We will be visiting Europe at the beginning of September and making a 3 day stop in Bern, what are your suggestions
for places to see and things to do while we are there?

I do day trips 2 of 3 days - Bern is not that big. Go to Interlaken by train and take trains into the fabulous Jungfrau Region one day and another go to Lucerne and do a lake tour, etc.

Actually if you've never been to Switzerland before I'd base in the Jungfrau area and spend the whole three days there.

Anyway trains are great- www.sbb.ch for schedules and fares - general info BETS-European Rail Experts and www.ricksteves.com

Is Bern the only stop in Switzerland? Are you specifically looking for a city experience? As September is an ideal time to visit high altitude destinations in without the peak summer tourists while everything is still open and operational, I view staying in Bern at this time as leaving a lot of money on the table for my taste.
You can visit Murten, Luzern, Berner Oberland, or Zermatt from Bern. The Luzern is a very good all weather destination with city, lake, and mountians; while Murten and Berner Oberland are ok with bad weather. Zermatt is not worth going in bad weather, so even in your future visits, Zermatt remains opportunistic unless your are a winter sports enthusiast in snow season. If you stayed in Bern, you can check the weather prognosis at Zermatt early in the morning from Bern. If it looks like a fair weather, take the earliest train practical from Bern to Zermatt.
Lake Geneve area is also reachable from Bern.

Check out day pass specials at www.sbb.ch if taking longer expensive train rides - unlimited travel for about 55 euros.

and yes IMO the Interlaken or Lucerne areas are better bases for seeing the beauty of Switzerland and day trip from one of those to Bern.

Again why pick Bern unless part of a wider-ranging Swiss trip?

I agree with PalenQ!

We visited Bern and thought it was nice, but not 3 days nice (maybe 2-3 hours nice)

One of my favorite places on the planet is the Eiger region. We stayed in Grindelwald at the Hotel Belvedere and visited all the other towns in the area via cog wheel train, tram, cable car, etc.

Just spectacular scenery especially in September!!!

Plus Bern is very expensive on hotels whereas Grindelwald has more budget choices IME. Yes if you've never been to Switzerland before skip cities and head for dem hills.

But we need more info - have you been to Switzerland before? Is Bern your only stop? Why Bern?

IMO, Bern is a delight and – depending on your interests and whether you plan any day trips – 3 days could be perfect. But it really depends on what you want to see and do, and since you didn't tell us anything about your interests or reasons for going to Bern, I don't think ANY of us can tell you whether your time frame works or not! I strongly encourage you to get, or at least consult, a good guidebook.

Thanks everyone for your great suggestions and in put, the main reason we are stopping in Bern while making our way down to Milan and Venice is to
see the Mormon Switzerland Temple (we are Mormons). I think after everyone's comments we may decrease our stay in Bern and just do 2 days; we
won't be getting there until later afternoon so 2 nights and 1 1/2 days may be enough. I will definitely look in to all the areas you great posters have
suggested. Thanks!

I'd still consider basing in Interlaken area for awesome Alps and doing the short day trip to Bern for a whole day - enough for most. One less relocation.

The Paul Klee museum of modern art is a delight if you like that type of art. Bern also has an outstanding Einstein museum.

I agree with Edward2005. And there are some other wonderful museums in Bern, and gardens, and areas around which to stroll... really, quite a lot in a city that I thought full of charm!

Bern also has the famous bear pits right near town centre. But mos folks never having been to Switzerland want to see the awesome high Alps.