What is the Bern self-guided walking tour?
The Bern self-guided walking tour is a walk you pace yourself, with audio narration on your phone doing what a guide would do. Reckon with about 3 hours: 39 minutes of that is walking, the route measures 3.2 km, and 10 stops are where you stop and listen. Nothing is timed and no group sets the speed.
On Bundesplatz the narration counts the 26 water jets set in the paving, one for each Swiss canton. At the Zähringerbrunnen on Kramgasse the bear in full armour takes the eye, but the detail to look for is the small cub eating grapes at his feet. More than 200 carved figures crowd the Last Judgement above the portal of Bern Minster, and the walk closes at the museum devoted to Einstein, who published his theory of special relativity in Bern in 1905.
- Durationabout 3 hours
- Walkingabout 39 min · 3.2 km
- Stops10
- LanguagesEnglish, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Chinese
What you do on the walking tour
Listen
Every stop hands you the history of the place, the stories told about it and the details hiding in the stonework. The same text is on screen for readers.
Walk on
Google Maps takes care of the way between stops: 39 minutes on foot over 3.2 km, at whatever pace you set.
Break off
Sit under the arcades with a coffee or go into a museum for an hour, then take up the walk again, that day or another.
Eat and browse
Tips for places to eat and shops near the route come with the stops. The first stop and the order are both set in the app.
See the route and attractions →
How it works
- Book online Choose the number of people. Your booking reference arrives by email straight away.
- Get the app Download the World City Trail app from the App Store or Google Play and enter your booking reference.
- Walk when you like Start whenever you are ready, walk at your own pace and pause any time. No guide, no fixed schedule.
Who the walking tour is for
A first visit
One walk ties the arcaded streets, the fountains, the Minster and the Aare together and explains what you are looking at.
Anyone who avoids groups
No raised umbrella and no meeting time: you stand still as long as a fountain holds you and walk on when you decide.
A day in the capital
3 hours covers the old town, which leaves the afternoon for the Bear Park or the Rose Garden across the river.
Good to know
- Bring a charged smartphone with mobile data; a power bank helps.
- No entry tickets needed: everything happens outside the buildings. Going inside is optional and paid separately.
- Family friendly; children must be accompanied by an adult.
- Not suitable for wheelchair users and difficult with strollers.
- Groups of up to 5 work best; larger groups split up, one ticket per person.
- Every purchase helps support stray cats and dogs in Greece.
The walk stop by stop: the Käfigturm, Kramgasse, Bern Minster, the Einstein Museum
10 stops · about 39 min walking · start: Heiliggeistkirche · finish: Bern Historical Museum and Einstein Museum
Beside the main station, where Spitalgasse begins, the Heiliggeistkirche opens the walk, and the Käfigturm stands a few hundred metres along it. The Federal Palace and the Stadttheater on Kornhausplatz come next, after which the route turns into the covered streets of the old town for the Zähringerbrunnen on Kramgasse and the Rathaus. It drops to the Nydeggkirche above the river, climbs back to Bern Minster and crosses the Kirchenfeld Bridge to Helvetiaplatz, where the Historical Museum and the Einstein Museum close the walk. The app allows a different first stop or a different order, and no stop asks for a ticket.
Open the route map ↗
1HeiliggeistkircheStart
The Church of the Holy Spirit stands right beside Bern's main railway station and was built between 1726 and 1729. It is one of the largest Protestant baroque churches in Switzerland, with a bright, hall-like interior. Its sandstone façade faces Spitalgasse, where the long main street of the old town begins.
2Käfigturm
The Käfigturm, or Prison Tower, marks the western edge of Bern after the town grew in the 13th century. The present tower was built in the 17th century and served as a prison until the late 19th century, which explains its name, cage tower. Look up at the clock and the small bell turret on its roof.
3Federal Palace
The Federal Palace, completed in 1902 to designs by Hans Wilhelm Auer, houses the Swiss parliament and the Federal Council. Its green dome rises high above the Aare valley. On the Bundesplatz in front of it, 26 water jets spring from the paving, one for each Swiss canton.
4Stadttheater Bern
Bern's municipal theatre opened in 1903 on Kornhausplatz and stages opera, drama and dance. Its neo-baroque façade with columns and sculptures faces the square. Next to it stands the Kornhaus, the city's former granary, now used for events and dining.
5Bern Old Town
Founded in 1191 by Duke Berthold V of Zähringen on a loop of the river Aare, Bern's old town has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1983. Its sandstone houses line streets with around 6 kilometres of covered arcades, the Lauben. Look down for the cellar doors opening onto the pavement, many of them now shops and bars.
6Zähringerbrunnen
This fountain on Kramgasse was set up in 1535 in honour of Berthold V of Zähringen, the founder of Bern. Its figure is a bear in full armour holding a banner and a shield. At its feet a little bear cub is eating grapes.
7Rathaus
Bern's Town Hall was built between 1406 and 1417 in late Gothic style and is still the seat of both the cantonal and the city parliament. Look at the covered double staircase leading up to the entrance, a typical feature of late Gothic town halls.
8Nydeggkirche
The Nydeggkirche stands on the site of Nydegg Castle, the Zähringer fortress from which the town was founded. The church dates from the late Middle Ages and overlooks the Nydegg Bridge over the Aare. From here it is only a short walk across the river to the Bear Park.
9Bern Minster
Bern Minster, the city's great late Gothic church, was begun in 1421, but its tower was only completed in 1893. At just over 100 metres, it is the tallest church tower in Switzerland. Above the main portal, the Last Judgement is carved in stone with more than 200 figures.
10Bern Historical Museum and Einstein MuseumFinish
The Bern Historical Museum fills a castle-like building from the 1890s on Helvetiaplatz, just across the Kirchenfeld Bridge from the old town. It is one of the largest history museums in Switzerland and also houses the Einstein Museum. Albert Einstein lived in Bern from 1902 to 1909 and published his special theory of relativity here in 1905.
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