Step back in time this autumn and experience Switzerland using all your senses
As Switzerland’s only open-air museum, Ballenberg has a lot happening to entice visitors. Peer into Swiss heritage and traditions as you navigate through 109 historic buildings, gaining insights into how people lived and work in the past.
You’ll have 66 hectares to explore, stretching between the picturesque towns of Hofstetten and Brienzwiler, deep in the heart of the Bernese Oberland. Across the site, visitors can uncover homes from different centuries, see skilled artists and makers creating incredible products and delicious food, and even make some new farmyard animal friends along the way. There are also special activities taking place to mark the onset of autumn, making a seasonal trip even more appealing.
We’ve selected our top five reasons for visiting Ballenberg this autumn, and you’ll find plenty more reasons – plus all the info you need about activities, events and booking tickets – by clicking here.
See history up-close and personal as you stroll around Ballenberg by exploring the kitchens, dining rooms and bedrooms of more than 100 buildings, including a labourer’s home and a Bernese farmhouse. You’ll see life through the ages as it was lived day-to-day across 13 different Swiss regions, from the Jura to central Switzerland. And don’t forget the gardens, as they too are laid-out according to historically accurate formations, growing often-forgotten fruits and vegetables.
Ballenberg is very much an active museum, as you’ll see when you wander around the 66 hectares. Throughout the site, traditional arts, crafts and skilled domestic tasks are taking place, from baking fresh bread to sowing and harvesting farmland to rope-making to pottery. Best of all, visitors can get involved by trying out some of these activities and learning new skills. Afterwards, head to the Ballenberg shops to pick up some of the artisan products you’ve just seen being expertly crafted.
Experience the sights, colours and aromas of autumn this year at Ballenberg, thanks to the 2021 theme: ‘All fired up’. The site’s tilery (from Péry, Berne) will be using open brick fires to bake and cook food during the season, and when it becomes chillier, those fires will be heating up the ‘ofenbänkli’ (stove benches) to keep everyone toasty. As well as demonstrating the importance of fire in both past and present times, the ‘All fired up’ theme will be an opportunity to bring to life love stories that occurred throughout Ballenberg over the centuries.
Alongside all the open houses, intricate architecture, arts and crafts and exhibitions, you’ll also be able to gaze lovingly at more than 200 farm animals. Some of the many wonderful creatures at Ballenberg include stoic and powerful oxen grazing in the fields, young foals slowly getting to grips with the world, playful goats and piglets doing their thing, and flocks of chickens and geese roaming the grounds or splashing in the stream.
Visit Ballenberg on October 3 and you’ll also be able to experience traditional Ticinese festivities in full swing at Viva il Ticino. Head to the Farmstead from Novazzano to discover this day-long extravaganza, featuring live Ticinese folk music and favourite foods from around the region, such as polenta, risotto and boccalinos (ceramic jugs) full of local wine. Find out what other events are on the agenda at Ballenberg by clicking here.
