Discover Riehen: Art, village history and viticulture

Alongside Basel and Bettingen, Riehen is one of the three municipalities in the Swiss canton of Basel-Stadt and, after Basel, the second-largest municipality in northwestern Switzerland. When looking for a hotel for a trip to Riehen, you can plan around your interests: art and local history, green spaces, walks or viticulture each offer a different focus.

Art, architecture and village history

The Fondation Beyeler museum building was designed by Renzo Piano. Berower Park features mature trees and ponds with water lilies; from there, you can enjoy views of cornfields, grazing cows and vineyards on the foothills of the Black Forest.

The Museum Kultur & Spiel Riehen (MUKS) is housed in the historic Wettstein House in the village centre of Riehen, a listed building. Its hands-on activities are aimed especially at families with children and grandparents with grandchildren. The courtyard and newly landscaped historic garden invite visitors to play and linger. The entrance area, toilets and special exhibition room at MUKS are wheelchair accessible.

The village church of St. Martin looks back on a history of 1,000 years. It is considered a fascinating architectural monument, historic core and landmark of Riehen. Guided tours bring together history, nature and architectural landscapes, offering vivid insights into the village and its special places. The cultural offering thus ranges from individual historic buildings to tours that bring together several aspects of the area.

Parks, trails and viticulture

Wenkenpark is a historic English-style park surrounding the Wenkenhof villas and includes a café. Together with Berower Park, it offers two distinct park settings: English-style grounds and villas on one hand, and mature trees, ponds with water lilies and views across the landscape on the other.

The Riehen Art Walk comprises three walks. Along the way, visitors can explore selected sculptures from the Riehen collection, as well as parks, gardens, studio houses, architecture, works of art and the history of the area. The Hebel Hiking Trail is a literary tourism trail following in the footsteps of Johann Peter Hebel, a poet who wrote in the Alemannic dialect. The Markgräfler Wiiwegli is the region’s first cross-border wine trail. Art and local history are at the heart of the Art Walk, the Hebel Hiking Trail follows in Johann Peter Hebel’s footsteps, and the Markgräfler Wiiwegli is a wine trail.

Viticulture is also part of Riehen’s past and present. Its tradition dates back more than 1,200 years; today, vines are once again cultivated on around four hectares in Riehen.

Swimming and getting here

For swimming, Naturbad Riehen offers a swimming area of more than 1,000 square metres and a 25-metre lap pool with four lanes. The pool has a swimming pool lift for people with physical disabilities.

Riehen railway station is right in the village centre and about a ten-minute walk from the Fondation Beyeler. Modern trams on Line 6 and buses operated by Basler Verkehrsbetriebe take travellers directly to Riehen Dorf and the municipality’s various neighbourhoods. As routes and timetables may change, it is advisable to check the current timetable before travelling. An extensive network of cycle paths connects Riehen with Basel, Lörrach and Weil am Rhein.

Discover more destinations: Basel, Bettingen.

Go to the main travel overview: Basel-Stadt.