Just 70 kilometers from Kraków, the site of the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration and extermination camp is one of the most visited places in Poland, drawing over two million people annually. But calling it an “attraction” feels wrong. Auschwitz isn’t a box to tick off a sightseeing list. It’s a place of remembrance, reflection, and responsibility.
For many visitors, especially those staying in Kraków, a visit to Auschwitz is a natural extension of their journey. But to go without understanding its history—or how to approach it respectfully—is to risk reducing one of the most harrowing sites in modern memory to a backdrop. This guide aims to help you do it right.
The History: From Military Barracks to Mechanized Murder
Auschwitz was not a single camp, but a complex of over 40 camps operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland during World War II. The name has become shorthand for the Holocaust itself, symbolizing the industrialized scale of genocide.
Auschwitz I: The Origins
In 1940, the Nazis converted former Polish army barracks near the town of Oświęcim (German: Auschwitz) into a prison camp. Initially it held Polish political prisoners—intellectuals, resistance fighters, clergy. The camp quickly expanded, with prisoners subjected to forced labor, medical experiments, and systematic starvation.
The infamous “Arbeit Macht Frei” sign still arches over the gate today—a cruel piece of propaganda claiming “Work Sets You Free.” For many, it was the last thing they ever read.
Auschwitz II-Birkenau: The Death Factory
By 1942, the Nazi regime escalated its “Final Solution”—the plan to annihilate European Jewry. Just three kilometers from the original camp, they built Birkenau (Auschwitz II). It became the largest extermination site in history.
Here, transports of Jews from across Europe arrived daily. Victims were unloaded at the railway platform, “selected” by SS doctors—those deemed fit for labor sent one way, the majority sent directly to the gas chambers. By the war’s end, more than 1.1 million people had been murdered here, 90% of them Jews. Others included Poles, Roma, Soviet POWs, and political prisoners.
Auschwitz III and Subcamps
Satellite camps spread across the region, many feeding forced labor into German industry. IG Farben, a German chemical company, built a factory near Auschwitz that profited from slave labor.
Liberation
On January 27, 1945, Soviet troops liberated Auschwitz. They found 7,000 survivors—sick, starving, clinging to life. Evidence of atrocities was everywhere: mountains of shoes, suitcases, human hair. Today, many of those artifacts remain on display, silent witnesses that defy denial.
Why Auschwitz Matters Today
Visiting Auschwitz is not about voyeurism—it’s about memory. Holocaust survivors are dwindling in number; their testimonies, though recorded, cannot substitute for presence. Standing in Auschwitz is standing in the absence they left behind.
The camp is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site, preserved not for beauty but for its power to confront humanity with the depths of its cruelty. It reminds us that genocide is not abstract. It happened here, within living memory, in a modern, educated society.
Planning Your Visit from Kraków
Getting There
By Bus: Regular buses run from Kraków’s main station to Oświęcim (around 1.5 hours).
By Train: Slightly longer (about 2 hours), but drops you in Oświęcim town—about 20 minutes’ walk or short taxi to the camp.
By Private Car: On our Auschwitz Day Trip Tour, a private driver will pick you up from your accommodation and take you to Auschwitz, where your expert will be waiting.
Time on Site
Auschwitz I: 2–3 hours. Includes barracks turned into exhibitions, artifacts, and the gas chamber.
Birkenau (Auschwitz II): 1.5–2 hours. Larger and more haunting in its emptiness, you'll be guided by ruined crematoria, the railway ramp, and endless rows of chimneys.
Total Time: Allow 4.5 hours with your tour guide, and a total of 7 hours including transport.
Visiting with Respect
Auschwitz is not a museum in the typical sense. it’s a cemetery without headstones. Visiting requires sensitivity.
Photography
Photos are permitted in most areas, but please use judgment. Some areas, like rooms with human hair or gas chambers, prohibit photography entirely. Respect those rules.
Behavior
Keep voices low while at Auschwitz. Avoid eating, drinking, or using phones within the memorial areas. Dress modestly. There is no strict dress code, but this is a place of mourning.
Emotional Preparedness
Expect it to be heavy. Your guide will provide time for reflection, but you will also want to give yourself time afterward to decompress—whether in quiet reflection, journaling, or simply walking.
A day trip to Auschwitz is not a comfortable visit—and it shouldn’t be. Standing in front of a gas chamber or walking along the tracks where thousands arrived to their deaths is an experience that resists easy language. But that’s exactly why it matters.
When you leave Auschwitz, you won't leave it behind. You'll carry it forward into conversations with friends, into reflections on prejudice and power, and into awareness of how fragile human rights can be. Visiting is not just about the past; it’s about vigilance for the future.
If Kraków enchants you with its medieval charm, Auschwitz humbles you with its absence. Together, they remind us that beauty and horror often coexist in history and that our role is not to look away, but to understand.
