Choose from 79 Fun Things to Do in Poland
Archdiocesan Museum
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Hipolit House
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Ethnographic Museum of Krakow
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Great Barbican
The actual gate to the city was St Florian's gate, linked to the Barbican by a covered passageway. But the Barbican and the series of moats and walls which lead away from it, ringing the city, were the first point of entry to Krakow in the Middle Ages. Today, you still enter the Old Town of the city through the impressive Barbican.
Practical Info
Entry to the Barbican is included in the ticket for Brama Floriana gate tower and the other medieval fortifications. You can walk the remaining city walls.
Home Army Museum (Muzeum Armii Krajowej)
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Gdansk Old Town
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Cloth Hall
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Gallery of 19th-Century Polish Art Museum
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Family Home of John Paul II
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Czestochowa
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Historical Museum of Krakow
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CRICOTEKA Museum of Tadeusz Kantor
Ghetto Heroes Square
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Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum
The Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum is the resting place for some 1.5 million people, as the site once served as a concentration camp and extermination site of the European Jewish community during World War II. Today, Auschwitz-Birkenau is an important historical area, allowing visitors to reflect on the monumental horrors that occurred during the genocide.
The Basics
Auschwitz-Birkenau tours take visitors through some of the 13 surviving prison blocks that now feature museum exhibitions, many dedicated to victims and displaying documentary photographs and historical artifacts. In addition the main camp, a much larger camp called Birkenau (or Auschwitz II) sits about 1.25 miles (2 kilometers) to the west. This site has been left almost exactly as it was when the Nazis abandoned it at the end of the war, complete with gas chamber ruins, and is also considered a part of the UNESCO-listed Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum. An official visitor’s center can be found at the entrance to Auschwitz I.
The two sites are often visited together on group or private tours from Krakow Old Town, available in a number of languages and generally including transport between the memorial areas, plus hotel pickup and drop-off or airport transfers. It's recommended that travelers allot about 90 minutes for each of the sites. A visit is also sometimes combined with a trip to the nearby Wieliczka Salt Mine.
Things to Know Before You Go
- Cell phones are not allowed in the permanent exhibition buildings.
- The ability to take photos varies by area, although it is not allowed in Room 5 of Block 4 or in the cellars of Block 11. Flash units and tripods are not allowed.
- The maximum size of any baggage carried in is 11.8x8x4 inches (30x20x10 cm).
- The museum discourages visits from children under the age of 14.
- While wheelchairs are available for use at the visitor's center, strollers may only be used outside of the blocks and other structures in Auschwitz I.
- The memorial is closed on January 1, Easter Sunday, and Christmas.
Insider Tip
This is a somber place to visit (to say the least), and appropriate solemnity and respect are required on museum grounds. Although you can arrive independently, guided Auschwitz tours can allow for better education and understanding, plus insight from a tour guide.