If you’ve been planning a visit to Poland for longer than five seconds, you’ve probably already realized that Auschwitz is one of the most popular places to visit there. It is huge and over a million people a year visit to pay respect. In today’s post, I’m sharing a guide to help you plan your visit with options on how to get to Auschwitz from Krakow, what to expect, and tips for the do’s and don’ts.
How To Get To Auschwitz From Krakow And What To Expect There
Disclaimer
There are affiliate links included in this post. This means at no extra cost to you, I earn a commission if you book through the link.
FAQ for visiting Auschwitz
Where is it located?
Oświęcim, Poland.
How much does it cost?
It depends on the ticket option you choose.
How long do you need to visit?
At least a half day to full day depending on the tour you choose.
What should you bring with you?
You can’t take a backpack in so only bring what you need.
What should you wear?
Comfortable walking shoes, respectful clothes.
How to get to Auschwitz from Krakow using public transport
Take train #34402 from Krakow Glowny to Oświęcim. In Google Maps, Kraków Glówny is also listed as Krakow Main Railway Station.
From there you can walk about 10 minutes to the entrance of Auschwitz. It will take just over 2 hours to get there this way.
Another option is to take a FlixBus from Krakow to Oświęcim which will be slightly faster. You need to book a ticket in advance and here is their website to do that.
Grounds at Auschwitz
Other transport options
If you prefer not to take public transport, you could also take a tour. Many of these offer the transport to Auschwitz and a guided tour ticket.
You can find tours on Viator or ask at your accommodation for recommendations on companies they work with.
Lastly, you can book a driver to cover the transportation then arrange your ticket into Auschwitz yourself.
Again, it’s a good idea to check with your hotel to see who they regularly partner with.
The most important part of planning your visit to Auschwitz
This is important when it comes to planning your visit. It is best to book your tickets in advance.
Technically, you can show up on the day and hope to get a ticket. If you do this, go early. If you show up without a ticket, you run the risk of being turned away as they only allow a certain amount of visitors each day.
I visited in the off-season and even then the tours were almost all full the week before I went.
If you do either of these options and visit in a peak season, definitely arrange these in advance.
Which ticket should you get
You can either get a free entry ticket to walk the grounds or take one of the guided tours.
This is what I didn’t appreciate about visiting Auschwitz because they don’t have anything like a headphone tour for people who want to go at their own pace but still learn.
It seems more commercialized to sell guided tours.
There are a number of tour types, but the most popular seems to be the 3.5 hour tour for approx $18 USD or 6 hour day tour for approx $29 USD.
The tours are offered in different languages and run throughout the day.
If you want to visit and tour at your own pace, you still need to get a ticket because they only allow a certain amount of visitors at a time.
Select the ‘tours for individuals without an educator’ option when you book your ticket.
Personal items confiscated by guards
What to expect at Auschwitz
When you visit Auschwitz, you will walk from building to building and see the exhibits in each.
Look for a sign on top of the door which will have the name of the exhibit in that building.
There were different kinds of exhibits in each about the treatment of prisoners, daily life at the camp, art representations, and special exhibits like the one on the Sonderkommando.
It looked like this was a temporary one so it may be different when you visit.
In each building, it’s easy to follow the signs to go with the flow of the exhibit.
Outside, it’s not as easy to follow if you are walking around without a tour guide, but you can basically just walk from building to building until you get through it all.
There are also signs with information about different areas of the campgrounds outside the buildings too.
There is a crematorium still intact, so keep that in mind in case that is a section you want to avoid.
Sign before entering the crematorium
What to expect at Birkenau
The second section of the visit is Birkenau or ‘Auschwitz II Birkenau’.
If you had booked a driver, they will drive you to Birkenau, otherwise, you can take a free shuttle.
While Auschwitz contains more buildings with exhibits, at Birkenau you see mostly rubble as most of it was destroyed before the end of the war in an attempt to conceal what had happened there.
While it’s not as museum-like as Auschwitz and there aren’t the same type of exhibits, it’s a powerful way to see the scale of the whole operation because it is huge. Birkenau was the largest death camp.
As you walk the grounds, it seems to go on forever – there are the remains of so many rows of buildings and four crematoriums.
I thought the rubble wouldn’t be worth seeing but it was interesting and heartbreaking to get that perspective on just how huge this camp was.
There are plaques to read about what each building was used for, monuments, and you will also see the train lines with old carriages.
Some of what’s left on Birkenau
Tips for visiting Auschwitz-Birkenau from Krakow
You cover a lot of ground during your visit, particularly at Birkenau, so it’s a good idea to wear comfortable walking shoes.
They don’t allow backpacks. If you have one you can either leave it with your driver if you chose the private driver or tour option, or use the bag storage room for a couple of Zloty per bag.
Photos. Ok, as I’m writing this I just did a big sigh and eye roll because it’s weird to even think this would be necessary to write. But, I definitely saw people taking Instagram style posed candid photos at the main gate.
Um, just no.
I’m a big fan of getting photos of yourself while you travel, but there’s definitely a time and place.
Auschwitz is not either.
It’s appropriate to take photos of buildings and exhibits, but it’s best to leave the modeling shoots elsewhere.
Grounds at Birkenau
Is Auschwitz worth visiting when you visit Poland?
Overall, I didn’t like the way it’s set up with the ticketing and not being able to do a self-guided headphone tour.
I think the way Mauthausen and Dachau are set up makes for better visitor experience.
However, I do think it’s worth visiting when you are in Poland.
It’s such a huge part of history and I think it’s not only good to visit to pay respect, but also to learn more about the camps and WWII.
It’s like I said with the other camps I visited, it’s not a fun day out but it’s important.
Where to stay in Krakow
I stayed at Queen Boutique Hotel in Krakow and it was fantastic.
The location was really convenient because it was easy to walk to the main square, the Jewish quarter, and the train station from the hotel. They also had cute, comfortable rooms, a great spa, and the staff at the front desk were very helpful when I had questions.
If you prefer somewhere else, I recommend doing a search on Booking.com. I use this to book accommodation when I travel – including for this trip, and can always find a good deal there.
For more information
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