Louny District

Louny District (okres Louny) is a district in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic. Its capital is the town of Louny, but the most populated town is Žatec.

Administrative division
Louny District is divided into three administrative districts of municipalities with extended competence: Louny, Podbořany and Žatec.

List of municipalities
Towns are marked in bold and market towns in italics:

Bitozeves - Blatno - Blažim - Blšany - Blšany u Loun - Brodec - Břvany - Cítoliby - Čeradice - Černčice - Chlumčany - Chožov - Chraberce - Deštnice - Dobroměřice - Domoušice - Holedeč - Hříškov - Hřivice - Jimlín - Koštice - Kozly - Krásný Dvůr - Kryry - Lenešice - Libčeves - Liběšice - Libočany - Libořice - Lipno - Lišany - Líšťany - Louny - Lubenec - Měcholupy - Nepomyšl - Nová Ves - Nové Sedlo - Obora - Očihov - Opočno - Panenský Týnec - Peruc - Petrohrad - Pnětluky - Počedělice - Podbořanský Rohozec - Podbořany - Postoloprty - Raná - Ročov - Slavětín - Smolnice - Staňkovice - Toužetín - Tuchořice - Úherce - Velemyšleves - Veltěže - Vinařice - Vrbno nad Lesy - Vroutek - Vršovice - Výškov - Zálužice - Žatec - Zbrašín - Želkovice - Žerotín - Žiželice

Geography
Most of the territory is flat and has an agricultural character, only the south and northeast are hilly. The territory is located in the rain shadow of the Ore Mountains and therefore belongs to the driest regions of the country. The territory extends into five geomorphological mesoregions: Most Basin (north and centre), Rakovník Uplands (southwest), Džbán (south), Lower Ohře Table (east) and Central Bohemian Uplands (northeast). The highest point of the district is a contour line on the slopes of Ostrý hill in Libčeves with an elevation of 609 m, the highest peak is Velký les in Blatno with an elevation of 592 m. The lowest point is the river bed of the Ohře in Koštice at 165 m.

From the total district area of 1121.0 km2, agricultural land occupies 788.4 km2, forests occupy 180.5 km2, and water area occupies 15.6 km2. Forests cover 16.1% of the district's area.

The most important river is the Ohře, which drains almost the entire territory. Its most important tributaries are the Blšanka and Chomutovka. The largest body of water is Lenešický Pond. However, there are only a few bodies of water.

České Středohoří is a protected landscape area that extends into the district.

Economy
The largest employers with headquarters in Louny District and at least 500 employees are:

Žatec and its surroundings is known for its tradition of growing Saaz hops. It is a protected designation of origin.

Transport
The D7 motorway from Prague to Chomutov, including the unfinished section, leads across the district. The D6 motorway from Prague to Karlovy Vary passes through the southern part of the district.

Sights
Žatec and the landscape of Saaz hops was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2023 because it is an exceptional example of a monoculture agricultural landscape and long cultural tradition of growing and processing the world's most renown hops variety.

The most important monuments in the district, protected as national cultural monuments, are:
 * Church of Saint Nicholas in Louny
 * Krásný Dvůr Castle

The best-preserved settlements and landscapes, protected as monument reservations and monument zones, are:
 * Žatec (includes both a monument reservation and a monument zone)
 * Louny
 * Soběchleby
 * Stekník
 * Žatec hops landscape

The most visited tourist destination is the Stekník Castle.