|Oswiecim or Auschwitz|
|Auschwitz has become a symbol of terror, genocide, and the Holocaust. In 1940 it was established by the Nazis, in the suburbs of the city of Oswiecim which, like other parts of Poland, was occupied by the Germans during the Second World War. The name Oswiecim was changed to Auschwitz, which became the name of the camp as well.|
In the next years, the camp was expanded and had 3 main parts: Auschwitz I, Auschwitz II-Birkenau, and Auschwitz III-Monowitz. There also were over 40 sub-camps. Firstly, Poles were imprisoned and died in the camp. Then, Soviet prisoners of war, Gypsies, and prisoners of other nationalities were also incarcerated there. From 1942, the camp became the place of the greatest mass murder in the history of humanity, which was committed against the European Jews as part of Hitler's plan for the complete destruction of that people. Most Jewish men, women and children deported to Auschwitz were sent to their deaths in the Birkenau gas chambers immediately after arrival. In an effort to remove the traces of the crimes at the end of the war they had committed, the SS began dismantling and razing the gas chambers, crematoria, and other buildings, as well as burning documents.
Those prisoners who could walk were evacuated into the depths of the Reich. Red Army soldiers on January 27, 1945 liberated those who remained behind in the camp. In 1947 Polish parliament established the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum on the grounds of the two extant parts of the camp, Auschwitz I and Auschwitz II-Birkenau.
In 1979 it was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List.
You may head for an one day tour. You will drive approximately 8 hours each way (16 hours driving altogether). You will visit the camps, which will take about 3-4 hours and then return to departure place. It is open every day, all year long.
You are also highly recommended to take a private guide once in Auschwitz through the camps and explain all the details. Though the guide is not mandatory and the entrance fee into the camps is free of charge. Between November 1 and April 14 there are no guides or shuttles available. But during the rest tome there is a shuttle which will take you between camps or your driver will be glad to do it as well.
The approximate Camps guide fees per person are EUR 7.