Nidau close X
Nidau Castle was first mentioned in a document dated 1196. With the death of Rudolf IV in 1375, the dynasty of the Counts of Nidau died out, and the castle became the property of Bern.
Bern used the small town with the castle as the seat of its governors and as a customs post and port. Nidau lay on two important traffic and trade routes. One came from Bern via the Jura to Basel, Alsace and Burgundy, the other connected the South of France, Savoy, Geneva and Lausanne with Aargau, Zurich and the Rhine. Following the occupation of Biel by the French in 1789, Nidau became a border and customs point to France.
Today, the governor of the district of Nidau has his seat in the castle. And so Nidau's traditional task of representing Bern continues.
Unlike Biel, Nidau is not officially bi-lingual. However, the cultural and geographical connection of the two towns means that it is par for the course that the inhabitants of Nidau speak both languages. Nestled between the Nidau-Büren canal, Zihlkanal and Bielersee, Nidau with its attractive old town is a sort of island whose lovely access to the lake invite you to take a dip and tarry a while.
Lago Lodge • Uferweg 5 • CH-2560 Nidau • +41 32 331 37 32 • sleep@lagolodge.ch • www.lagolodge.ch • N 047° 07.745' / E 007° 14.260