The second-largest city in the Czech Republic doesn’t often come up in conversation when talking about the best places to visit in the country, or in Europe in general for that matter. Despite being affordable, scenic, and offering many of the same advantages to the traveling visitor as the capital Prague, Brno remains a generally overlooked destination.
That raises the question, is Brno worth visiting?
Today, I’ll try to answer this question as best I can based on my own experience. Like many others, I first saw Brno on a layover on my way to Prague. The decision to stay around and explore a bit definitely paid off for me, and I now believe Brno, with its unique charm, is one of the best-kept secrets in Central Europe.
Without further ado, let’s take a look at all the reasons why Brno is worth a visit!
Table of Contents
Why some travelers skip Brno
It is overshadowed by Prague
Without a doubt, Prague takes the prize among Czech travel destinations for the vast majority of us. Not only the most tourist-friendly with the highest proportion of English speakers and expat residents within the country, it is also the most culturally recognizable and well-known within the country.
That puts a dent in visiting Brno for many people. Truth be told, Czechia is a fairly small, mostly rural country once you get away from the capital.
Most explorers venturing there do so on a longer, cross-European trip, with only a short leg reserved for Czech destinations. For better or worse, this popular kind of itinerary often leaves little room for Brno.
Other destinations in the region may be more exciting and international
Further complicating matters, there are plenty of other places to visit in Brno’s broader neighborhood that have lots more to offer. From Bratislava, the Slovak capital, to nearby Krakow and many others, there are plenty of big-city cosmopolitan hits surrounding Brno.
Once again, this is to say: if you don’t have much time to spare and have already visited Prague, Brno might look like a bit of a detour when there are more diverse destinations just lurking around the corner.
Why Brno is worth visiting
1. It’s Prague’s more affordable brother
Brno offers many of the same highlights as the Czech capital, put into a more condensed, somewhat more compact shell. Most importantly though, the city is far lighter on the wallet. This alone makes it a real gem among Central European big cities.
If you thought Prague was budget-friendly, wait till you get to spend a few days in Brno!
2. The local Moravian culture is worth exploring
Whereas Prague is located smack-dab in the heart of Bohemia, Brno is considered the cultural and geographic capital of Moravia — South Moravia, to be precise. Together, these two regions comprise the vast majority of Czechia’s territory, with Czech Silesia taking up the rest.
This division, which has existed for basically all of Czech history, means that Brno allows you to explore a completely different side of the country than what you might already be familiar with from Prague and its local surroundings. Everything — from the language (used in a different dialect in Moravia) to the local landscapes and customs — will be different.
Brno definitely lets you explore a different side of the Czech Republic and learn more about the country, that’s for sure!
3. Brno is a real mecca for beer lovers
Though heavily contested, with internationally renowned places like Plzen (home of Pilsen) not too far away, Brno is one of the world’s best places to go if you value well-brewed beer in countless traditional flavors.
Beer culture is stronger here than even in Prague, and the lower local prices mean that there’s never any need to strain your wallet to get access to locally crafted deliciousness. Pubs and bars dot Brno by the square meter, too, so there’s no shortage of venues to discover!
4. Nightlife isn’t as slow as you might think
Being a smaller town, Brno has a certain reputation for being quieter and cozier than Prague. The city’s eternal sobriquet, “the biggest village in the Czech Republic”, is a testament to that for sure!
However, Brno can’t be pigeonholed that easily. While for sure a smaller, less bustling place to be than the capital, it’s by no means a sleepy hamlet with nothing going on.
Nightlife chasers will find plenty to enjoy. In fact, the last couple of years have seen more clubs, bars, pubs, and concert venues popping up in and around Brno than ever before, cementing its status as a major clubbing and partying destination in the region!
5. Brno is within easy reach of many Central European gems
One point that I raised earlier as a commonly cited con of visiting Brno can easily be turned around into one of the city’s greatest strengths, depending on how you plan your trip.
Within only two to three hours by train, you can reach destinations like Krakow, Budapest, Vienna, or Bratislava. And with a little bit of a stretch, you can even fit Ljubljana into a day trip!
This makes Brno an excellent home base for a Central European grand trip, perhaps even more so than Prague itself.
6. It easily matches Prague in the public art department
If there’s one quirk that Prague is known for more than anything else, it’s the public sculptures and modern art pieces dotted around the city. From the giant revolving Kafka head outside the Quadrio mall to the faceless babies crawling up Zizkov Tower (yep, that’s real), it’s definitely, shall I say, a matter of taste.
Surprisingly enough, Brno has its own share of these bizarre, more often than not bizarrely interesting art installations. Highlights include a statue of a young, prepubescent Amadeus Mozart but with the face of his adult counterpart, and angel wings to boot!
But by far the most famous sculpture in Brno is the astronomical clock. That’s right — not content with Prague having the monopoly on such functional masterworks of architecture, Brno decided to commission its own in 2010.
As a stark contrast to Prague’s own, beautifully ornate medieval structure, the Brno astronomical clock has a much more…modern design to it.
