Chocolate tour in Bern: Taste conching history

Chocolate tasting through Bern's old town, from unrefined to award-winning

A two-hour walking tour of Bern's old town that traces chocolate history through five industrial tastings, three handmade samples and a box of award-winning chocolates from Bätterkinden. You start at the Käfigturm, pass the Clock Tower and Cathedral, and learn how the conching technique, developed in Bern, became the standard method for making chocolate worldwide. The tour ends with a chocolate bear tasting and leaves you to decide whether Bern truly earned its reputation as a chocolate capital.

Step-by-step itinerary

Chocolate tour and tasting in Bern

• Meet at Käfigturm
• Walk through old town
• Pass by Bern Clock Tower
• Receive chocolate tasting box
• Pass by Bern Cathedral
• Taste chocolate and learn story
• Taste chocolate bear

The experience

The tour begins at the Käfigturm (Prison Tower) with a tasting of chocolate that has not been conched: the unrefined version that shows you what chocolate was before Bern changed it. From there you walk through the old town, passing the Bern Clock Tower and Cathedral, while tasting five industrial chocolates along the way. At a small chocolatier's shop, you receive a box with a selection of award-winning chocolates from Casa Nobile in Bätterkinden, and this is where the guide explains conching: the melting and grinding technique that was invented in Bern and became the worldwide standard for how chocolate is made today.

The walk takes two hours and covers Bern's landmarks from a chocolate perspective rather than the usual tourist angle. You taste three handmade chocolates in addition to the industrial samples, so by the end you have experienced the full range, from the raw material to the refined product. The tour wraps up with a tasting of a chocolate bear, the traditional Bernese sweet, and leaves the question open: marketing claim or genuine chocolate capital. A guide in English, French or German leads the group, and the route is wheelchair accessible with all surfaces and areas flat.

What’s included

• Five industrial chocolate tastings.
• three handmade chocolate samples.
• one tasting box with award-winning chocolates from Casa Nobile in Bätterkinden.
• one chocolate bear tasting.
• a two-hour guided walk through Bern's old town with stops at the Käfigturm, Clock Tower and Cathedral.
• a live guide in English, French or German.

Before you book

Days and timesMonday to SaturdayDepartures at 10:30, 13:30 and 17:00

Book up to1d before

AgesAdult (13 and older) · Child (1 to 12 years): free

GroupUp to 30

Live guideEnglish, French and German

Meeting point and pickupNo hotel pickup: you go to the meeting point. Ends at a different place from where it starts.

Cancellation and refundsFree cancellation up to 24 h before the start. After that, no refund.

Prices and times updated yesterday

Good to know

Easy physical levelWheelchair accessibleAccessible transportStroller friendlyPets welcomePublic transport nearby

Operated by Chocobern

Is this one for you?The tour is a steady two-hour walk on flat, accessible ground through Bern's old town, so it suits anyone comfortable with a morning or afternoon on foot without steep climbs or stairs.

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Top questions

What languages is the guide in?

Live guide in English, French and German.

Can children come?

Yes. Ticket types: Child (1 to 12 years): free.

What exactly is conching and why does it matter for chocolate?

Conching is the melting and grinding process that was developed in Bern and became the standard method for making chocolate worldwide. The tour shows you this technique in action and explains how it transformed chocolate from a grainy, unrefined product into the smooth chocolate you taste today.

How many tastings do I get on this tour?

You taste nine chocolates in total: five industrial samples, three handmade chocolates from a small chocolatier, and one chocolate bear at the end. You also receive a box with a selection of award-winning chocolates from Bätterkinden to take with you.

Which landmarks in Bern's old town does the tour visit?

The tour starts at the Käfigturm (Prison Tower), passes by the Bern Clock Tower and Bern Cathedral as you walk through the old town, and includes tastings at a small chocolatier's shop along the route.