Silvesterchläuse: the old-style New Year in Appenzell

1. Two New Years, and a date that surprises

31 December 2026 is a Thursday: it is New Year’s Eve in the Gregorian calendar. 13 January 2027 is a Wednesday: it is the « Alter Silvester », Old New Year’s Eve, which follows the Julian calendar. The two dates are unambiguous, because the gap between the two calendars is 13 days across the whole 2026-2027 period. It is 13 January that the press and tourist offices highlight. For 31 December, only a guided hike is announced (running.life, excerpt).

Source: MySwitzerland (2026-2027 announcements, read in excerpt), calendar calculation, nau.ch (2023 news report), and running.life (excerpt, 31 December 2026), checked on 4 November 2026.

The first written mention of the custom dates from 1663, according to SRF (2013) and the Swiss National Museum. The Protestant half-canton did not follow the Gregorian reform of 1582: it kept the old calendar, and with it the second « Silvester ». Sources do not agree on when the Gregorian calendar was finally adopted in the half-canton. The Swiss National Museum puts it in 1798 (research excerpt), while an SRF interview published in 2025 points to the 17th century. This guide does not settle the question.

2. Where to see them: the Hinterland, not Appenzell town

The name Appenzell covers two half-cantons, and that is the first source of confusion. The custom is practised in Appenzell Ausserrhoden, the Protestant half-canton, in the villages of the Hinterland. Urnäsch is its centre. The 2026-2027 announcements and the pages read also cite Hundwil, Waldstatt, Schönengrund, Schwellbrunn, Stein, Herisau, Teufen, Speicher and Bühler. The groups follow the farms: there is no official route plan.

Appenzell town, for its part, lies in Appenzell Innerrhoden, the Catholic half-canton. SRF (2013) notes that the Church in that half-canton sanctioned the custom in the 18th century, while the tradition carried on on the other side of the cantonal border. To see the groups, Appenzell town is therefore not the right starting point.

In 2022, the Hundwil edition took place without tourists, for health reasons, and the routes were moved away from the village centres (nau.ch, 12 January 2022). That Covid-year edition is not representative: the sources read take no position on tourism from it. It does show that a village can change how it runs the event.

3. Getting there from Zurich: the train, then the walk

Zurich, then the train into the Hinterland

Train fare to check on sbb.ch About 1 h 30 (2017 data) Cold and snow possible December and January

The indicative journey leaves Zurich HB on an InterCity to Gossau SG, then takes the S23 line of the Appenzeller Bahnen via Herisau to Urnäsch station. House of Switzerland (2017) puts it at about an hour and a half. These times have not been confirmed for 2027: check timetables on sbb.ch and appenzellerbahnen.ch before you set off.

Zurich is not the destination, but it is the indicative starting point of the journey described above: Zurich HB station is the first stop.

Highlights

• Urnäsch station was the starting point of the guided tours on 13 January in 2023 (nau.ch).
• Urnäsch Tourist Information, Dorfplatz 6, +41 71 364 26 40, is the local contact for timetables.
• By car, one source read in excerpt mentions event car parks with staff guidance. No plan is published.
• A night service Gossau-Herisau-Urnäsch was added to the 2025 timetable, on Friday and Saturday (tp-info.ch, excerpt); to be confirmed for 2027 on sbb.ch. The two 2026-2027 dates fall on a Thursday and a Wednesday: reconfirm for 2027.
• A 4.2 km walk, about 1 h 20 downhill, links the Schönau to Urnäsch, on a route suggested by guides (excerpt, to be reconfirmed).

Pixidia tip: arrive the day before if you want to follow an early-morning start. No accommodation is documented in the sources read: ask Tourist Information Urnäsch (+41 71 364 26 40). Appenzellerland Tourismus lists packages that include accommodation, without details (excerpt).

This one-day circuit from Zurich goes to Appenzell and Liechtenstein; it is not about the custom. Price checked on Viator on 4 November 2026 for 13 January 2027.

Appenzell and Liechtenstein Tour from Zurich★ 4.9 · 17 reviewsPartner link €893.62 per adult (based on 2 adults), departing 9:30 am on 13 January 2027 €893.62 per adult(based on 2 adults), departing 9:30 am on 13 January 2027

See dates

Source: sbb.ch for official timetables; durations from House of Switzerland (2017), Wikipedia and journey planners (excerpts), checked on 4 November 2026.

4. The day itself, as it is told

A group, called a Schuppel, has six men according to SRF (2013). They go from house to house, with no fixed route published and no guaranteed timing. The sequence below comes from accounts and reports, not from an official programme. It describes what you usually see, and nothing more.

1. Before dawn. The groups get ready at the farm or in the village. The costumes are heavy and dressing takes hours (House of Switzerland, 2017).
2. Around 5 am. The groups set off. According to House of Switzerland (2017), the village lights are switched off at that time, and a 2019 account (SwissTravelGirl) also gives 5 am for the start.
3. On the move. The bells ring in rhythm. The large bells, the Rollen, set the tempo.
4. At each farm. The group stops, forms a circle, rings its bells and sings a Zäuerli, three times according to House of Switzerland (2017). Hosts often offer mulled wine or tea, and a little money.
5. At midday. The groups take a break, sometimes at the village Gasthof. The 2019 account describes a stop where you can warm up, open to visitors.
6. In the afternoon. The groups carry on through the village, sometimes until evening.

