An overview of the centuries

In the 6th century, Burgundy stretched as far as the Aare River, and the Gurten served as a Burgundian-Frankish guard post in the constant conflict with the Alemanni. Seven centuries later, the scouts had disappeared from the Gurten and the Aegerten family built a stately castle in the southern region of the lofty hill as their ancestral seat, of which only parts of the foundation remain today. It is said that over the centuries, stone by stone, the towering walls were dismantled and reused to build the houses of the village of Gurten. In the Zähringer era, it was customary to derive family names from their origins. This is why, even today, the descendants of the inhabitants of this village still bear the name Gurtner in various parts of the Bern region.

In 1393, the rapidly growing city of Bern faced supply shortages. When the city's own water sources threatened to dry up, a well was drilled on the Gurten mountain in Bächtelen and its water was fed into the city fountains, which were the centers of urban life at the time. To ensure that not only water but also wine could flow, vines laden with grapes were also cultivated on the Gurten during this period.

Today's observation tower on the Gurten is a reminder of a time when Bern had to defend itself against invaders. In the 15th century, a watchtower stood on this spot with a chutz – a huge fire stick that was lit as soon as the approaching danger could be seen from the Gurten. The bonfire warned the townspeople, and the alarm was sounded with the church bells at Bern Minster. The Chutz on the Gurten burned for the last time in 1847.

Around 50 years later, the Gurten hill, covering around 15 hectares of land, became the property of Winterthur entrepreneur Fritz Marti, who opened the “Chutzengut” restaurant in 1898 and began serving guests. More and more people made pilgrimages to the mountain for pleasure, so the entrepreneur had a large drinking and festival hall for around 400 guests built next to the restaurant and founded the Elektrische Gurten funicular AG, which shortly afterwards put the most modern funicular railway of its time into operation. The largest children's playground in Bern at the time was opened on the mountain to provide entertainment for the next generation.

Marti commissioned Bernese architect Albert Gerster to build the Gurten Kulm spa hotel with 30 rooms, which was officially opened in 1901. Numerous buildings designed by Gerster, such as the Hotel Bristol, the Loeb department store, and residential buildings and villas in the suburbs, still characterize the appearance of the city of Bern today. Wealthy Englishmen and women, clubs, and associations were among the first guests to say “Grüezi” and “Good Morning” at the Gurten Kulm spa hotel. Many of these visitors stopped off at the Gurten to get their first taste of mountain air before continuing on to the Valais or the Engadin. The hotel brochure from that time advertised the achievements of the era, such as electric lighting and central heating, cold and warm baths, showers, sweat baths, excellent spring water, and the finest cuisine. Because the Gurten funicular was already electrically powered at that time, the Gurten became a symbol of modern tourism.

In 1902, Switzerland's first ski race with international participation was held on the Gurten. The aim was to defend sporting honor in the four disciplines of Gurten racing, ski jumping, schoolchildren's racing, and endurance running. The Gurten became a promoter of Swiss winter sports enthusiasts on two boards and even founded its own ski club in 1908. The Gurten descent from Ostsignal to the valley station attracted numerous winter sports enthusiasts to the mountain. For many years, winter visitors crowded into the Gurten funicular, their noses pressed against the ski tips. This was because the first ski lift was not built until many years later, in 1951.

When Fritz Marti's nephew decided to sell the entire complex in 1913, the city of Bern expressed its interest in purchasing it. However, no agreement could be reached for twelve long years. In 1925, the majority of Bern's citizens finally voted in favor of purchasing the Gurten meadow, which was to remain a recreational area for the city's residents. It was a very unfavorable time for a takeover, as the First World War had severely affected visitor numbers and the desire for leisure activities. The tone became harsher again in the otherwise idyllic world away from the city. Where the Chutzenfeuer bonfire had once blazed, an air observation post was set up during World War II, and interned American airmen who had to make emergency landings on Swiss soil were housed in the Hotel Gurten Kulm.

After the war ended, more peaceful times and economic growth arrived on the Gurten, and with them the golf club, which between 1937 and 1958 made the entire Gurtenmatte and the clubhouse available exclusively to its members and guests. This was a bitter loss for all those who had to save up a few cents just to ride the Gurten funicular.

In 1949, the Gurten funicular inaugurated its new mountain station. Thanks to modernization, the journey time was reduced to five minutes. And instead of 60 people, the cable car could now accommodate 100 passengers. Ferdinand Bärtschi performed for the first time at the inauguration with an entertainment program for children. For forty years, he repeated his performance with the accordion every year and invited the youngest Gurten visitors onto a small stage, where even today children sing their favorite songs, tell jokes, or recite poems in front of an audience every year.

After Gurtenmatte was reopened to the public in 1959, Gurten was finally declared a recreational area for the population with the introduction of a ban on motor vehicles. However, there was not enough money to make the necessary investments, and passionate motorists were outraged by the ban. So, small, cautious steps were taken, and in 1960, the new playground, complete with a miniature railway, was inaugurated.

In the summer of 1977, the first Gurtenfestival took place on the Gurtenmatte. At that time, it was still a modest celebration, where musicians and audience strolled barefoot across the meadow and drank to camaraderie.

