If you are planning to visit Berlin and want to gain a deeper understanding of the history and impact of World War II, a visit to a concentration camp is an essential experience. These somber sites serve as reminders of the atrocities committed during the war and provide an opportunity to pay tribute to the victims while educating ourselves to prevent such horrors from happening again. In this blog post, we will guide you on how to visit a concentration camp from Berlin and make the most of your journey into history.
Understanding the Historical Context
As you prepare for your journey, there are several facts and trivia that would be important that you learn with regard to concentration camps. When the Adolph Hitler was in power the Germans set up concentration camps where millions of people, Jews, political opponents, Gypsies, homosexuals and other people the Nazi’s deemed to be of inferior stock were murdered.
Choosing a Concentration Camp
You can also see several concentration camp sites in the region, close to Berlin. The most famous are, however, Auschwitz-Birkenau, Sachsenhausen and Ravensbrück.
Auschwitz-Birkenau: Auschwitz–Birkenau in Poland is the largest concentration camp camp which many individuals associate with the concentration camp. This house is about 4 hours by train from Berlin.
Sachsenhausen: Laying in Oranienburg Germany, Sachsenhausen is among the concentration camp site nearest to Berlin. It can be accessed in one hour and thirty five minutes by train.
Ravensbrück: Ravensbrück, like Bergen-Belsen was also in Germany, although it was a camp mainly for females. The town is approximately at a 90-minute train ride from Berlin.
Planning Your Visit
Transportation
To reach the concentration camp sites, you can use various modes of transportation:
Train: Trains usually take the people the most readily in terms of accessibility. They should be checked and tickets should be bought before hand to avoid inconveniences in traveling.
Guided Tours: For those who are interested in it, you will find many guided tour companies that provide a one day tour to these concentration camp from Berlin. They take you around, give you background information about the place, and give you expert assistance whenever you need one.
Car Rental: For those whom desire flexibility of use, one can hire a car. But note that parking areas may also differ between one location and the other.
Entrance and Opening Hours
It is recommended that the potential visitor should go to the official websites for the concentration camp sites to make sure that they get the latest information on issues like charges for entry and operational time. That is most of the time free of charge, although contributions for the upkeep of the site and for the development of the education programmes are welcome.
During Your Visit
Guided Tours and Audio Guides
When getting there, arrange to get a guided tour or pick an audio guide soon after getting in. They are helpful in gaining information and make sure you are not left out of something important. Join the tour which can be led by some specialists to meet and discuss some critical points with you regarding the history of camp.
Respect and Reflection
Tours of concentration camps are rather serious affairs. This means that it is important to meet the matter with respect, understanding and compassion. Finally, it should be said that Main fiddler’s House is not an opportunity to make a photogenic, but a place for reflection of people who died and for the defense of human rights.
What We Should Think More About and Learn
Using this as a basis, you can use the following questions for self-evaluation following a visit J: What questions would you like to ask after the visit about yourself; What other types of education might you want to seek on the Holocaust and World War II. People all over the world continue to fight for justice and write history through books, documentaries and numerous museums for genocide victims.
Your Visit Matters
Every time a person comes to the concentration camp, it is a contribution to their maintenance and, therefore, to the fact that other generations may learn from their mistakes. One must not forget the victims and the mass killings while also aim to create the society where similar injustices can/will not happen.
Embark on this journey. Make a difference.
