As of: 12 August 2026

Wild camping at the Spittelmatte: the flattest ground is the one you cannot use

Kandersteg is one of the few communes in Switzerland that bothered to define what camping is, and then wrote the tentless bivouac straight out of the definition. So the legal half of this is unusually generous. The half that will actually decide your night is the ground, because the most inviting patch on the whole plain turns out to be three federal protected objects stacked on top of each other.

Leon Helg
Leon Helg · Legal situation checked in August 2026 · Published 12 August 2026
What do these mean?

Illegal A specific rule bans it, usually with a fine, and it can be enforced. Sleep somewhere else.

Not allowed No real place to camp here. A gated site, a developed area, or nowhere sensible to lie down, even if no fine is attached.

It depends You can sleep here, but there's a condition first: ask the landowner, book a spot, stay inside a set zone, or use a bivvy instead of a tent. The report says which.

Tolerated No rule clearly allows or bans it, but a single night is accepted in practice and nobody enforces against it. Normal for high bivouacs above the treeline.

Legal Camping one night is fine here. Either a rule allows it, or we checked every law and found nothing against it. Still: pitch late, leave early, no trace.

What "wild camping" means here: one night. A small tent or a bivvy bag, up towards evening, gone in the morning. Not a base camp, not a camper van. Most Swiss bans are written against camping; whether a single night also falls under them depends on the exact wording, so this article checks that wording. The full difference: wild camping vs bivouacking.

A commune that defined camping, and then made an exception

Wild camping at the Spittelmatte runs into two separate communal instruments, and they do not say the same thing. That sounds like a mess. It is actually the most useful thing about this spot.

Federal, at the pin. Queried on 12 August 2026 at LV95 2'615'383 / 1'144'183, WGS84 46.448809 N / 7.638841 E, 1'925.8 m: no federal game reserve, no wildlife rest zone, and, at this exact point, no mire, floodplain or amphibian object either. The BLN inventory does cover it, object no. 1507, the northern part of the Bernese High Alps and Aletsch-Bietschhorn area, and that binds authorities when they plan and permit rather than the person sleeping on the ground.8 A positive control returns game reserve no. 3 Kiental and an invalid-layer control returns HTTP 400, so the empty results are findings and not a broken query. Hold on to the words "at this exact point", because they do a lot of work later.1

The police regulation, which covers the whole commune. Kandersteg put its camping rule to the ballot box on 13 December 2020 and it has been in force since 1 January 2021. Art. 7 para. 1 is one sentence:2

"Das Campieren ausserhalb der speziell dafür vorgesehenen und bewilligten Flächen ist nicht gestattet."Gemeindepolizeireglement der Einwohnergemeinde Kandersteg, in force since 1 January 2021, art. 7 para. 1.

Read on its own that is a flat prohibition. But the same regulation defines its own terms, and art. 6 lit. c is where this spot is decided:2

"Campieren: jede Form des Übernachtens oder vorübergehenden Verweilens in Zelten, Wohnwagen, Wohnmobilen, Autos oder ähnlichen Unterkünften. [...] Nicht darunter fällt das Übernachten im Freien ohne Zelt, im Iglu oder in einer Schneehöhle (Biwakieren)."Same regulation, art. 6 lit. c, the definition that art. 7 uses.

That last sentence is rare and it is worth reading slowly. Sleeping outside without a tent, in an igloo or in a snow cave is not camping within the meaning of this regulation, so art. 7 does not reach it. This is the mirror image of most of the spots on this site, where a rule says "Zelt" and the honest answer is that a bivvy bag is arguable. Here it is not arguable, it is written down.2

What a tent costs. Art. 26 para. 1 allows a fine of up to Fr. 5'000.- for breaches, para. 2 lists "Art. 7 Campingverbot" first among the articles it means, and para. 4 lets the authority issue a warning instead in light cases. Para. 6 delegates the actual amounts to a Gemeinderat ordinance, and that ordinance sets a tariff list whose first line reads "a. Art. 7 Campingverbot 200.00". So the realistic figure for a tent is CHF 200, not five thousand.32

And there is a second ban, in a different act. The communal building regulation protects a perimeter called the Kandersteger Berglandschaft, and its art. 42 para. 3 lit. c is three words long: das Campieren ist verboten. That act does not define camping, so it carries no bivouac exception, and it is planning law rather than police law. The perimeter does not cover the pin, it starts 324 metres away, but anyone drifting uphill towards the Berglandschaft is walking into a stricter rule than the one they started under.4

The flattest ground is the one you cannot use

Now the part that decides the night, and it is not in any statute.