The ski jump, built in the 1930s, was used until 1979. Due to the lack of snow in winter, a dry ski jump was built for summer use, which was inaugurated in the summer of 1987 with an international opening competition. From then on, three competitions for the “Gurten Cup” were held every year and the training of young jumpers was eagerly pursued. However, interest in ski jumping melted away over the years, just like the long winters, and so the last Gurten Cup was held in July 2012. In order to spare the ski jumps a sad, unused existence and the relentless ravages of time, strong hands tore them down in 2013, ending the era of ski jumping on the Gurten.

In 1983, the city of Bern closed the doors of the hotel, which was in need of renovation, leaving visitors from near and far with only a temporary self-service restaurant. The gradual decline of the business reached its lowest point in the late 1980s with the posting of signs reading «No entry. Danger of collapse!»

Migros, which had already attempted to take over the Gurten in the 1970s, failed due to the interests of the city government, which, however, was unable to improve this beautiful spot on its own. In 1992, the Bern city authorities approached Migros with a request to create a «green park» on the Gurten. The Gurten was to be open to everyone, run an inviting restaurant, and offer an attractive leisure, sports, and cultural program. Migros also set its conditions. The operation had to be run by a foundation in which Migros held the majority. The interest-free transfer of the city land to the foundation under building law was also a condition, as was the renovation of the Gurten funicular and the expansion of the parking garage at the Gurten funicular valley station. The majority in the city parliament and the 89.9% yes votes in the 1995 referendum placed the Gurten in the responsible hands of the new foundation. The Gurten – Park im Grünen Foundation, consisting of the city of Bern, the municipality of Köniz, and Migros, continues to this day to aim to preserve and expand the generally accessible local recreation area and to promote cultural events on the Gurten. In 1997, work began on Bern's local mountain, which was financed entirely by Migros with over 30 million Swiss francs. Hard-working craftsmen and women spent many hours restoring the original spa building to its former glory. Two restaurants and seminar rooms were given a place within the venerable walls, and the surrounding area was given a facelift. The inauguration of the «Park im Grünen» was celebrated on December 31, 1999, with a big New Year's Eve party featuring a performance by Polo Hofer and his SchmetterBand and the burning of Bernhard Luginbühl's wooden sculpture «Silvester».

To mark the 100th anniversary of the Bern and Surrounding Area Master Carpenters' Association, skilled woodworking experts built the observation tower in 2000 – a masterpiece of wood technology. A spiral staircase leads the brave to the top, where the viewing platform, supported by twelve slats, awaits them with a breathtaking panoramic view.

In 2014, Gurten was enriched with a jewel. Where the drinking and festival hall once stood, and later a highly visible white festival tent, a stylish glass pavilion was built, which today offers a unique atmosphere for magnificent events, sophisticated brunches, and upscale celebrations.

The two remaining hotel rooms from the former spa hotel were extensively renovated and reopened in 2015. They are named “ieu” (Bernese German for ‘yes’) and “äuä” (a Bernese German homonym that expresses admiration or mistrust depending on the intonation and facial expression) and allow guests to revel in the original spa atmosphere for a night in which this mountain belongs to them alone. In the same year, Migros Culture Percentage inaugurated the new marble run on the Gurten – one of the biggest attractions on the playground, which also delights older guests.

In 2017, the à la carte restaurant Bel Etage underwent extensive renovation and reopened as Restaurant Gurtners. Gurtners picked up where history left off, continuing the legacy and bringing the Gurtner family and their legendary hospitality back to life. At Gurtners, tried-and-tested dishes and traditional recipes from Grandmother Gurtner's hearty cuisine are reinterpreted under the motto “Good food made with love” and served with warmth.

On Saturday, May 18, 2019, a raclette party was held at a 400-meter-long table across the Gurten meadow. After the culinary highlight, the evening reached its second peak with a concert by the Swiss Jazz Orchestra & Friends «Buebetröim». The anniversary Sunday was all about family, and children were offered a varied entertainment program.

The coronavirus and the special measures taken in 2020 will remain in the memories of many Gurten visitors for a long time to come. On March 16, a nationwide lockdown was declared in Switzerland. After 48 hours of cleaning up, the lights were turned off until June 5. On June 6, restaurants were allowed to reopen, and a summer followed that was well frequented by many day trippers. On December 22, following a rise in infection numbers, the second nationwide lockdown was announced. This meant that the entire operation had to be closed again before restrictions were eased and regular catering and leisure activities could resume on the Gurten on May 31, 2021.

Between January 3, 2024, and May 15, 2024, the valley station underwent extensive energy-efficient renovation and the new Gurten funicular was built. Since May 16, 2024, the fourth-generation silver Gurten funicular has been transporting guests to Bern's local mountain.
During the construction phase, the Eurobus company took over the transport of guests with a replacement bus via Gurtendörfli.
This model of the Gurten funicular is expected to transport guests up and down the mountain for the next 25 years.

In spring 2025, the Huusbüffe underwent extensive renovation. The reason for this was the changing needs of our guests: more and more visitors had different requirements, which we wanted to meet as best we could.

We focused on two guest groups in particular: seminar participants and families. To cater to both groups, the restaurant was optimized so that, despite the existing space constraints, it is now even better suited to their individual needs.

The modernized Huusbüffe now impresses with well-thought-out solutions and the usual warm hospitality—perfect for seminars, family outings, and enjoyable moments!