Visiting Auschwitz-Birkenau from Kraków

Auschwitz-Birkenau, about 70 km west of Kraków, is the former German Nazi concentration and extermination camp where more than a million people were murdered, most of them Jews. It is now a Memorial and Museum, and one of the most important places a visitor to Poland can go. The questions below cover booking, timing and what to expect.

Do I need to book?

Yes. Admission to the grounds is free, but every visitor needs an entry card booked on the official site, visit.auschwitz.org. Cards are no longer issued at the museum on the day. Individual free entry cards open 90 days ahead and close a week before, and they go quickly in summer. Book as soon as your dates are fixed.

Guided or on my own?

You can book a place on a guided tour with a Memorial educator, in English and other languages, or visit alone. For a first visit, we'd take the guided tour. The sites are large, the history is complex, and the guides explain what you're looking at in a way no sign can. From May to September, individual visitors without a guide can only enter late in the afternoon, so check the current rules when you book.

How long does it take?

The standard guided tour lasts about three and a half hours and covers both parts: Auschwitz I, the original camp in brick barracks, now housing the main exhibitions, and Auschwitz II-Birkenau, 3 km away, the vast site of the gas chambers, the railway ramp and the ruins of the crematoria. A shuttle bus runs between them. With travel from Kraków, allow most of a day.

How do I get there?

By bus from the station behind Kraków Główny, by train to Oświęcim, or on an organised tour from Kraków, which includes transport and a guide. Our getting there guide has the details.

What should I bring?

Only a small bag: the limit is 35 x 25 x 15 cm, and larger bags must be left in a paid left-luggage room, if space is available. Bring ID, water, and clothes for the weather, as much of the visit is outside. The museum asks visitors to dress and behave with respect; our what to wear guide covers this.

Can I combine it with the Salt Mine?

Many tours do. We wouldn't. The visit is emotionally heavy, and rushing from the crematoria of Birkenau to the salt chapels of Wieliczka in one day serves neither place well. Give Auschwitz its own day.