9 Highlights in October in the city and region of Bern

“Lights on!” The many lights on façades, on stages or in the hilly Emmental present the city and region of Bern in the most beautiful autumn colours. If you feel like enjoying the magnificent panorama from a bird’s eye view, you can simply take a ride on the Ferris wheel. Do you know where it is?

Cultural Night Burgdorf

The cultural journey starts in the beautiful Emmental region. At dusk, in addition to the magnificent sunsets between the prominent hills, you can enjoy a marvellous cultural programme. On 21 October 2023, local cultural institutions will open their doors to the public for the 18th time. Cultural associations, music and theatre groups, choirs and orchestras, as well as visual artists and writers will be taking part. And if you have a bit more time, we recommend you take a long weekend to explore the autumnal landscape. The views of the picturesque valleys are indescribable, on an e-bike or on foot.

Take a look at the programme

Latin American Film Festival

Autumn is the season that officially heralds binge-watching (watching several episodes of a TV series in one sitting). If you want to stuff your face with popcorn, lose yourself in stories but still hold on to the feeling of summer for a bit, you might want to go to the Latin American Film Festival. From 3 October to 28 November 2023, you can see different films in the cineClub Bern. The programme is varied and features artistic performances from far away: from Argentina, Mexico, Brazil, Costa Rica etc. Now that’s how you combine autumn’s comfort with summer’s vacation feeling.

Browse through the programme

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    Addicted to Latin American vibes? There’s no need to wait: the theme weekend “Día de Muertos” at the Bern Historical Museum is taking place on 28 and 29 October 2023.

Rendez-vous Bundesplatz

Every year, the façade of the parliament lights up in thousands of colours. From 21 October to 25 November 2023 at 7:00 pm, 8:00 pm and 9 pm, it will transform into a canvas for mystical creatures, and visitors can immerse themselves into the land of myths and fairytales. Wizards wander through the woods alongside deer, while hares hop through the undergrowth and fairies fly above. However, shedding light on all of these legends must certainly consume a lot of energy, right? Wrong. The Rendez-vous is extremely energy-efficient and uses about the same amount of electricity in five weeks as lighting up a football stadium for a single game does, Brigitte Roux explained to the “Berner Zeitung”. So, switch off your TV and go to the Rendez-vous.

Off to the land of fairytales

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    To perfectly finish off your program in Bern, we recommend going on one of the mystical city tours before the Rendez-vous and stopping at a restaurant after.

Cheese Festival Bern

Golden yellow treasures as far as the eye can see: on 21 October 2023, cheese takes over the stage when local producers showcase their lovingly crafted cheeses on the Waisenhausplatz (Orphanage Square). Visitors can taste, buy and even make cheeses themselves. A cow milking competition will take place next to the market, and if you’re in the mood to celebrate after all that cheese, you can do that in the festival tent with music. This festival will even convert a non-cheese lover.

Get a taste

Wine Fair Bern

Every good cheese needs the right wine to accompany it (or vice versa). So, how great is it that the Wine Fair Bern is taking place from 13 to 22 October 2023 on the BERNEXPO site, presenting all the best wines from Bern to the Piemont in Italy. Buy a ticket to taste the whole range of wines as well as listen to the winegrowers’ personal stories about your favourite one. And once your stomach starts rumbling, you can indulge in the mouthwatering selection of local delicacies. So, make sure to round up your favourite foodie friends, find a date that is convenient for everybody and enjoy a fun evening together.

Buy your tickets online

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    Don’t worry if your wine glass is already empty, there’s more just around the corner. At the Bindella Festival del Vino, you can taste wine, Italian appetisers and buy some bottles of wine to bring the dolce vita home with you.

Autumnal cosiness in Bern’s vaulted cellars

Autumn in the federal city is just beautiful. Let your view roam from the Minster Square to the Aare as it turns green and savour the smell of roasted chestnuts while walking through the alleys. And once you descend the stairs into Bern’s famous vaulted cellars, it only gets cosier and more mysterious. It’s the perfect plan: find autumnal treasures in the second-hand shop “Underground Station”, enjoy the best chai latte at Café Marta and end the day with a cinematic gem in the Kellerkino (cellar cinema).

The most beautiful vaulted cellars

Westside Anniversary

Happy Birthday! In the West of Bern, candles are being blown out as the shopping and adventure centre Westside is celebrating its 15th anniversary. To fully celebrate, they’ve put together quite a programme: for four days, from Thursday to Sunday (26-29 October), clown shows will entertain the children while the adults are marvelling at dance performances and enjoying the specially crafted anniversary beer. But there’s more: on Sunday, among others, the well-known Radio Energy presenters Moser and Schelker will be visiting. If you’re feeling courageous, you can compete against the two locals in entertaining challenges.

Look at the program

HeroFest

Welcome to HeroFest, where Gandalf stands behind you while you withdraw money, cables and lights pop up between benches and tables and a mix of joy, anticipation and magic hangs in the air. From 13 to 15 October 2023 you’ll find everything related to Esports and much more here. The world of gaming really shows what it’s made of: you can discover everything from important finales and retro corners with much more than just the Game Boy Classic to real, walking comic, action and hero characters (ever heard of cosplay?). We promise, this is a spectacle for everybody, even non-gamers.

Visit the HeroFest

A Ferris Wheel on the Gurten

“All aboard, please” – enjoy the most beautiful view of Bern with a ride on the Ferris wheel – you will not find one in a higher location in the region, and you’ll be able to see all the way from the UNESCO-listed old town to the Alps. And what’s even better: you’ll witness the landscape changing into its autumn clothes. But keep in mind that the Ferris wheel will only be there until the end of October. So, if you want to take the traditional funicular up to the local mountain to enjoy the stunning view from the Ferris wheel, you might want to do it soon.

(Almost) above the clouds

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    Of course, there are many more events happening in Bern. Take a look at our event calendar.

Golden, liquid autumn

Bern – the beer capital

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