká Lípa.