The Spittelmatte is a broad flat plain, which is exactly why people ask about it. Sample it on the federal terrain model and the flattest ground comes back at 0.1 degrees, twice: at 1'873.8 m about 247 metres south-east of the pin, and at 1'875.4 m about 350 metres south. That is as flat as Swiss mountain ground gets, and it is the obvious place to put a tent.

Do not. Queried at those two exact coordinates, they return three federal inventories at once: the amphibian spawning site of national importance BE341 Spittelmatte, the fen of national importance no. 3064 Spittelmatte, and the floodplain of national importance no. 1354 Spittelmatte. All three carry the same name as the place, and all three sit exactly on the flat bit. The gazetteer pin 250 metres north is outside all of them, by 96, 191 and 53 metres respectively. The invalid-layer control returned HTTP 400 at every point, so those hits and those misses are both real.1

The commune knows. Art. 55 of its building regulation names the object by number, says the large populations of common frog and alpine newt should be able to reproduce under optimal conditions, states that the fen of national importance is to be preserved, and provides that until the canton has legally fixed the protection perimeter and the rules, the transitional provisions of the federal fen ordinance apply by analogy: nothing may be done that runs counter to the protection goals, in particular no change to the water regime.4

None of those three ordinances hands a warden a ticket book to use on a camper. They bind the cantons to protect and maintain the objects, which is a different mechanism from a fine, and I am not going to inflate it into one. But "there is no tariff for it" is a poor reason to pitch a tent on a national fen that a regulation specifically asks to be preserved, and a wet meadow full of spawning amphibians is a bad bed anyway.6

Where to go instead: 1'956.0 m, LV95 2'615'383 / 1'144'508, WGS84 46.451732 N / 7.638852 E. Slope 0.2 degrees, so barely worse than the wetland. It sits outside all three federal objects, by 392 m from the amphibian site, 469 m from the fen and 325 m from the floodplain. It is 93 metres outside the Kandersteger Berglandschaft, so the stricter building-regulation ban does not reach it. And it is 596 metres from the nearest mapped water, which clears the fifty-metre rule many times over. Sleep there without a tent and no communal rule on this page applies to you.57

If you want a tent rather than a bivvy bag, there is a legitimate route and it is written into the same regulation: art. 7 para. 2 lets the commune permit exceptions on application, with the caveat that it may require security for things like toilets, cleaning and the tourist tax. That is an office to write to, not a loophole, and for a single night it is probably more effort than simply leaving the tent at home.2

The place, and the zone that sounds worse than it is

Pin: WGS84 46.448809 N / 7.638841 E, LV95 2'615'383 / 1'144'183, 1'925.8 m, commune of Kandersteg, canton Bern, on the Gemmi between Kandersteg and the Daubensee. The cadastral parcel under it is 2'961'186 m² and carries 68 restrictions.5

The zoning at the pin reads more dramatic than it is. The base designation is "übriges Gebiet", and over it lies a Zone für touristische Aktivitäten. That name makes people nervous, so here is what art. 44 of the building regulation actually does with it: it is a zone under art. 18 of the federal Spatial Planning Act whose purpose is to maintain and develop the tourist offering and the agricultural and forestry use, and which permits the infrastructure that tourism needs, listing hiking paths, riding and cycle paths and cross-country ski trails. It is a permissive planning category, not a restriction on you. Art. 54 of the same regulation even provides for extending the existing cross-country trail at the Spittelmatte.4

Also on the pin: a Planungszone for second homes, a Gewässerschutzbereich Au, a hazard indication and noise sensitivity level III. None of those speaks to sleeping outside. The nearest Naturwaldreservat is 382 metres away.5

One thing I will not pretend to settle: where exactly the paint is on the ground. Every distance on this page comes from the cadastral and federal geometries, which are accurate to the data rather than to a marker post in a marsh. The three federal objects have soft, wet edges, and the honest way to use this article is to take the recommended point and stay well the far side of it rather than to pace out ninety-three metres from a boundary you cannot see.

