Side Events

Making clocks, pepper mills and lamps from wood – all of that and much more is possible at the workshops that the Bizau-based Bär company organises in the Bregenzerwald. The idea is right on trend because the more digital the world becomes, the greater the desire is to make something from scratch with your own hands. 

For some, dashing through the woods at a speed of 130km an hour is just a speed kick at an altitude of 160 metres. For others, it is the craving for their own wings that you get for the duration of the flight at least. 

Two architectural worlds combine at Museum Bezau – a typical Bregenzerwald farmhouse from the 18th century, a listed building, and a modern addition built mostly using local handworkers. 

Five hours of exploring boundaries: that’s an impressive mountain experience with team-building aspects. There is a challenge for everyone and more can be achieved together than by yourself. 

Start your day on the top of a mountain, watch the sun rise and remind yourself of the scale of things – this brings you back down to earth for the tasks to be faced. However, night owls can take a sigh of relief: observing the sunset from the stop of a mountain has the same, salutary effect.

The crunch of the snow, the crisp air, the panoramic views… a snowshoe hike brings you into the heart of wintery nature, to enjoy alpine landscapes with a sense of true calmness.

For all those who value self-expression in their team, the Tonhalle has opened a veritable creative paradise. In workshops which are quite literally hands-on, budding ceramic artists can design their own plates, cups, bowls, and figures. Ideas are given free reign, and participants get their hands dirty while crafting their own unique pottery creations. All in all, a wonderful atmosphere for the group to exchange ideas and get to know each other’s creative side.

A natural, pure and characterful beer, visitors can now get step-by-step insights into the brewing process. Of course, such a tour also includes tasting sessions of everything from pale ale to wheet beer. 

At the end of a hard day’s work in lovely meeting rooms, an exclusive wine-tasting session in any one of the many wine cellars in the region is the stylish way to finish off the evening. For instance, the water tower on Gebhardsberg built in 1079 has been afforded a new role since over a hundred different wines from the best wine-growing estates in Austria and the region of Bodensee-Alpenrhein have been stored in it.

The newly constructed cooperative cheese cellar in Lingenau is home to 32,000 cheeses. A visit to the cheese – which matures for between four and 18 months – constitutes an impressive walk through the storeroom at 10.5°C.

A very special natural monument takes you right down to the depths of the Cave Schneckenloch in Bizau. The biggest cave in Vorarlberg requires a certain degree of stamina and sure-footedness, yet once the visitors get back to terra firma they are usually lost for words, overcome by images of subterranean halls, stalactites and natural tunnels, some of which you have to crawl through.

The region’s architects have been picking up international prizes and awards for some time now, and it is well worth taking a walk to visit interesting buildings in practically all of the towns and villages in the region. The re-interpretations of the traditional wooden buildings to be found in many a region are simple, natural and sustainable, and have already characterised a certain style.

For those who simply can’t get enough of it, head to the Alpenkäse Bregenzerwald Sennerei on a journey of discovery. There you can learn how cheese is still produced in the time-honoured way.

Fantastic opportunities to escape the hustle and bustle of the city exist in and around Dornbirn. For example, the guided tours through the Rappenloch and Alploch gorges. But it never is actually completely quiet in the cool gorges because the gurgling and rushing of the Dornbirner Ach remain constant companions.

The Bregenzerwald wouldn’t be what it is today without the famous Wälderbähnle. The original steam engine still services a stretch of the line – a cosy journey through time, whatever your age.