The Swiss fiercely preserve the gentle sound of metal cowbells tinkling while cattle graze, just as they uphold rules that protect chalet architecture or limit activities like hand-washing personal vehicles on Sundays.
PHOTO: © BERN WELCOME
Recently, in a small town near Bern, new residents asked local farmers to remove cowbells at night, saying the ringing disturbed their sleep. Long-established farmers, however, insisted on preserving this emblem of Swiss rural life and called for a Canton of Bern vote to protect the practice. Canton voters approved the measure by a wide margin, preserving farmers’ right to use cowbells around the clock. As many locals put it, “The cowbells are in the DNA of Swiss people.”
In Bern, farmland and the sound of cowbells are never far from the city center. Swiss customs run deep in a city ranked No. 13 out of 241 global cities on the 2023 Mercer Quality of Life list. According to Neil Ashman, senior location ratings analyst at ECA International, Bern benefits from excellent air quality, strong infrastructure, reliable medical services and very low crime. It’s no surprise that this somewhat understated Swiss capital scores above Paris, Stockholm and London on quality of life.
Visitors tend to remember Bern for its distinctive ambience and striking setting. “This is the most beautiful place I have ever seen,” Johann Wolfgang von Goethe wrote during his 1779 stay. For business travelers today, Bern combines walkable streets, warm hospitality, refined restaurants and cultural offerings with a notable craft beer scene—176 breweries, the highest microbrewery density in Switzerland.
Although most destinations in Bern are within easy walking distance, overnight guests don’t need to worry about public-transport tickets. From the first hotel night, visitors receive a Bern Ticket valid for their entire stay, providing free travel in zones 100/101. The ticket also covers the Gurten and Marzili funiculars and the lift to the Münster terrace, plus transfers to and from Bern Airport.
Start the day at the 5-star Hotel Schweizerhof Bern & Spa with a swim, sauna and breakfast at Jack’s Brasserie or on the rooftop Sky Terrace when weather permits, both offering views toward the Swiss Alps. Opened in 1859, the hotel has 99 elegant rooms and suites in the city center, just a five-minute walk from Bern’s Central Rail Station. Bern is unique among European capitals for having high-speed ICE, TGV and Pendolino services alongside many EuroCity and InterCity connections. Direct trains from Zürich Airport depart roughly every 30 minutes, reaching Bern in about an hour and 20 minutes.
Business travelers can host morning meetings conveniently: Hotel Schweizerhof guests may book fully equipped meeting and conference rooms located within Central Station. These spaces accommodate up to 400 people and can be reserved through the hotel. Bern’s Central Station ranked third-best in Europe on the European Railway Station Index 2023.
© OLIVER BAER
Before lunch, walk to the Museumsquartier Bern in the Kirchenfeld district. Launched in 2021, the quarter groups 11 cultural and educational institutions within a 20-minute walk of Central Station. The institutions collaborate on shared programs and create new public spaces among the museums’ gardens. Highlights include the Swiss Alpine Museum, the Natural History Museum Bern and the Swiss Shooting Museum; the modern Zentrum Paul Klee art museum lies nearby.
While in Kirchenfeld, enjoy lunch at Restaurant Kirchenfeld, a Bib Gourmand pick in the Michelin 2023 guide. Reserve a table in the dining room for a quieter business meal, or choose the lively bistro section for a more casual atmosphere. Menus emphasize seasonal, locally sourced ingredients. Hosts Lorenzo and Lena Malorgio often welcome guests personally.
The lunch menu might feature fish with grilled vegetables and lemon risotto, veal from local farms with mushroom cream sauce and rösti, or the Kirchenfeld cutlet moutarde de Meaux with rösti and market vegetables. Be sure to save room for the dessert trolley, where daily homemade tarte Tatin or a coupe Colonel with lemon sorbet and vodka are tempting finales.
After lunch, take the 10-minute walk across the Aare River to Altstadt (Old City), Bern’s most historic and picturesque quarter. Altstadt, founded in 1191 and listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site, offers a memorable stroll amid well-preserved medieval buildings and cozy cafés and bars. If you need a post-lunch meeting space, the Bern Convention Bureau can efficiently arrange seminar venues, presentations and other event services.
For a cultural stop, visit Einstein House, where Albert Einstein lived from 1903 to 1905 and developed parts of his theory of relativity; the museum welcomes visitors daily until 5 p.m.