  • Without a tent, at 1'956.0 m, LV95 2'615'383 / 1'144'508: outside all three federal objects, outside the Berglandschaft, 596 m from water, and outside the police regulation's own definition of camping25.
  • With a tent, only with a communal permit, which art. 7 para. 2 of the police regulation allows on application2.
  • Not on the 0.1-degree ground 250 to 350 m south, which is an amphibian site, a fen and a floodplain of national importance at the same time1.
  • Not inside the Kandersteger Berglandschaft, 324 m from the pin, where the building regulation bans camping flat and defines nothing away4.

General rules for wild camping

On a plain with a national fen in the middle of it, the fourth item on this list is not a nicety. Everything you carry up here walks out again with you, and the ground you did not sleep on is the reason the rule stayed as generous as it is.

  • No fire. An open fire has no place in the mountains. A gas stove is enough.
  • Pitch late, strike early. Set up towards evening, gone again early. A bivouac is one night, not a base camp.
  • Leave no rubbish. Everything you carry up you carry down, organic scraps and toilet paper included.
  • At least 50 metres from any water for the big business, so you do not foul what people and livestock drink.
  • Stay small and quiet. A small group, no speaker, no drone, dogs on the lead, and the alp staff's word goes.

Disclaimer

This article reflects my research and assessment to the best of my knowledge, as of August 2026. It is based on the publicly accessible and official sources linked below. It does not replace legal advice and is not a binding statement of the current legal situation.

The verdict rests on two communal acts and on federal inventory boundaries, all of which can change, and on a cadastral extract and geodata queries made on 12 August 2026. The communal building regulation is published as a scan without a text layer and was read by optical character recognition, so its wording is quoted here only where short and unambiguous; the police regulation and its ordinance have real text layers and were read directly. Distances are accurate to the published geometry, not to a marker on the ground. Before every tour, check the current sources yourself and follow the signs on site. A genuine emergency bivouac in distress is a separate question from a planned camp. Anyone who spends the night outside bears responsibility for their own conduct and any consequences themselves. Hikebeast, Leon Helg and Saftladen GmbH accept no liability for decisions made on the basis of this text, and call on no one to break applicable law.

Frequently asked questions

Is wild camping allowed at the Spittelmatte?
It depends on what you sleep in. Art. 7 para. 1 of the Kandersteg police regulation forbids camping outside designated areas across the whole commune, tariffed at CHF 200 with a ceiling of CHF 5'000. But art. 6 lit. c of the same regulation defines camping and expressly excludes sleeping out without a tent, in an igloo or in a snow cave, so a tentless bivouac is not caught. The separate question is where you lie down, because the flattest ground on the plain is inside three federal protected objects.
Which parts of the Spittelmatte are protected?
The flat, wet middle. Queried at the exact coordinates, the ground 250 to 350 metres south of the pin at 1'873 to 1'875 metres returns the amphibian spawning site of national importance BE341 Spittelmatte, the fen of national importance no. 3064 Spittelmatte and the floodplain of national importance no. 1354 Spittelmatte, all three at once. The gazetteer pin is outside all of them, by 96, 191 and 53 metres. The Kandersteger Berglandschaft, where the building regulation bans camping outright, starts 324 metres away.
What is the fine?
CHF 200 for a tent. Art. 26 para. 1 of the police regulation allows up to Fr. 5'000.-, and para. 2 names art. 7 Campingverbot among the provisions it covers, but para. 6 delegates the amounts to a Gemeinderat ordinance whose tariff list opens with "a. Art. 7 Campingverbot 200.00". Art. 26 para. 4 also allows a warning instead of a fine in light cases. For a tentless bivouac there is nothing to fine, because art. 6 lit. c puts it outside the definition of camping.
So where exactly should I sleep?
At 1'956.0 m, LV95 2'615'383 / 1'144'508, WGS84 46.451732 / 7.638852. The slope there is 0.2 degrees, it lies 325 to 469 metres outside all three federal objects, 93 metres outside the Kandersteger Berglandschaft, and 596 metres from the nearest mapped water. Sleep there without a tent and none of the communal rules discussed here applies to you. Give yourself margin rather than pacing out the boundary distances, because the edges of a fen are not marked on the ground.
Can I get permission for a tent?
Yes, in principle. Art. 7 para. 2 of the Kandersteg police regulation provides that the commune can permit exceptions on application, and that the permit may be granted subject to security being provided for things such as toilet facilities, cleaning and collection of the tourist tax. That framing tells you the provision is written with organised groups in mind rather than one hiker, so for a single night the simpler route is to leave the tent behind.
Leon Helg

