The best-known and most visited concentration camp memorial sites in Germany are Dachau (Munich), Sachsenhausen in Oranienburg (Berlin), Buchenwald (Weimar), and Bergen-Belsen (Celle / Hannover / Hamburg).
Concentration camp memorial sites in Germany continue to bear witness to the evil and total banality of the Nazi Regime. Although the National Socialists governed Germany for only 12 years, they probably damaged the reputation of the German people for a thousand years. Although the worst extermination camps were located away from German soil, several major camps were inside Germany not far from Munich and Berlin. Many are now important memorial sights with exhibitions on the history of the Holocaust and the almost unimaginable evil that occurred here.
Visiting Nazi concentration camps is mentally tough and not recommended for children under 12. Admission is always free.
Concentration Camp Memorial Sites in Germany
Germany has many Nazi-era concentration camp sites, holocaust memorials, and related museums to commemorate victims and remind visitors of the evil of the Nazi regime. The four best-known and most visited memorials in Germany are:
- Dachau (near Munich) was the first Nazi concentration camp.
- Sachsenhausen concentration camp was the nearest large camp to Berlin.
- Buchenwald near Weimar was a prime example of exploiting prison labor.
- Bergen-Belsen (where Anne Frank died) was the first major camp liberated by the British.
Although many camps in Germany had gas chambers, these were not extermination camps such as the death camp at Auschwitz II-Birkenau (near Krakow in Poland). Killing on such an industrial scale was even for the Third Reich too much on German soil. Most people died in these Nazi concentration camps inside Germany from overwork, malnutrition, disease, exposure, and hunger — especially in the final months and weeks of the Second World War.
KZ (sometimes KL) is the abbreviation for Konzentrationslager, German for concentration camp, while Gedenkstätte means memorial. For example, Dachau is a large town — for the memorial site, maps and signs will point to KZ Dachau or Gedenkstätte Dachau.
What to Expect When Visiting Concentration Camp Memorial Sites in Germany
Many concentration camps and related sites in Germany were turned into memorial sites for the thousands of people who died and suffered here. In some cases, this was done immediately after the war but often true memorials were only erected years later. West and East Germany also treated the memory of the war, especially taking responsibility for the evils, completely different with exhibitions revised in recent years.
Camps had different purposes and histories, which make it interesting to visit more than one memorial site. However, all sites follow the same basic format.
- Original Camp Terrain: The memorials generally encompass the entire original camp, often with some of the original fencing still in place.
- Main Gate: Visitors generally enter through the original main gates to face the vast, mostly empty space fully exposed to the elements.
- Visitor Center: A visitor center with comprehensive information services, including good audio guides and guided tours, is usually very close to the entrance.
- Museum and Exhibitions: Although attempts were made to destroy the evidence of many camps in the final weeks of the war, many of the original stone and brick buildings survived. These are now mostly used for museums and exhibitions. Explanations and photos can be very graphic.
- Prisoner Barracks: Following liberation, many of the wooden barracks were destroyed to try and prevent the spread of disease. At many camps, barracks were later reconstructed to show the terrible living conditions.
- Crematoriums: A few camps in Germany had gas chambers but sick and Jewish prisoners were mostly transported to extermination camps outside Germany. The SS never ran out of ideas for killing prisoners making crematoria essential. At German camps, many people, especially Soviet prisoners of war, were also mass murdered and not only worked to death.
- Memorials: Many special memorials were erected after the war for individuals, groups, and nations who died or suffered here. These are often deep inside the campsite.
- Annexes: Many camps had subcamps or special sections for specific groups of prisoners or used after the end of the Second World War.
How to Visit Concentration Camp Memorial Sites in Germany
It is mentally and psychologically very difficult to visit German concentration camps and memorials. It is “easy”, only in terms of the availability of public transportation or guided tours, to visit Dachau from Munich or Sachsenhausen from Berlin. Similarly, Dachau, Sachsenhausen, and Buchenwald concentration camps are the “best” to visit in terms of the comprehensive permanent exhibitions and detailed information on this very dark part of German history.
Guided tours are frequent to Dachau from Munich and Sachsenhausen in Oranienburg from Berlin. When booking, keep in mind that this is not a fun trip — private tours or very small groups are sensible if the budget allows. It is hard to know in advance how anyone would react to visiting these sights of mass persecution for the first time.
Tours to the camps are often around two to three hours excluding transportation time. For more thorough visits, expect to stay at least half a day. Some longer tours also add additional sights in the nearby cities.
I personally prefer to visit memorial sites on my own using public transportation. Audio guides and guided tours are available from the information centers. Further information boards in the museums and outdoor areas are usually very detailed and mostly in at least German and English. Maps are often available for free online or for a small fee from the information centers at memorial sites.
Practical Tips When Visiting Memorial Sites
The former German Nazi concentration campsites are very large requiring a lot of walking. Most of the grounds are fully exposed to the elements: in summer, it can be very hot, and in winter very cold. (To confirm the micromanagement of evil by the National Socialist regime, Buchenwald, for example, was intentionally built on a hill’s more exposed north slope to ensure the roll-call grounds were several degrees colder in winter.)
