The Red Tower of Death isn't your typical scenic lookout — it's a place that leaves a much deeper impression through its raw, industrial history. This seven-story brick tower near Vykmanov, in the Ostrov municipality of the Karlovy Vary region, served in the 1950s as the ore-sorting facility of the communist forced labor camp Vykmanov II, where political prisoners handled radioactive uranium ore without any protection. Today it's a National Cultural Monument and part of the UNESCO-listed Erzgebirge/Krušnohoří Mining Region.

The atmosphere here is heavy and thought-provoking — the red brick the tower is built from echoes not just its material color but the blood of the prisoners who suffered and died within its walls. The surroundings have opened up considerably since the demolition of the former Škoda trolleybus factory halls in 2019, giving the tower a stark, commanding presence against the backdrop of the Ore Mountains.

• From Ostrov or Vykmanov — accessible by car or on foot along local roads, flat terrain, easy route
• The site sits on the former grounds of the Škoda Ostrov factory, also reachable from Dolní Žďár

• Access to the tower is only possible by prior arrangement with the owner — formerly the Confederation of Political Prisoners of the Czech Republic, now managed by the National Heritage Institute (as of 2025)
• Since 2022, an exhibition inside documents the life of prisoners in the uranium labor camp
• Essential repairs are planned for autumn 2025 ahead of a full reconstruction, with a new exhibition prepared in cooperation with the National Museum for March 2026

It's worth knowing that this tower saw the harshest labor of any uranium mine in the region — prisoners themselves coined its grim nickname, inspired both by the color of its bricks and the sheer number of deaths that occurred here.