KZ-Gedenkstätte Dachau

This was one of my favourite places I visited on my trip, which is weird to say. Coming here was such a powerful educational and emotional experience. They give you an audioguide, which tells a lot of important information as you walk through the eerie camp. The museum exhibits were really good, and I spent a long time reading them. I spent so many hours walking around as I went through the audioguide. To get here from Munich, I took the S-bahn then bus.

A must do! In fact, German high school students are required to visit here every year.There were lots of high school groups when we visited. Bring your walking shoes and expect to spend a good portion of the day here if you really want to explore and read the exhibits. it's a soul wrenching experience to see and listen to the horrors that occurred here. There is a small cafe at the visitor center for food and taking a break. A sobering educational experience.

Definitely odd to rate a concentration camp as a five star attraction, but five stars it is. You'll easily spend 3-4 hours exploring the grounds and reading the tons of information exhibits. You can easily reach the camp from Munich by train to Dachau and then an obviously marked bus to the camp from the Dachau train station. The only down side here is that there is nowhere to sit so you will be standing or walking the entire time. The gas chamber and memorial buildings are way off on the far side of the camp. Audio guides are about four euros.

Pros:
1. Free. I like they are not trying to monetize from the tragedy
2. Interesting to see how the very 1st concentration camp looked like
3. Signage is decent

Cons:
1. It could have been labeled better, more videos of the atrocity, interviews from historians and/or survivors shown would have been nice

2. Holocaust museum makes you FEEL the pain, meanwhile at its original site, it is just a few buildings and that's it. You feel nothing and you learn nothing new. I thought they owed to all to inform accurately what went on there instead of just putting 1 letter size sign and leave rest to your imagination and bare bones.

They could have done better. It is not even educational enough to visit here.
Some buildings don't have any sign, so you start from wrong side of entrance (all open anyway). some areas it is important to enter the rooms in the correct order (for example the rooms leading up to the gas chamber) but they have no labels, so you never know, after you have seen it all, one may realize you walked all wrong get out of building and redo..

4. There is NO one to answer questions/ no audio guide, no one.
People only show up at closing time and yell at you to leave.

5. Bus does NOT come! Maybe once an hour although the bus stop says every 15 min or so. When they do come, they don't stop at this stop, you see the number of bus is right but they won't stop and drive past you.. we had to walk quite a lot and then take a taxi! No metro access

Took a tour of the Dachau concentration camp and learned about the prisoners and system. Toured the museum and buildings with a tour guide who was very informative. A lesson on history and the atrocities that happened as a reminder to not repeat the past. There are rules to show respect to those who were beaten and killed

This is a must go location when in the area. I recommend going with a tour to get the best experience and learn the most you can

KZ-Gedenkstätte Dachau is a place that demands solemn respect and serves as a poignant reminder of the atrocities committed during one of humanity's darkest chapters. During my visit, I had the privilege of being guided by an exceptional English-speaking tour guide. Their knowledge and compassion shone through as they shared the harrowing history and stories of those who suffered within the camp's walls.

While the experience was profoundly moving, I made the conscious decision not to capture or share photos of the gas chambers. I believe it is crucial to exercise sensitivity and respect for the profound emotional impact such images can have on viewers, especially considering the traumatic nature of the subject matter.

I strongly recommend visiting KZ-Gedenkstätte Dachau for those who are prepared to confront the reality of the Holocaust. It is a somber yet necessary pilgrimage that allows us to honor the memory of the victims and gain a deeper understanding of the horrors they endured. By visiting this memorial, we contribute to the preservation of history and ensure that the lessons learned from the past are never forgotten.

This is a must to learn more about history. This wasn't my first time here and a lot has changed. They have added an audio tour option. This part was cool as there's a lot of information to hear but also to read. The devices are 4.50€ a piece. If you bring the double earphone Jack plug and some earphones you can share with someone else. Can be a great option for littles.

They do have English tours 2 times a day at 11am and 1pm

There is a cafe and gift shop there. Didn't get a chance to visit as there were a bunch of school kids there.

I didn't do the tour guide this time as I did it in the past. However I recommend a tour guide as it helps you not miss so much from all the reading and the crowds that can be there as you will find yourself skipping things do to the crowds.

Obviously this is a difficult visit - but worthwhile if you are anywhere near Munich because it's an easy, short train ride to get to and you owe it to yourself to learn, in person, up close, about these atrocities of human nature and how people allowed themselves to stay ignorant because, that was easier, for 13 years.

It takes about a half an hour to get here via train from Munich and a short 10-minute bus ride.

I booked a local tour guide who was very good and walked us through the museum, the grounds, and imparted things to us that I had never even heard.

I was especially impressed to learn that part of German required primary education for children is to attend these camps and learn about what happened here, in person.

Great care has been taken to preserve some of these buildings in order to honor those who died here and to remember what happened so as to warn future generations not to repeat.

I visited Dachau when I was an exchange student in 1992. What a powerful experience!

The small museum at the entrance does a good job of explaining how the camps started and the atrocities that happened within them. The artifacts, while yes, a bit morbid and definitely sad, are very fascinating. The extents that the Nazis went to to separate prisoners into groups and subclasses within those groups is almost mind boggling.

The rebuilt barracks buildings, to show you the living conditions prisoners were subjected to, pull at your heartstrings. The crematorium, with the showers and ovens, and the notch in the beam showing where some prisoners were hung.....it really makes you question how sick human beings can really be, and for what?

After the war, different religions were allowed to build small chapel-like buildings for visitors to sit and reflect, mourn, whatever they need to do.

I remember getting back on the bus, and someone in our group asked if anyone heard any birds singing while we were inside the camp. Not one of us could say that we had, but they were heard outside the grounds, all around. A sign that nature was showing respect to all the victims of that terrible place? I like to think so.

Anyway, definitely worth a visit. I firmly believe that everyone should visit at least one camp, to really get a grasp of what happened during such a horrible time in human history.

22/2021