If you walk the forest paths of the Kleine Rügen in Interlaken – that remarkable hill peaking just South of town – you might stumble upon something that feels like a dream. Surrounded by ancient trees, a colonnaded building glows in the dappled light. It looks like a fragment of a Greek temple dropped into the Swiss Alps. This is the Trinkhalle (Pump Room). For over 150 years, the Trinkhalle has stood watch over Interlaken. But while thousands of tourists pass by its silhouette, few know the incredible story of vision, art, and “cheese water” that built it.
Here is why this building is the true heart of the Kleine Rügen—and why we are bringing its story back to life.
1863: The Visionary and the “Whey Cure” of the Trinkhalle
To understand the Trinkhalle, you have to meet Conrad von Rappard. He was a lawyer, a visionary, and the father of the famous painter Clara von Rappard.
In the mid-19th century, Interlaken was booming. The “Golden Age” of tourism had arrived, and the European elite were obsessed with health cures. Conrad had a bold idea: he would turn the Kleine Rügen into a world-class wellness destination.
In 1863, he built the Trinkhalle. But they didn’t come here for cocktails. They came for Molkenkur (Whey Cure or cheese spa).
Guests would hike up the hill from Conrad von Rappard’s hotel in their crinolines and suits to drink warm cow and goat’s milk whey—the liquid by-product of cheese making. It was believed to cure everything from gout to “melancholy.” The Trinkhalle was the center of social life, where gossip was exchanged over glasses of warm, cloudy liquid while an orchestra played in the background.
A Tale of Two “Drinking Halls” in Interlaken
If you plug Trinkhalle into a translator, it spits out “Drinking Hall.” To an English speaker, that conjures up images of clinking steins and loud Oktoberfest parties. But if you had shown up in 1863 expecting a pint, you would have been sorely disappointed. The Trinkhalle was a place of quiet refinement, built for invalids and aristocrats to sip mineral water and warm goat’s whey in hushed silence. It was, in essence, a Victorian “Whey Wellness Pump Room.”
The irony? The real drinking hall was being built just a few hundred meters down the hill. The Rugenbräu Brewery, founded around the same time, was where the actual fermentation and festivities took place. So, let’s set the record straight: The building on the hill was for curing the liver; the building at the bottom was for testing it. The Trinkhalle was for health; Rugenbräu was—and is—the true drinking hall of the Bödeli.
The Artist’s Playground: Clara von Rappard
While Conrad managed the business, his daughter Clara von Rappard (1857–1912) was growing up in the shadow of these colonnades.
The Trinkhalle wasn’t just a clinic; it was a cultural salon. The family lived nearby in the (now lost) Villa Rugen. Clara, who would become one of Switzerland’s most significant female painters, used these woods as her studio.
When you stand in the arcades of the Trinkhalle today, you are standing where Clara once sketched the Eiger, Mönch, and Jungfrau. The building represents the softer, artistic side of Interlaken’s history—a counterpoint to the rough mountaineering adventures of the time.
Interlaken’s “Golden Triangle”: Unspunnen ruin, Rugenbräu brewery & Trinkhalle
The Trinkhalle doesn’t stand alone. It is actually the elegant center of a fascinating historical trio on the Rügen hill. To understand the soul of Interlaken, you have to look at its two neighbors the Unspunnen ruins and the Rugenbrau brewery:
1. The Ancient Roots: The Unspunnen Ruins Just a stone’s throw away through the forest lie the moss-covered towers of Unspunnen Castle. Dating back to the 12th century, these walls once guarded the valley in medieval times. But its true fame comes from 1805.
At a time when Napoleon had torn Switzerland apart and civil unrest brewed between the city aristocrats and the country farmers, this castle became a symbol of peace. The first Unspunnenfest (Shepherd’s Festival) was held in these fields to reconcile the two sides. It was here that the legendary Unspunnen Stone—an 83.5kg boulder—was first thrown in a show of strength that continues to this day. While the castle represents the raw, rough, and folklore-rich roots of the Swiss nation, the Trinkhalle represents the refined, polite, and cosmopolitan “Belle Époque” era that followed.
2. The Liquid Neighbors: Rugenbräu Brewery The third point of the triangle sits at the foot of the hill. In 1866, just three years after Conrad von Rappard opened his whey station, the Rugenbräu Brewery was founded.
It is a delicious historical irony: While the wealthy European elite hiked up the hill to sip health water and endulge in whey cocktails in the Trinkhalle’s marble silence, the local workers were busy brewing beer in the “real” drinking hall down below. Yet, both industries relied on the unique geography of the Rügen—the Trinkhalle needed the view, and the Brewery needed the cool stone caverns inside the hill to store their beer ice-cold
From Ruin to Jewel: The Trinkhalle Today
Like many historic buildings, the Trinkhalle faced hard times. As the “Whey Cure” went out of fashion, the building fell silent. It risked becoming a ruin itself.
But the spirit of the Rappards lived on among a few dedicated locals who formed the “Förderverein Trinkhalle am Kleinen Rugen”. Through their tireless volunteer work and fundraising, they saved the building from decay.
Today, the Trinkhalle is no longer a clinic, but a stunning venue for culture, weddings, and concerts. The main hall, fittingly named the “Saal Rappard,” once again hears the sound of music and laughter for seasonal and private events.
Experience Interlaken’s Golden Triangle & the Spirit of the Rügen
At Adventure Interlaken, we believe that history tastes better when you experience it.
That is why we have incorporated the Trinkhalle into our new “Spirits of the Rügen” Torchlight Tour. On this exclusive guided adventure, we stop at these historic arcades to evoke the days of Clara and Conrad.
Come walk with us into the past and experience the Spirit of the Rügen and its soul through the Trinkhalle.