Ballenberg, Swiss Open-Air Museum – Discover Switzerland like never before! An unforgettable day out. From 10 April 2025, our historic buildings will reopen their doors and welcome guests to a unique leisure experience.
Support the Open-Air Museum
Annual Theme 2025: Biodiversity – Ballenberg in Bloom!
During the 2025 season, in addition to our historic buildings, traditional crafts and farm animals, you’ll discover a vibrant and blooming floral world along the 10 km interactive trail. Biodiversity you can see and feel.
Over 45'000 objects
In order to furnish the buildings, the Ballenberg Open-Air Museum collects objects from rural life and farming from the time before agriculture began to become motorised (before 1950). These items and related secondary information of all kinds relate to earlier ways of living, social structures and economic activities in the farming community, as well as crafts and commerce. Our collection currently holds over 45'000 objects.
Hands-on interaction, play and fun are all encouraged at our museum
The Swiss Open-Air Museum is getting a schoolhouse – Construction diary schoolhouse Unterheid
Winter is calling the shots – at least on our construction site. While building work continues unabated in many parts of Switzerland, the Unterheid schoolhouse project at Ballenberg took a winter break shortly after the end of the season. This wasn't for planning reasons, but due to nature: lime mortar won't harden if temperatures are below 5°C. An early frost could have caused damage to the newly reassembled masonry.
Three quarters of the ground floor has already been completed. As soon as temperatures allow, probably in early April, construction work will resume and, if everything goes according to plan, the wooden boards on the first floor can be laid as early as May.
All you need for planning your visit
Ballenberg
Swiss Open-Air Museum
Museumsstrasse 100
CH-3858 Hofstetten bei Brienz
Opening hours
10 April to 2 November 2025
10 am to 5 pm daily
