Nidau Castle, on the banks of the Zihl near Lake Biel, is a medieval fortress that houses a permanent exhibition on the Jura Water Correction. You can also explore a 13th-century keep and a 17th-century Bernese bailiff’s residence.
Castles & forts
Main highlights
- Exhibition on the Jura Water Correction, with objects, videos, sound recordings and a flight simulator
- Keep of around 40 m from the early 13th century, surrounded by a curtain wall with three round towers
- Bailiff’s residence from 1626-1636 with a hexagonal stair tower and former cells featuring wall drawings
Overview
Nidau Castle began in the 12th century as a wooden watchtower, soon replaced by a stone fortress surrounded by a moat. It is first mentioned in 1196. The rectangular keep, around 40 m high, dates from the early 13th century, and the curtain wall with three round towers from the end of that same century.
After the Gugler War in 1375, the Bernese took the castle in 1388. It became the seat of the Bernese bailiwick until 1831. The four-storey central building was constructed between 1626 and 1636. Listed as a cultural property of national significance, the castle still houses offices of the Canton of Bern.
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What to see and do
The permanent exhibition on the Jura Water Correction is the heart of the visit. These 19th-century works transformed the marshy Seeland into an agricultural region. The four-section tour combines period objects and documents, videos and sound recordings. It also presents the political work that made the project possible and the environmental challenges linked to these changes to the landscape.
A flight simulator shows you the region as it was in the 19th century, when it was regularly flooded.
The castle retains 17th-century architectural features in its living quarters and administrative rooms, including the hexagonal stair tower on the north side of the central building. The Knights’ Hall housed the district court until 1997. The cells of the former district prison, in use until 2003, bear wall drawings.
Practical information
Getting there : from Biel, take trolleybus line 4 to Nidau. Parking nearby. Lake Biel Navigation boats stop at Nidau, a 15-minute walk from the castle.
Visit duration : about 1 hr 30 min for the exhibition and the castle.
Suitable for : families and regional history enthusiasts.
Guided tours : around 1 hour, on request.
Visitor tips
Take time for a stroll through Nidau, located on an island created by the digging of the Nidau-Büren Canal to Büren an der Aare. The historic centre retains its narrow lanes and old buildings.
An Aare river cruise then lets you see first-hand the waterways shaped by the water correction.
Nearby attractions
- The Cité du Temps in Biel brings together the Swatch and Omega museums dedicated to Swiss watchmaking.
- The Pasquart Centre d’Art in Biel showcases Swiss and international contemporary art.
- The Chasseral is a Jura summit accessible from Nods, with views of the Alps.
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