Discover the Sky: A Guide to the World’s Tallest Buildings
The tallest building in the Czech Republic can be enjoyed from beautiful terraces and parks near Špilberk Castle or from the Denis Orchards located below Petrov. In the list of the tallest buildings in the Czech Republic, the AZ Tower in Brno holds the top spot. This impressive structure stands at 111 metres, has thirty stories above ground, and offers a grand total of seventeen thousand square metres for commercial, office, and living spaces. The AZ Tower is also home to the highest residential area in the Czech Republic, featuring a duplex apartment that occupies the 28th and 29th floors. Remarkably, this apartment was one of the first to be sold. This building, whose overall cost is projected to reach 800 million crowns, was designed by the architectural firm of Aleš Burian and Gustav Křivinka. By 2025, a tourist viewpoint known as Sky View 111 will be open here, allowing visitors to gaze at the mountains of the Alps in clear weather.
How tall does a skyscraper have to be?
The term skyscraper is a direct translation from the English term skyscraper. This compound word combines sky (the heavens) and scrape (to push or scratch) to imply something that literally scrapes the sky. While skyscrapers lack a strict definition, originally in the late 19th century, the term referred to buildings with ten to twenty stories. Over time, as buildings grew taller, the meaning shifted. Today, a skyscraper is recognized as a structure that stands at least 150 metres tall and has more than forty floors. Additionally, skyscrapers are intended for residential, office, hotel, or commercial use, excluding similar tall structures like communication towers, church spires, and observation towers.
Other tallest buildings in the Czech Republic
Other notable buildings that are tall can be found in the Pankrác district of Prague. Nearby, you will find the City Tower, which at 109 metres is the second tallest building in the Czech Republic, along with the V Tower that stands at 104 metres and the slightly shorter City Empiria.
The tallest among these, City Tower, has been in place since the 1980s. Its final design was made by the American architect Richard Meier and was originally planned as the headquarters for Czechoslovak Radio. Even older than that is the neighboring City Empiria, which was initially called Motokov. In their vicinity on the Pankrácká plain, several taller buildings create a fascinating group that can be seen from quite a distance.
Once, the tallest building in Czechoslovakia was the SHD Komes building, featuring 23 floors and standing at 96 metres. It was the headquarters of the North Bohemian Brown Coal Mines and is now owned by a subsidiary of the North Bohemian Mines.
The second tallest building in Europe
Believe it or not, the Czech Republic once had the second tallest building in Europe. This was the Bata skyscraper located in Zlín, which became home to the management of the shoe company Bata during the transition between 1938 and 1939. The so-called Twenty-one building measured 77.5 metres in height and was only surpassed at that time by the Palace of the General Banking Unity in Antwerp, Belgium, which stood at 87 metres. Although the Zlín skyscraper has since been outdone by numerous buildings across the country, it continues to attract tourists. It features an elevator office, an observation deck with a café, and an exhibition dedicated to Bata’s history.
More tallest buildings in the Czech Republic on the horizon
The ranking of the tallest buildings in the Czech Republic is set to be updated; we just don’t have an exact timeline. The upcoming tallest skyscraper in the country is expected to be the Ostrava Towers, designed by the Chybík+Kristof studio. Although construction in Ostrava hasn’t started yet, the project has already gone through numerous changes. The key change was a reduction in height from the initial 235 metres to 170 metres. This adjustment is due to the fact that the skyscraper will be built on New Carolina, an area historically affected by mining activities. Concerns were raised regarding whether the local bedrock could support such a towering structure. Construction is currently scheduled to begin in 2028, with an anticipated completion and operational start date in 2032. Another projected Czech skyscraper is the Top Tower, designed to reach 120 metres in height. This building will be located in Prague’s Nové Butovice district, conceived by designers David Černý and Tomáš Císař from Black n’ Arch, and is meant to complement the existing 135-metre shipwreck tower with scenic views at its peak.
Museum in the towers
Even though the towers in Kladno do not quite fit the unofficial definition of skyscrapers, they come with a unique experience: you can explore their insides. You will get a taste of the 1950s atmosphere and learn about the first exhibition of residential architecture in the Czech Republic. The construction of six tower houses, each reaching a height of 48 metres, designed by architect Josef Havlíček, began in March 1953. The first building became accessible just before Christmas in 1956, and the last one was ready for residents exactly one year later, at Christmas 1957. When you visit the Turret Museum, you can tour the structure from the basement to the rooftop, which includes the civil defense shelter, a demonstration apartment, and a rooftop terrace that offers great views.
