Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum and Memorial Guided Tour from Krakow

Be at the pickup place (centrally located), and then travel by coach to the site of Auschwitz-Birkenau in Oświęcim, a small Polish town roughly an hour away.

When you arrive at your destination, you will be met by your professional guide and enter the site at Auschwitz I, walking through the gate to the camp that bears the inscription Arbeit Macht Frei (Work Sets You Free).

The Auschwitz-Birkenau complex was established in 1940, originally to hold Polish political prisoners, and operated for five years before the remaining prisoners were liberated in 1945. During its operation, more than 1.5 million Jewish, Polish, Italian and French prisoners were brought here as part of one of the world's largest attempts at genocide.

The museum and memorial were founded in 1947, combining the area of KL Auschwitz (Auschwitz I) in Oświęcim and the Birkenau camp (Auschwitz II) in Brzezinka. The camp comprises approximately 150 buildings and you can see the original roads, fences, watchtowers and railway ramps that have all been preserved.

Visit some of the barracks on the Auschwitz I complex, which now house a collection of original exhibitions and documents, as well as articles confiscated from prisoners upon their arrival at the camp. After exploring the Auschwitz I complex, your host will meet you to take you by coach for the short journey to nearby Birkenau (Auschwitz II) where your tour will continue. Here you will see the original fences and crematoriums as well as the remains of the colossal gas chambers.

Your tour then concludes with a drop-off at the city centre.