Things to Do in Kutna Hora on a Day Trip from Prague

Why Travellers Rate It

Few towns of this size offer so much in one day: a chapel decorated with human bones, a Gothic cathedral built by the silver miners and a real medieval mine you can walk through in a helmet.

The main catch is capacity at the ossuary. Its tickets are timed and limited, so book the slot before you travel and plan the rest of the day around it.

How the Day Adds Up

The ride from Praha to Kutna Hora hl.n. takes about 1 hour direct. With the transfer to Kutna Hora mesto it is 1 hour 6 minutes. The ossuary visit is short, since the lower chapel is capped at 30 minutes, but St Barbara's has no time limit and the Hradek mine tour alone takes about 90 minutes.

Guided day tours from Prague on this site run 6 to 7 hours door to door, with the transport and most entry tickets included.

Sedlec Ossuary (the Bone Church)

The Cemetery Church of All Saints holds the ossuary, where human bones are arranged into a chandelier, chalices and the Schwarzenberg coat of arms. Tickets are timed and sold online, the lower chapel visit is capped at 30 minutes, and photography is prohibited. The $8.27 (180 CZK) combined Areal Sedlec ticket also covers the Cathedral of Our Lady next door.

St Barbara's Church

Construction began in 1388 and stopped in the middle of the 16th century when the mines ran out of silver. St Barbara is the patron saint of miners, which tells you everything about the town's wealth. It is open January and February 10:00 to 16:00, March 10:00 to 17:00, April to October 9:00 to 18:00, and November and December 10:00 to 17:00.

Adult entrance is $8.27 (180 CZK), reduced $6.43 (140 CZK), children from 6 pay $2.76 (60 CZK) and under 6 go free.

Jesuit College Terrace

The Jesuit College stands beside St Barbara's and now houses the Gallery of the Central Bohemian Region. Its terrace, lined with baroque statues, runs along Barborska street toward the church and gives a good view over the valley. Walk it on the way in: the church fills the view at the end, and it is the classic approach to the cathedral.

Entry to the terrace is free.

Cathedral of Our Lady at Sedlec

This is the second church of the World Heritage listing. It stands next to the ossuary in Sedlec, and the same $8.27 (180 CZK) Areal Sedlec ticket covers both. A cathedral-only ticket costs $6.89 (150 CZK) for adults.

Unlike the ossuary, the cathedral can be visited without a reservation during opening hours, photos without flash are allowed, and strollers are welcome. It opens at 11:00 on Sundays and closes on Good Friday and Holy Saturday.

Silver Mining and the Old Town

Kutna Hora grew rich on silver. The Czech Silver Museum at Hradek, Barborska 28, takes you into about 250 m of the original medieval mine on a guided tour, and the Italian Court, the former royal mint, shows where the silver became coins. The old town adds the Gothic Stone Fountain and the Stone House, free to admire from the street.

The Train and the Mesto Shortcut

The Vysocina express runs every hour from Prague's main station to Kutna Hora hl.n. in about an hour, with one-way 2nd class fares starting at $3.63 (79 CZK). The main station stands in the Sedlec district, close to the ossuary but far from the old town. A small local train continues to Kutna Hora mesto, near the historic centre.

The full trip with the transfer takes 1 hour 6 minutes.

Guided Tours

If you prefer everything arranged, the guided tours further down this page cover transport and entry tickets together. All of them, and private options, appear on the Kutna Hora day trip from Prague page. For stations and fares in detail, read Prague to Kutna Hora.

What You See

The bones form a chalice, the Schwarzenberg coat of arms and a chandelier said to use at least one of every bone in the human body. The church above is a working Roman Catholic church, so dress with respect and keep quiet.

Hours and Tickets

Adult entrance to the Church of St Barbara is $8.27 (180 CZK), reduced $6.43 (140 CZK), children from 6 pay $2.76 (60 CZK) and children under 6 enter free, with no time limit inside. The church closes on 24 December. The Jesuit College terrace next door and the gallery inside it pair well with the church visit.

The Hradek Mine Tour

The mine is part of Circuit II, Cesta stribra, which is guided, lasts about 1.5 hours and costs $9.18 (200 CZK) for adults, 160 CZK reduced and 640 CZK for a family of 2 adults and 2 children under 15. Visitors get a helmet with a headlamp and a miner's hooded jacket. Foreign-language commentary adds 40 CZK per person, and a tour takes a maximum of 25 visitors, so book ahead at rezervace.cms-kh.cz.

Children under 6 may not enter the mine, and children 6 to 10 only with adults. The museum opens Tuesday to Sunday and closes for winter from mid January to the start of March. The Italian Court, the former royal mint, completes the silver story in the old town.

Compare the Tours

Every tour below includes free cancellation 24 hours before departure. On Kutna Hora Day Excursion with Bone Church the entries come only with the option that includes them.

Timed Plan

Take the hourly morning train from Prague's main station to Kutna Hora hl.n., in the Sedlec district. Visit the Sedlec Ossuary at your booked time and the Cathedral of Our Lady next door on the same ticket.

Then ride the local train to Kutna Hora mesto, near the historic centre. Walk the Jesuit College terrace to St Barbara's, open 9:00 to 18:00 from April to October, and add the Hradek mine tour if you have about 90 minutes to spare.

Afternoon belongs to the old town: the Gothic Stone Fountain, the Stone House and the Italian Court, the former royal mint. Take the local train back to Kutna Hora hl.n. for the hourly train to Prague.

Free Sights and Paid Extras

The Gothic Stone Fountain and the Stone House line the streets of the old town, and the ridge by St Barbara's gives wide views over the valley without any entry fee. The paid sights worth the fee are the ossuary and St Barbara's, where adults pay $8.27 (180 CZK) each. Children under 6 enter St Barbara's free.

Lunch on the Day

Plan lunch in the old town after Sedlec, since the ossuary end of town is quieter. Guided tours handle this differently: Kutna Hora UNESCO Site Tour with Bone Chapel stops at Restaurace Dacicky with lunch paid on the spot, while the two $65 coach tours leave little time for food, so bring a snack. The town information centre at Sankturinovsky dum on Palackeho namesti can point you to a table.

Beyond the Prague Highlights

Prague's own must-sees fill the first days. After that, the trip to Kutna Hora shows a different Czechia, built on medieval silver rather than royal Prague. The bone chapel at Sedlec and the miners' cathedral of St Barbara justify the journey for most travellers.

Only in Kutna Hora

The Sedlec Ossuary is unlike any other site in the country. At Hradek you walk about 250 m of the original medieval mine in a helmet and miner's jacket. The Italian Court, where the coins of medieval Bohemia were struck, sits in the old town.

Together they explain why the town has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1995.