Discover Zihle: Nature, Culture and Holiday Apartments

Žihle combines cultural and historical landmarks with geological formations and paths through a distinctive landscape.

Culture

The Smírčí kámen is a medieval monument in Žihle. It consists of a circular sandstone slab on a shaft that widens slightly towards the bottom; on the front, it bears a raised paw cross within a circular border. The stone stands about 30 m west of Žihle’s square, on the south side of the road to the railway station, alongside a row of houses.

The Socha sv. Jiljí stands north of the Kostel sv. Václava, on the right-hand side of the road to Velečín. It is a Baroque statue of a saint on a tall prismatic pedestal. The Kostel sv. Václava is an elaborate Baroque building designed by F. M. Kaňka and occupies a dominant position in the municipality.

The Kostel sv. Filipa a Jakuba is a religious building of older origin whose present appearance was created through Baroque and late Baroque alterations. In a respectfully designed park south of this church’s cemetery stands a memorial to the victims of the death march.

Nature

In the immediate vicinity of Žihle, the Viklany form a group of granite boulders created by the selective weathering of coarse-grained biotite granite. The Dědek granite formation is also located nearby; it is about 5 m high and 8 m wide.

The U Báby–U lomu protected area preserves particularly notable erratic boulders and groups of erratic boulders as examples of various forms of the block disintegration of Tiská granite in the Žihle area. A yellow-marked hiking trail runs through the U Báby–U lomu rock formations. The area can be reached via a walkable tourist trail; the access point is more than 250 m from the road.

The Odlezelské jezero protected area preserves a lake dammed by a landslide and the associated landslide area. The lake formed in 1872 within a single night after heavy rainfall triggered a massive slope failure that dammed the Mladotický potok. Various mollusc species and aquatic plants can be found in Odlezelské jezero.

For planning your own day, cultural sites, rock formations, geological features and the lake can be considered as different focal points. The various route and landscape types provide a clear basis for determining the focus you want for your activities.

Getting There

The Plzeň–Žatec railway line runs through Žihle. Žihle has good bus connections towards Kralovice, Plasy and Lubenec.

When booking a holiday apartment in Zihle, you can compare travel dates, room categories and cancellation policies on the listing pages. These practical details complement the cultural, hiking and nature highlights, which you can weigh differently when planning your trip.

Other Places

Nekmíř, Pernarec, Trnová, Myslinka, Přehýšov, Čerňovice, Plešnice, Vochov

To the higher-level travel overview: Plzeň-Sever District.