Although it is important to learn the history of the Holocaust, concentration camp complexes are certainly not suitable for family visits. Although admission is not banned for children, it is not recommended for under 12-year-olds. It is also not very suitable to visit with toddlers.
When visiting concentration camp memorials, dress and behave appropriately. Refrain from eating or making noise. Animals other than guide and assistance dogs are usually banned from the sites.
Admission to any concentration camp memorial site in Germany is always free but donations to the various charities and foundations are always welcome. Some memorial sites, such as the House of the Wannsee Conference and sometimes temporary exhibitions at Buchenwald require prior registration.
Most memorial sites are open daily. While the outdoor areas of the concentration camp complexes are usually open, related memorial museums and indoor exhibitions are often closed on Mondays. Some sites are closed on Christmas, New Year, and Yom Kippur but open on most other holidays.
The German penal code prohibits publicly denying the Holocaust and disseminating Nazi propaganda, both off- and online. This is strictly and actively implemented.
Visit the Dachau Concentration Camp Memorial near Munich
Dachau was the first Nazi concentration camp and served as the model camp for Sachsenhausen and others. It is in the relatively upmarket commuter town Dachau to the northwest of Munich (MĂĽnchen).
From 1933 to the outbreak of World War II, KZ Dachau was mainly used for political prisoners and intended “to restore calm to German society”. In these years, “only” around 500 prisoners died at Dachau.
Between March 22, 1933, and liberation by the US Army on April 29, 1945, well over 200,000 people moved through Dachau (and many more through subsidiary camps) with 32,000 recorded deaths. A third of all deaths recorded at Dachau were due to typhoid in the five months preceding liberation.
The total number of deaths at Dachau is estimated at 43,000 people. Sick and Jewish prisoners were generally shipped off to die or be killed elsewhere and are not included in that estimate.
At the main entrance to Dachau concentration camp is the original “Arbeit Macht Frei” sign, which can be translated as “work sets you free” or very literally “work makes free”. Prior to the Second World War, prisoners were often released from Dachau but never due to hard work.
The Dachau Concentration Camp Memorial (KZ-Gedenkstätte Dachau) is therefore one of the most interesting to visit. It covers the full spectrum from initial political prison, torture, and revenge centers against political and personal opponents to the mass murder of Soviet soldiers and working inmates to death.
The large and comprehensive exhibitions are inside the original administrative buildings, including the torture chamber and special cells. Two reconstructed barracks illustrate how sleeping spaces were drastically reduced as prison numbers swelled during the Second World War.
At the far end of the camp are Jewish, Catholic, Protestant, and Russian Orthodox chapels and memorials. Nearby are two original crematoriums and the gas chamber, which was not officially used at Dachau.
After the war, part of the camp was used, of course in totally different conditions, by the US military and German refugees until 1960.
Getting to Dachau Concentration Camp is easy on public transportation from downtown München or Munich Airport (MUC) — frequent trains followed by a short bus ride (or a 20-minute walk along a special path of Remembrance). If traveling from Munich, visiting Dachau is a half-day excursion – expect to spend two to three hours at the camp plus around an hour for transportation each way.
The Bavarian capital was of major importance in the rise of National Socialism but often succeeds better than modern Berlin in hiding these links. Many guided tours visit Third Reich sites in Munich — some combine the tour with a visit to Dachau.
Visit the Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp in Oranienburg near Berlin
KZ Sachsenhausen in the small town of Oranienburg was the closest major former Nazi concentration camp to Berlin. In recent years , this memorial site became a popular day-trip destination from the German capital by train or on organized guided tours.
As at Dachau, KZ Sachsenhausen was originally used for political prisoners and opponents of the Nazi regime. Located only 30 km from Berlin, many prominent people were held here – often for short periods before being sent elsewhere.
Konzentrationslager Sachsenhausen was the first major concentration camp purposely designed by an SS architect. It was to be a model for future camps and served as a training center for guards.
KZ Sachsenhausen was used by the Nazis from 1936 to 1945. During the war, Sachsenhausen functioned mostly as a forced labor camp with work ranging from brick making to aircraft construction and falsifying foreign currency.
During this period, an estimated 200,000 people were interned here but only 140,000 were documented. An estimated 30,000 people died here, including between 13,000 and 18,000 Soviet prisoners of war.
Although Sachsenhausen had gas chambers built to test new techniques, Soviet POWs were mostly shot in the neck, while Jewish prisoners were mostly transported to extermination camps in Eastern Europe, especially Auschwitz, and are thus not included in the death statistics.
From 1945 to 1950, part of the camp was used as a prison by the Soviet military. During this period, around 60,000 people were imprisoned here, of which 12,000 died. This history was kept secret after the East German regime changed Sachsenhausen into a memorial site in 1961. The mass graves from this period were only discovered in the 1990s and were mostly children, youths, women, and old men.
Oranienburg is easily reached on regional trains from Berlin in 30 to 45 minutes. The memorial is a short bus ride or a 20-minute walk from the train station. (A Berlin ABC ticket covers both train and bus rides.)
