Today, Unspunnen is home to Unspunnenfest, a festival of traditional Swiss competitions held in the fields below the ruins.

The cave castle of Rotenfluh (first mentioned in 1298 as munitio immersive balma Rothenfluo dicta) at Tschingelsatz and Unspunnen Castle (first mentioned in 1232 as Uspunnun) were used to guard the late medieval Lütschinenbrücke, a bridge at Gsteig near Interlaken.

In the 13th century it belonged to the Herrschaft of Burkart of Thun, who acquired it through his 1224 marriage to the family of the Baron of Wädenswil.

In 1332, the peasants of the surrounding villages unsuccessfully rose up against Johann of Weissenburg and the leaders were imprisoned in the castle.

[2] After the Bernese victory in the Battle of Laupen in 1339, the barons were forced to pledge the Unspunnen and Rotenfluh castles as part of the peace settlement.