Bear Pits of Bern

ABOVE: Bern's city mascots. Bears have been kept in Bern since 1480, and at this location since 1513. (Note: The bear pits have been improved since the photo was taken.)

"The Bear's Den, near the Nydeck Bridge, is at the east end of Berne. Here are kept some specimens of bears at the public expense, according to ancient usage; and very unwieldy and uncouth specimens they are."

Robert Allbut
The Tourist's Handbook to Switzerland
(1884)

Bears have enjoyed--or suffered--a long and rather one-sided relationship with Switzerland's capital of Bern. According to one legend, Berthold V of Zähringen named the Bern after the first animal killed during a hunt when the city was founded in 1191. (If the story is true, the Duke must have decided to honor the victim's entire species, since "Bären" is the German plural form of "bear.") The 1923 edition of Muirhead's Switzerland explains:

Whatever be the real connection of the words 'bear' and 'Bern,' the figure of a bear occurs in the oldest known city seal (1224), and living bears have been kept in Berne at the town's exepense since 1513 (except for a brief interval when the French removed them to Paris in 1798).

Frommer's Switzerland describes the city's bears as "beloved, pampered, and fed by both residents and visitors." Everything is relative, of course, but anyone who appreciates modern zoos can't help thinking that Bern's ancient Bärengraben are long overdue for a makeover--and that the existing bear pits have more in common with Alcatraz than with the animals' natural habitat, although reader Laurent Mousson reports: 

"Nowadays, the flat concrete bottom has been turned into a bit of a landscape with corners, hiding places, etc. Not perfect, but less depressing." He adds, "The Tram shed behind the Bear pits has now been turned into a brewpub and restaurant. See http://www.altestramdepot.ch." [Note: The brewpub site is in German, but you can translate with AltaVista.]

If you're visiting Bern, you ought to see the bear pits--not just to visit the bears, but also to take advantage of the modern, wheelchair-accessible restrooms.) While you're at the Bärengraben, buy some carrots from the official vendor and toss them to the bears.

How to reach the bear pits

From the railway station, head down the Spitalgasse and continue along the main streets through Bern's old town until you reach the Nydegggasse. Go straight ahead across the bridge. The bear pits are just beyond the River Aare, on the right side of the street.

Related resources

Travel Planner: Bern switzerlandforvisitors.com
These pages from my Switzerland & Austria Travel Planner link to travel articles and other Web sites about the city of Bern, the Bernese Mittelland, and the Bernese Oberland.

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