The small village Kostelec nad Vltavou lies above the valley of the Vltava river on its right bank, 457 m a.s.l., about 15 km north-west of the town Milevsko.
The village was founded in the surroundings of the Gothic church from the 13th century on the hill above the Vltava river. The first mention of it dates back to the beginning of the 14th century. The village was property of the monastery in Břevnov (Prague).
The oldest building in the village is the Gothic Church of the Nativity of Virgin Mary. The old Baroque hospice with a rectory and a school from the second half of the 18th century have been preserved as well.
The important Czech ethnographist Čeněk Zíbrt was born in Kostelec nad Vltavou.