Langnau Im Emmental: Landscape and Building Culture

Langnau Im Emmental combines a long community history with a landscape of rivers, hills, forests and meadows. The first documented mentions date back to the 13th century. On trails and in the museum, you can discover different sides of the area: forest knowledge, rural building culture and literature. You can shape your trip around the subjects that interest you most.

Landscape, walks and bike tours

Langnau stretches along the Ilfis River and is surrounded by gentle hills, forests and meadows. Its varied landscape is ideal for walks and bike tours. The Langnau Forest Nature Trail in Schützengraben offers an introduction to the forest: more than 60 information boards share insights about trees, shrubs and animals, as well as forest management and use.

The well-marked forest nature trail is an easy, comfortable walk that takes about 1.5 hours. It starts and ends at Äntelipark, which has a large playground for children. Another option for a hike is a scenic circular route in the upper Emmental. It runs from Langnau via Hochwacht and back to the starting point, covering 11.4 kilometres, with an ascent and descent of 397 metres each.

There is also a specific selection of bike routes: the Herzschlaufe Napf | 399 includes one section from Willisau to Langnau and another from Langnau to Entlebuch. Together with the walking options in the landscape, this gives Langnau a variety of starting points for tours on foot or by bike.

Museum and building culture

The Chüechlihus Regional Museum was built around 1526 and is a largely preserved historic wooden building. Its interactive permanent exhibition offers insights into Emmental’s cultural heritage. The museum also offers guided tours and workshops in German, French and English. They last about one or 1.5 hours and are suitable for groups of up to 20 people.

The “House & Farm” themed trail explores the cultural and historical significance of local farmhouses, Spychers and Stöckli. It starts in the rear Gohlgraben, by the “Obeningohl” farmstead. This ensemble comprises two farmhouses, a Spycher, a Stöckli and a charming garden with boxwood beds. All the buildings date from the 17th century. In the view of the cantonal heritage conservation authority, they are among the protected historic buildings that must be preserved in their entirety because of their significant architectural quality or distinctive features.

“House & Farm” focuses on a single farmstead in Gohlgraben; the “Houses and Stories” brochure for the Langnau village walk, by contrast, introduces more than 60 historic buildings in the village centre. It also explains Langnau’s architectural development, various architectural styles and specialist architectural terms. This brings together a close look at a rural ensemble and a broader overview of the village centre’s architectural history.

Literature and art along the way

Along the Ernst Eggimann Trail, a wall features quotations by Ernst Eggimann and panels displaying poems. The concrete wall beside the trail is painted with graffiti art by Langnau artist Michael Beutler. Here, literary texts and wall art come together—a further cultural facet alongside the architecture and heritage presented by the Regional Museum and themed trails.

When planning your trip, you can choose different areas of focus: the forest nature trail combines information boards about nature and forest use with an approximate duration and clearly marked waypoints. The Hochwacht circular hike provides details about the distance and elevation gain and loss. Those interested in architectural history can explore both the Obeningohl farmstead and the historic buildings in the village centre as distinct themes. This makes it easy to tailor your stay in Langnau Im Emmental to your interests.

Discover more destinations: Bärau, Röthenbach Im Emmental, Rüderswil, Trubschachen, Eggiwil, Lauperswil, Gohl, Schangnau.

Go to the main travel overview: Signau.