The Bohemian Forest, known in Czech as Šumava and in German as Böhmerwald, is a low mountain range in Central Europe. Geographically, the mountains extend from Plzeň Region and the South Bohemian Region in the Czech Republic to Austria and Bavaria in Germany, and form the highest truncated uplands of the Bohemian Massif, up to 50 km wide. They create a natural border between the Czech Republic on one side and Austria and Germany on the other.

Plzeň Region is an administrative unit (kraj) in the western part of Bohemia in the Czech Republic. It is named after its capital Plzeň. In terms of area, Plzeň Region is 7,561 km2, the third largest region in the Czech Republic. However, with a population of about 585,000 inhabitants it is only the ninth most populous region. After the South Bohemian Region it is the second least densely populated region. The region can be roughly divided into two parts: a highly industrialized north-eastern part with a strong engineering tradition around Pilsen and a more hilly and rural south-western part with smaller-sized manufacturing companies processing natural resources.