Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum
Auschwitz-Birkenau is the best-known of the concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany during the Holocaust. It was the site of at least 1.1 million deaths, predominantly of Jews, but also of Romani people, Poles, Soviet prisoners of war, and gay men. The camp was liberated on January 27, 1945, and has been the site of a museum and memorial since 1947. Today it receives over 2 million visitors per year.
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Tickets & Transportation
Book a ticket and transportation in order to visit the site without a guide.
Auschwitz-Birkenau Admission Ticket and Transportation
4.3
(1737)
(1737)Visit the Nazi concentration camps of Auschwitz and Birkenau and see Poland's most important World Heritage Site on a half-day trip from Krakow.
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Guided Tours
Take advantage of the knowledge of a guide when you visit the site.From Krakow: Auschwitz-Birkenau Tour with Pick-up Options
-8%
4.7(736)
(736)Visit the Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum, the largest of the Nazi concentration and extermination camps. Learn more about this horror from World War II.
on 2 websites
Auschwitz Ticket and Full-Day Tour from Krakow
-13%
4.6(870)
(870)Visit Auschwitz concentration camp on a full-day trip from Krakow. Be shown around Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum, and see the horrific gas chambers and crematoriums at the largest Nazi concentration camp in the Third Reich.
on 2 websites
Auschwitz - Birkenau: Private Tour from Krakow
5.0(20)
(20)Take a complete guided tour with transfer to Auschwitz - Birkenau from Krakow. Experience the most infamous camp of the Holocaust.
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Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial full-day tour from Krakow
4.7(22)
(22)Visit the Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum and Memorial with a fully organized tour from Krakow including transportation.
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More Tickets & Tours
See more tours to Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum.From Krakow: Auschwitz-Birkenau Full-Day Guided Tour
4.6(8622)
(8622)Visit one of the most significant places in Poland on a 7-hour tour of the Auschwitz Museum and Birkenau Camp in Oświęcim. Explore a symbol of the Holocaust and memorial to the victims of the Nazis.
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From Krakow: Auschwitz-Birkenau Guided Tour
4.5(5002)
(5002)Visit Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camps with a professional educator to learn about its inhumane history and the fate of the Holocaust victims.
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From Krakow: Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum & Camp Guided Tour
4.6(7586)
(7586)Visit the Auschwitz Museum, site of the largest Third Reich concentration camp. Learn how the complex functioned and see the barracks where prisoners were kept. Well-informed staff will recount the site's history and answer your questions.
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Auschwitz-Birkenau Guided Tour - Hotel Pickup from Krakow
4.7(1288)
(1288)Visit the largest Nazi concentration camp from World War II and learn the tragic story of the Holocaust on a guided tour of the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum.
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Top Tips
1. The site is extremely popular with tour groups, and it can be extremely busy on summer afternoons. If you’d like to visit when the site is less crowded then try to be there early in the morning when it opens.
Sign at the entrance: Arbeit Macht Frei | Photo: Flickr, Greg Clarke - CC-BY-ND 2.0
2. There are two parts of the site which can be visited, the older camp in Auschwitz I, and the larger camp built later at Auschwitz-Birkenau II. There’s a free bus to take you from one to the other, make sure to visit both in order to see all the exhibits.
Auschwitz-Birkenau | Photo: Flickr, Pedro Dias - CC-BY 2.0
3. You can’t consume food and drink inside the museum and memorial, so make sure to eat before your visit. There’s a café at the entrance of the site at Auschwitz I, but there aren’t any other food options nearby. You can bring a bottle of water into the site, which is important to remember on hot summer days.
4. There’s a lot of walking at both sites, sometimes over uneven ground, so wear sturdy shoes and comfortable clothes. If visiting during summer then make sure to bring a hat and sunscreen as quite a large portion of the tour will be outdoors.
Frequently Asked Questions
What will I see on a visit to Auschwitz-Birkenau?
The permanent exhibition at Auschwitz was opened to the public in 1955 and is located in blocks 4, 5, 6, 7, and 11 at the site of the Auschwitz I concentration camp. Visitors will see the names and belongings of the different groups who were sent to the camps at Auschwitz-Birkenau, photographs of the camp when it was running, copies of camp records, and original items which were present at the camp. There are exhibits which describe the process of entering the camp, reconstructions of living areas and the living conditions, and the block which was used as cells in the prison jail. Visitors will also see the yard where executions were carried out and an original gas chamber. In addition to the permanent exhibition, each country whose citizens were imprisoned or killed in Auschwitz-Birkenau has been given the opportunity to set up a national exhibit, detailing the connection between that country and the camp.What’s the difference between Auschwitz I and Auschwitz-Birkenau II?
Auschwitz I is the earlier site and was approved in 1940 as a concentration camp for political prisoners. It ended up also being the administrative center for the three camps which made up the Auschwitz complex. Auschwitz I was also the site of the first crematorium and was the location of the first experimental gassing of prisoners with Zyklon B in September 1941. Auschwitz-Birkenau II was a much larger site built in late 1941 and was a combination of labor and extermination camp. It could house 125,000 inmates at a time and had 4 crematoria which were used to gas prisoners. This huge scale meant that most deaths at Auschwitz took place at Auschwitz-Birkenau II. Today most of the exhibits are located in Auschwitz I, but visitors should take the time to see Auschwitz-Birkenau II in order to get a better sense of the size of the camp. The crematoria of Auschwitz-Birkenau II were purposefully destroyed before the liberation of the camp in order to hide evidence, but visitors can still see their remains, in addition to the barracks where prisoners lived, train lines, and some of the freight cars which brought prisoners to the camp.At what age is a visit to Auschwitz-Birkenau suitable?
The museum recommends that only children over the age of 14 visit the site, but younger children will be allowed inside if their parents decide they’re mature enough for the visit. There’s no separate itinerary or signage for children, so children will need to be able to follow a guide or their parents will need to explain the exhibits to them.Are we allowed to take photographs while visiting?
In general, you can take photos while visiting the concentration camp, as long as you aren’t using flash or a tripod inside the buildings. Photography is strictly forbidden in room 5 of block 4 and the cellars of block 11. Visitors are also asked not to use cell phones inside any of the exhibition buildings or in the zone reserved for silence in the courtyard of Block 11. The concentration camp is a somber site of reflection and remembrance and visitors are asked to respect this during their tour, and selfies, in particular, are not recommended.General Information
Opening Hours:
Address:
Więźniów Oświęcimia 20
32-603 Oświęcim
Poland
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