KRNAP: The new Tree Top Walk will attract tourists from the ridges

Prague - The Krkonošsko-Českomoravská Highlands National Park (KRNAP) expects that the new Tree Top Walk at the foothills of Černá hora in Janské Lázně will help attract tourists from the peaks of the Krkonoš, thus relieving the overloaded ridges. The walkway could be visited by 200,000 people per year. According to the Czech Statistical Office (ČSÚ), last year, 914,000 tourists stayed in the Krkonoš and Podkrkonoš regions, of which 28 percent were foreigners.

"This is an activity that will undoubtedly attract a lot of tourists who would otherwise head to the ridges. Janské Lázně has no problems in terms of visitor numbers. The opening of the walkway will not increase the overall attendance of the Krkonoš; on the contrary, their visitors will gain a new destination," said KRNAP spokesman Radek Drahný. According to him, there are plenty of parking spaces in the area, including the Hofmanky parking lot or at the lower station of the cable car to Černá hora.

For visitors, the KRNAP Administration has prepared three educational stations, an underground exhibition, information panels, and 40 information boards. The construction will open to the public on the first Sunday in July, and the admission will be 220 CZK. The walkway will be 1,511 meters long and will take visitors not only through the treetops but also underground. In an underground cave measuring 400 square meters, tourists will have the opportunity to study the micro-world of soil.

About two-thirds along the walkway, there will be an observation tower 45 meters high with views to the south, east, and west. The entire construction will be barrier-free and will include several adrenaline sections, including a fifty-meter dry toboggan that leads through the observation tower. The investment amount is 180 million CZK.

In the Czech Republic, there are currently two constructions of a similar nature. Due to the growing interest from tourists in the facility in Dolní Morava, where the Sky Walk has been operating since last year, traffic complications are increasing. The Pardubice region will widen the road that runs through the entire area next year and the year after so that it can be traveled in both directions. The company Sněžník, which operates the ski area, will build a large-capacity parking house in the future.

"We want to help the community as much as possible, and this is one option. We must realize that in the summer months, the resort is visited by over 7,000 visitors a day, and the existing infrastructure is not prepared for that," said Governor Martin Netolický (ČSSD). The Sky Walk in Dolní Morava had an attendance of 180,000 people in its first year of operation. The walkway is 55 meters high, the wooden bridge is 710 meters long, and the toboggan is 100 meters long. An adult pays 350 CZK for admission with the cable car and 200 CZK without it.

The Tree Top Walk in Lipno nad Vltavou is one of the largest tourist attractions in the South Bohemian Region. Annually, it attracts an average of 400,000 people. Admission for an adult is 210 CZK. Given that the walkway is located in a vast complex where people can also visit other attractions, there are also several parking lots for cars.