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Themed days

On selected weekends during the season, our themed days invite you to immerse yourself in exciting craftsmanship and special themed worlds. Come by and rediscover traditional craftsmanship.

Ein Gruppenausflug in das Freilichtmuseum Ballenberg: Lernen Sie in der historischen Küche aus Villard-Bramard wie vor vielen Jahren gekocht wurde.

Thementage 2026

26 / 27 September- Preserving Sauerkraut
17 / 18 October - Preserving Sauerkraut
24 October - Unwinding, from cocoon to silk thread

The themed days take place in various buildings across the Swiss Open-Air Museum. Details can be found in the daily schedule.

26 / 27 September & 17 / 18 October – Preserving Sauerkraut

At Ballenberg, at the start of autumn, the cooking team ferments a large pot of sauerkraut and look after it for 8 weeks. At the end of the season, this sauerkraut is ready and cooked for our guests in a historical kitchen. Our visitors have the opportunity to make their own sauerkraut.

Sauerkraut is a type of preservation technique in which food is preserved by means of lactic acid fermentation. Sauerkraut is not a vegetable as such, but is produced from white cabbage or cabbage. This vegetable with its long shelf-life and known worldwide for thousands of years, is the result of a natural fermentation process and salt.

Location: Farmhouse from Tentlingen, FR (511)

Auf dem Ballenberg wird zu Beginn des Herbstes ein grosser Topf Sauerkraut von unserem Kochteam eingemacht.

24 October – Unwinding, from cocoon to silk thread

The precious silk thread is created from the cocoons acquired here. Watch how the silk thread is cleverly unwound from the cocoons and turned into shiny thread material. During unwinding, steaming hot water is used to dissolve the silk glue produced by the caterpillar and expose the thread, which is up to three kilometres long – sweaty, high-precision work.