Leon Helg

Swiss filmmaker and software developer. Spends his free time in the Swiss Alps and maps his favourite spots for Hikebeast. Posts as @leon.helg on Instagram and TikTok.

Swiss Guide Wildcamping Checker Color Grading

Sources

  1. Official federal geodata, queried 12 August 2026. At the pin, WGS84 46.448809 N / 7.638841 E, LV95 2'615'383 / 1'144'183, 1'925.8 m: the game-reserve, wildlife-rest-zone, raised-bog, fen, mire-landscape, floodplain and amphibian layers all return an empty result set; the BLN inventory returns object no. 1507 "Berner Hochalpen und Aletsch-Bietschhorn-Gebiet (nördlicher Teil)". At LV95 2'615'558 / 1'144'008 (1'873.8 m) and LV95 2'615'383 / 1'143'833 (1'875.4 m) the same layers return the amphibian spawning site of national importance BE341 "Spittelmatte", the fen of national importance no. 3064 "Spittelmatte" and the floodplain of national importance no. 1354 "Spittelmatte". At LV95 2'615'258 / 1'143'908 and LV95 2'615'383 / 1'144'508 all three return empty again. Every one of those queries ran alongside a deliberately invalid layer id, which returned HTTP 400 rather than an empty set, and a positive control at LV95 2'626'000 / 1'154'500, which returns federal game reserve no. 3 Kiental. map.geo.admin.ch. ↩
  2. Gemeindepolizeireglement der Einwohnergemeinde Kandersteg, in force since 1 January 2021, read from the enacted PDF. Art. 6 lit. c: "Campieren: jede Form des Übernachtens oder vorübergehenden Verweilens in Zelten, Wohnwagen, Wohnmobilen, Autos oder ähnlichen Unterkünften. Das blosse Aufstellen von Zelten, Wohnwagen, usw., zum Campieren fällt ebenfalls unter den Begriff des Campierens. Nicht darunter fällt das Übernachten im Freien ohne Zelt, im Iglu oder in einer Schneehöhle (Biwakieren)." Art. 7 para. 1: "Das Campieren ausserhalb der speziell dafür vorgesehenen und bewilligten Flächen ist nicht gestattet." Para. 2: "Die Gemeinde kann Ausnahmen auf Gesuch hin bewilligen", with security possible for replacement measures such as WC facilities, cleaning and collection of the tourist tax. Para. 3 allows the Gemeinderat to order restoration; para. 4 extends the provision to Fahrende. Art. 26 para. 1: fine up to Fr. 5'000.-; para. 2 lists "Art. 7 Campingverbot"; para. 4 allows a warning in light cases; para. 6 delegates the amounts to a Gemeinderat ordinance. gemeindekandersteg.ch. ↩
  3. Gemeindepolizeiverordnung der Einwohnergemeinde Kandersteg, issued by the Gemeinderat under art. 26 para. 6 of the police regulation, read from the enacted PDF. Art. 8 para. 3 sets the fine list for breaches of the regulation and its first entry reads "a. Art. 7 Campingverbot 200.00". Para. 4 provides that where neither federal, cantonal nor this ordinance sets an amount, the communal police organs set a proportionate fine in the individual case. gemeindekandersteg.ch. ↩
  4. Baureglement der Gemeinde Kandersteg, the version the public-law cadastre names as in force at this parcel. The document is published as a scan with no text layer, so it was rendered at 200 dpi and read by optical character recognition; wording is relied on here only where short and unambiguous. Art. 42 "Kandersteger Berglandschaft" para. 3 lit. c: "Das Campieren ist verboten." The same article permits maintenance and modernisation of existing buildings, protective structures and SAC huts, and the creation or relocation of mountain paths, alpine routes and climbing routes. Art. 44 "Zonen für touristische Aktivitäten" defines a zone under art. 18 of the