Page 78 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Switzerland

A SHORT WALK
THE OLD TOWN

Distance 2 km (1 mile) Nearest tram
Bärenplatz Time 30 minutes
EXPERIENCE Bern houses and picturesque arcades, Bern’s Old Town
With long cobbled streets lined with red-roofed
(Altstadt) is the best-preserved historic town centre
in Switzerland. The layout of its streets, which are
punctuated by colourfully painted fountains, has
remained largely unchanged since the early 15th
century. This was also the period when the Münster
and the Rathaus, two of its great landmarks, were Zytglogge’s ornate
built. While the western district of the Old Town is golden clock face
filled with shops and busy street markets, its older
eastern district has a more restful atmosphere.
Now a cultural centre, the
18th-century Kornhaus granary
was built over vaulted wine cellars
that currently house a restaurant.
0 metres 100 N
0 yards 100 Französische Kirche
FINISH

SPEICHERGASSE K O R N H A U S P L AT Z
START
Z E U G H A U S G A S S E
THEATER –
PL ATZ

The Bärenplatz (p72) M A R K T G A S S E
overlies the spot where a
moat once ran, along N E U E N G A S S E B ÄREN–
Bern’s west side. PL ATZ A M T H A U S T G A S S E

Heiliggeistkirche S P I TA LG A S S E BUNDES–
is one of the finest PL ATZ
Protestant churches S C H A U P L AT Z G A S S E
in Switzerland.

The main axis through the Old Town The Bundeshaus, with
begins at the Käfigturm (Prison Tower) its paintings of historical
on Marktgasse (p73). It was the events, overlooks the
city’s western gate in the 13th and Bundesplatz (p72).
14th centuries.

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