Yes, the likeness to adult toys and various other less-than-favorable comparisons is hard to deny, but be that as it may, the clock definitely looks unique!
7. Brno is a walkable and accessible city
Being fairly compact and sharing much of Prague’s top-notch infrastructure, you would expect Brno to be easily walkable and bikeable. And you’d be right! In fact, Brno is one of the best cities in the area to explore entirely on foot, at least in my humble opinion.
Should you need or want to, there’s also a very refined, perfectly reliable public transport system that you can rely on.
8. Authentic Czech and Moravian cuisine is affordable
Brno is proud of its Moravian heritage and has only done more to show it off in recent years. Contrast that with Prague, which, unless you know where to look, can sometimes feel so internationalized and cosmopolitan that it can be hard to get access to some genuine Czech goods!
Not so in Brno. Especially when talking about the cuisine, the local gastronomy is very heavily steeped in traditional Czech, specifically Moravian recipes.
9. Architecture lovers will get their fix here
Brno is full of stunning works of architecture from many different eras. Sure, in terms of reputation and name recognition, it stands no chance against jewels like Paris or Florence, but it doesn’t need to.
Brno offers a much more understated, but definitely gratifying experience for the casual architecture enjoyer. Modernist, functionalist, and especially Bauhaus movement villas can be found in surprising numbers throughout the city; some of these, like the famous Tugendhat Villa (pictured above), offer particular historical significance.
Plenty of other landmarks, specifically Brno’s many historical hotels and spa houses — the Hotel International, the Jurkovič House, and the Avion — offer spectacular looks and equally spectacular lodging, of course.
The Moravian Library and Brno’s many medieval churches and cathedrals round out the picture, lending the inner city some additional old-world flair.
10. So will avid outdoors enthusiasts!
The great outdoors is never more than a tram ride away when you’re in Brno. If you are the kind of explorer that brings their hiking boots wherever they go, you’ll definitely enjoy that part of the city!
Though urban, Brno lies right at the edge of vast stretches of beautiful Moravian countryside, including large amounts of protected forest area and dozens of trails within and surrounding the city limits. You definitely won’t get tired of hiking in Brno, though your legs might!
11. Brno is a young city
With university students making up somewhere between a third and half of Brno’s 400,000-strong population, it’s an unusually young city by Central European standards.
This factors into the aforementioned drinking culture and nightlife scene, of course, all in all making Brno an exciting clash between forward-looking and reserved, between high-octane partying and laid-back relaxation.
To me, a youthful local culture is pretty much never a bad thing. The city’s students have given Brno a fresh shot of vigor and have tremendously helped its swift reinvention and growth over the past 20 years or so.
12. It’s one of the safest places to be in the region
The Czech Republic is overall an extremely safe place to be compared to just about anywhere else on the globe, but Brno takes this a bit further than a certain busy capital beloved by tourists the world over. You really don’t have to worry about much more than random petty crimes here, and staying out late is not associated with any sense of danger.
I’ve been to many places around the world that I enjoyed much less than I otherwise could have because I just couldn’t stop worrying about my personal safety or that of my belongings. Of course, more often than not such worries have much more to do with the subjective feel of a place than any real threat.
Case in point: Brno doesn’t just feel like an incredibly safe and relaxing place to be. It genuinely is, and that’s no small feat!
13. Brno is the perfect size for a weekend getaway
Since it’s smaller than Prague and so easy to navigate, Brno is the perfect bite-sized stop on a shorter trip. Combine it with a longer stay, and Brno’s compact dimensions make for the perfect base to launch some exciting Czech day trips from!
Either way, I feel that Brno is just about the perfect middle ground between larger cities that beckon more than a few days to get the most out of, and smaller towns that might feel underwhelming depending on the type of traveler you are.
14. It offers a major attraction for motorbike lovers
Finally, there’s one thing that Brno is famous for more than anything else — at least if you’re into a very certain subculture.
That’s right, of course, I am talking about the Brno MotoGP, one of the bike racing world’s greatest events held at the eponymous racetrack not far from the city center.
If two-wheeled racing at all interests you, then a visit to Brno is basically a no-brainer, whether during the off-season or just in time for the next big race. Speaking of which, the Brno circuit hasn’t hosted a Grand Prix-level event since 2020, due to unfortunate budget cuts as a result of the pandemic.
Here’s to hoping that it may soon return to the world stage where it has stood for more than 80 years!
So, is Brno worth visiting?
As you can see, my personal answer is a big, resounding ‘YES’!
Brno has a lot to offer, much more than you might assume given its low international recognition and small size, and much more, in fact, than I could have ever crammed into such a short article.
Whether you’re a gearhead or a nature lover, an adrenaline junkie or an art connoisseur, or just about anyone, really, I feel like you will find a visit to Brno to be very rewarding and fun!
Have you been to Brno yet? If so, what was your favorite sight or experience in the city? Let us know in the comments, and until next time!
