Pravčická Gate

About this place

Pravčická Gate is a narrow natural rock arch in Bohemian Switzerland in northern Czechia, about 3 km northeast of the village of Hřensko and 42 km southeast of Dresden in Germany in a straight line. In German it is known as the Prebischtor. The arch spans 26.5 metres, with an inside height of 16 metres and a maximum width of 8 metres, making it the largest natural sandstone arch in Europe and one of the most striking natural monuments of the Elbe Sandstone Mountains; it is protected as a national natural monument. An inn was built beside it in 1826, and the Falcon's Nest hotel in 1881. Climbing on the arch has been banned since 1982 because of erosion caused by visitors. The brownish-grey sandstone arch stretches across a wide gap between rock towers covered in pine and beech forest, with the old red-timbered hotel leaning against its side. From the terraces around it a view opens over a sea of forest and rocks in the national park. Visitors walk a climbing forest path from the road near Hřensko, enter the fenced area with a ticket and stand on the terraces to see the arch. Scenes from The Chronicles of Narnia were filmed here, and many combine the visit with the nearby gorges of the Kamenice river.