For timings, Tourist Information Urnäsch (+41 71 364 26 40) is the only contact cited by the sources: call before you set off.

5. Costumes, masks and bells

Source: House of Switzerland, « Urnäsch’s magical double New Year’s Eve » (10 January 2017), and Swiss Films (excerpt), checked on 4 November 2026.

The masks have also changed how they are made. For some years now, their blanks have been 3D-printed by a company in Appenzell Innerrhoden, then hand-painted by the saddler Niklaus Frehner, of Urnäsch (SRF, 13 January 2026). The report presents this change as an adaptation of the tradition. We found no published criticism of it.

6. How to behave in front of a group

No code of conduct has been published for the custom, and there is no official rule on photography. The advice below comes from interviews, a tourist office or common sense, and each item is dated or marked as such.

• Keep a good distance. The Urnäsch tourist office advises against rushing at the groups (SRF, January 2014).
• Do not skip a farm when following a group. This is the advice of former Chläus Hansueli Frick, interviewed by SRF on 13 January 2025.
• Ask before taking close-up photos, and avoid flash. No rule is published: this is common sense.
• Do not touch the costumes or masks. Common sense, with no published source: the costumes are heavy and are worn through a long night.
• Accept hospitality in moderation. Hosts offer drinks and small sums at each house (House of Switzerland, 2017). Accounts also mention mulled wine, beer and Glühwein, with no published safety rule.

A 2019 account also says the event is cancelled in rain or snow, to protect the headdresses. This rule appears in no other source read: take it as a story, not as a rule.

What remains unknown

Three questions have no published answer to date: the number of groups in 2026, which is not disclosed; attendance, which is not quantified (SRF spoke of « thousands » of visitors in 2014); and the shuttle buses announced for a recent edition, which have not been confirmed for 2027.

7. Budget: what is free and what you pay for

Following the groups costs nothing according to the sources read: no ticket was found for the walking. The Urnäsch museum, the Appenzeller Brauchtumsmuseum, is the paid site most directly linked to the custom. Admission is CHF 6 for an adult and CHF 3 for children and pupils up to age 16 (appenzell.ch, 2026 page).

Source: appenzell.ch (museum page, 2026); office addresses and phone numbers from a MySwitzerland excerpt, checked on 4 November 2026.

Organised tours, on the other hand, cost money. The SRF Kulturclub programme for January, whose year is still to be confirmed (page published 24 September 2024), was charged CHF 640 in a double room and CHF 650 in a single room, for 18 participants at most. The package included one night, dinner, breakfast, two coach transfers, lunch at a farm, a guided visit and museum entry. This price relates to a past edition: no 2027 offer was found.

For food, no menu specific to 13 January was found. The train fare was not checked: see sbb.ch for the fare on the day.

8. Depending on your profile

• First time. 13 January is the main day; the press talks about « thousands » of tourists (SRF, 2014), with no precise figure. 31 December is a quieter outing: a good way to understand the walk before the crowds arrive.
• Family. No minimum age is published for following the groups. Bring warm shoes and plan an early, long outing in the open air. The museum charges CHF 3 for children up to 16.
• Tight budget. The walking is free. The museum costs CHF 6 for an adult, and the train fare can be compared on sbb.ch. Avoid paid organised tours: the January SRF package (year to be confirmed) cost CHF 640 in a double room, night included.
• Reduced mobility. The route is on foot, from farm to farm, sometimes over several kilometres. No accessibility data for the farms was found: check with the tourist office before you come.

What other guides don’t tell you

Six points that several guides, read for this research, leave out or get wrong. Each one gives its source and its consultation date, 4 November 2026.

• The custom is in the Hinterland of Ausserrhoden, not in Appenzell town. Several guides write « in Appenzell ». The town belongs to the Catholic half-canton of Innerrhoden, which sanctioned the custom in the 18th century. Source: SRF, 4 January 2013 (consulted 4 November 2026).
• The guided tours of 13 January left Urnäsch station at 4:30 am. That time dates from 2023, and several guides read give no time at all. It needs to be reconfirmed for 2027. Source: nau.ch, Keystone-SDA report of 13 January 2023 (consulted 4 November 2026).
• The museum has seasonal hours, and its official page is contradictory for winter. The published hours cover April to early November, with a reduced rate of CHF 3 up to age 16. Call before you count on a visit in January. Source: appenzell.ch (page read in 2026, consulted 4 November 2026).
• The Zäuerli is wordless, but the Chläuse are not silent. The bells ring during the walk, and the singing happens at each house, three times. Some texts describe silent groups: this is inaccurate. Source: House of Switzerland, 10 January 2017 (consulted 4 November 2026).
• 13 January 2027 is a Wednesday, and the Sunday rule does not apply. Some texts say that when 13 January falls on a Sunday, the celebration moves to the Saturday. That rule is not official, and it does not apply in 2027. Source: calendar calculation, and SwissTravelGirl, 12 January 2019 (consulted 4 November 2026).
• The switch to the Gregorian calendar is dated in two different ways. Guides cite 1582 without naming the canton, which is incomplete. The Swiss National Museum (excerpt, 2021) gives 1798 for the half-canton; an SRF interview from 2025 (source to be specified) points to the 17th century. Consulted 4 November 2026.