Czechia's secret soviet bunker now open to the public: How and when to visit

Deep in the Doupov Mountains in the Karlovy Vary region, you can step inside a former Soviet military bunker that was kept secret for decades, and was designed to survive a nuclear explosion.

The Jasyr bunker, near Verušičky, was completed in 1974 as a reserve wartime command post for Soviet troops stationed in Czechoslovakia. If war broke out, it was intended to take over command from the main Soviet headquarters in Milovice.

The facility was so secret that its existence was hidden from the public throughout its active service. It was also built to operate independently, with its own power, ventilation, and water supply, and had a direct encrypted communications link to Moscow.

Now, after years of neglect, visitors can finally see inside.

The bunker was taken over by the Czech military after the Soviet troops left Czechoslovakia in 1991, but eventually fell into disuse.

The Jasyr Military History Association took over the site in 2015, although its members initially had no idea they would end up restoring it.

“When we founded the association in 2015, we had no idea that we would one day be restoring the bunker,” Martin Antala of the association told Czech Radio.

Restoration work began in 2020. The volunteers found tonnes of rubbish, but almost no documentation showing how the bunker had originally been laid out.

A major breakthrough came when they discovered an officer's diary hidden inside the facility's large water tank. The group eventually tracked down the officer, as well as other former soldiers who had served at Jasyr. Their photographs and memories helped the volunteers work out what many of the rooms had been used for.

“When we saw how interested our friends and acquaintances were, we realized it would be a shame not to share this piece of history with the public,” Antala said.

The bunker itself is an impressive example of Cold War engineering, reports Radio Prague. It was constructed from standardized prefabricated reinforced-concrete elements and designed to withstand the effects of a medium-sized nuclear explosion.

Visitors can see the building's technical features and learn how the command post would have functioned in wartime.

Tours are currently being held every weekend during the summer holidays. Outside the main season, the association plans to open the bunker at least once a month.

Caves, cellars and bunkers have become an increasingly appealing refuge during Czechia's summer heat, with the country's Cave Administration even promoting its underground sites as natural cool-down destinations. Temperatures in Czech caves generally stay between 7 and 14°C year-round. 

The Jasyr bunker near Verušičky offers something a little different: Cold War history at around 10°C.

Check tour times and reserve a place at the Jasyr association website.