federal Spatial Planning Act which serves the maintenance and development of the tourist offering and of agricultural and forestry use, and which permits tourist infrastructure such as hiking paths, riding and cycle paths and cross-country ski trails. Art. 54 provides for extending the existing cross-country trail in the Spittelmatte area. Art. 55 names the amphibian spawning site of national importance Spittelmatte, object no. BE 341, states that the fen of national importance is to be preserved, and applies the transitional provisions of the federal fen ordinance by analogy until the canton fixes the perimeter and rules, with nothing to be done that runs counter to the protection goals. oerebfiles.apps.be.ch. ↩
  5. Cadastre of public-law restrictions on landownership, canton of Bern, extract for EGRID CH688446350542 fetched with geometry on 12 August 2026: parcel 55, commune of Kandersteg, 2'961'186 m², 68 restrictions. Point-in-polygon at the pin returns the base designation "uebriges Gebiet", the overlay "Zone für touristische Aktivitäten", a Planungszone Zweitwohnungen, a Gefahrenhinweis, Gewässerschutzbereich Au and noise sensitivity level III. Distances from the same geometry: the implementation perimeter for floodplains of national importance 53 m, for amphibian spawning sites 96 m, for fens of national importance 191 m, the "Kandersteger Berglandschaft" 324 m, the Naturwaldreservat Spitelmatte 382 m. Measured against the recommended point at LV95 2'615'383 / 1'144'508, the Berglandschaft edge is 93 m away. oereb2.apps.be.ch. ↩
  6. Federal wetland ordinances. Verordnung über den Schutz der Auengebiete von nationaler Bedeutung of 28 October 1992 (SR 451.31), Verordnung über den Schutz der Flachmoore von nationaler Bedeutung of 7 September 1994 (SR 451.33) and Verordnung über den Schutz der Amphibienlaichgebiete von nationaler Bedeutung (SR 451.34) each require the undiminished preservation of the listed objects and oblige the cantons to take protection and maintenance measures. They are addressed to the authorities rather than creating a fixed penalty against an individual, which is why this article records them as a reason not to pitch on the fen rather than as the source of the verdict. fedlex.admin.ch. ↩
  7. Terrain and water analysis, 12 August 2026, from the federal terrain model on a 25 m grid over LV95 2'614'883 to 2'615'883 east and 1'143'683 to 1'144'683 north, 1'681 samples. Slope at the pin 9.1 degrees. Flattest ground: 0.1 degrees at 1'873.8 m (LV95 2'615'558 / 1'144'008) and 0.1 degrees at 1'875.4 m (LV95 2'615'383 / 1'143'833), both inside the three federal objects; then 0.2 degrees at 1'889.4 m and 0.2 degrees at 1'956.0 m (LV95 2'615'383 / 1'144'508), both outside them. Mapped surface water within 600 m taken from OpenStreetMap and reprojected: the Arvenseeli and the Schwarzbach among them; the recommended point at 1'956.0 m is 596 m from the nearest, the 1'889.4 m alternative only 133 m. geo.admin.ch. ↩
  8. Swiss Alpine Club, information on bivouacking and wild camping, and the federal landscape inventory. The SAC position is that a single, considerate, one-night bivouac above the treeline and outside protected areas is generally tolerated in Switzerland. BLN object no. 1507 covers the Spittelmatte; the inventory binds federal and cantonal authorities when they plan, permit and subsidise and does not create a camping offence for an individual, which is why it is recorded here and not used to carry the verdict. sac-cas.ch. ↩