Berlin public transportation ticket prices in 2025: €3.80 for AB and €4.70 for ABC tickets.
→ See Visit Sachsenhausen in Oranienburg from Berlin for more information and transportation options.
Gedenkstätte Buchenwald near Weimar
Buchenwald near Weimar was one of the largest concentration camps inside Germany. Originally intended to incarcerate political opponents of the Nazi regime, especially communists and “sexual deviants”, the SS quickly realized the commercial potential of free labor.
KL Buchenwald with its multiple annexed subcamps was run as a work camp with strong commercial purposes. Although the majority of prisoners were treated as easily replaceable unskilled labor, more efforts were made here than in other camps to keep more skilled labor productive. Armaments Minister Albrecht Speer congratulated the camp management on the early completion of a rocket factory “that knows no comparison in Europe”.
Between 1937 and 1945, around 280,000 people were incarcerated here of which at least 56,000 died at Buchenwald. Prisoners unable to continue working were generally quickly sent to die “off books” at other camps, including Auschwitz and Bergen-Belsen. (When used as a prison camp by the Soviets from 1945 to 1950, the death rate was even higher with a quarter of over 28,000 prisoners dying.)
Buchenwald and its subcamps are very interesting to visit. The large permanent exhibition provides a wealth of information and detailed descriptions of the functioning of the camp, perverse medical experiments, and such banalities as prisoners producing copies of the Schiller House museum furniture.
Buchenwald was the only concentration camp where the motto “Jedem das Seine” was used at the main camp entrance gate. It can be translated as “to each his own” or “to each what he deserves” and was purposely placed so prisoners could read this message from the main roll call square.
Buchenwald is one of the very few concentration camps that were actually bombed by the Allies during the war. The main purpose was to disrupt the armament factories.
Following liberation, General Patton famously had American soldiers force-marched a thousand citizens from bourgeois Weimar to Buchenwald to witness the evidence of Nazi atrocities. General Dwight Eisenhower also ensured that the American press and senior politicians visited the camp.
Gedenkstätte Buchenwald is only 10 km from Weimar. It may be reached roughly hourly by bus 6 from Weimar in around 20 minutes.
Entry to Buchenwald is free but sometimes advanced registration is required for important temporary exhibitions.
Bergen-Belse​n Where Anne Frank Died
Bergen-Belsen is far more rural than the other three major concentration camps and although public transportation is possible, it is best visited using a private car or organized tour.
Bergen-Belsen is probably now most famous for being the camp where Anne Frank died. It was the first major concentration camp liberated by the British in the final weeks of the Second World War. On April 15, 1945, the Allied troops found thousands of unburied bodies and emaciated prisoners and brought the absolute horrors of Nazi Germany to the attention of the world, which for too long claimed not to know.
Bergen-Belsen was originally a prisoner-of-war camp operated by the German army. At least 20,000 POWs died here — the majority from the Soviet Union.
From 1943 until liberation in 1945, the SS operated a further concentration camp here where at least 52,000 civilians died. Bergen-Belsen had no gas chambers but many prisoners were sent to extermination camps.
Until 1950, up to 12,000 people were housed nearby as the largest Jewish displaced persons camp in Germany.
Although the British already ordered a memorial site to be created here in 1945, most of the structures were burned down shortly after liberation to prevent the spread of disease. The forest is reclaiming some of the terrain and at times the site appears surreally serene and peaceful.
Probably the most lasting impression from visiting Bergen-Belsen is seeing the mass graves and markers listing the huge loss of lives in the final months and weeks of the Second World War — 1,200 in January; 6,400 in February; 18,000 in March, and 10,000 in the first two weeks of April 1945. Another 14,000 could not be saved and died in the three months after liberation.
Gedenkstätte Bergen-Belsen is near the pretty town of Celle, which is famous for its beautiful half-timbered buildings, not far from Hannover and Hamburg. Although it is possible to reach the memorial site by bus from Celle via Bergen, the schedule is limited. Private transportation or a group tour is more sensible. When driving from Hamburg or northern Germany, use the Soltau-Süd exit from the Autobahn A7, and from Hanover use the Mellendorf exit or travel via Celle.
Other Concentration Camps and Holocaust Museums
The most notorious Nazi-era concentration camp was certainly the extermination camp of Auschwitz II-Birkenau where well over a million people died. It is located near Krakow in Poland.
Many further smaller camps and memorial sites are in Germany as well as important memorials and museums. The Holocaust memorial in Berlin erected to commemorate the murdered Jews of Europe is in the heart of the German capital near the Brandenburg Gate. Further memorials for victims of the Holocaust commemorate the Roma of Europe and homosexuals — two groups that continued to suffer from discrimination and persecution well after the end of the Second World War.
The Liebeskind-designed Jewish Museum in Berlin covers Jewish history and Jewish life with special attention to the memory of the Holocaust. The House of the Wannsee Conference, where the final solution was accepted to try and destroy both the Jewish people and Jewish culture from Europe, is open to visitors but prior registration is essential.
The most comprehensive museums and exhibitions of the history of the Holocaust and on Holocaust survivors are not in Germany or Europe but rather the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington DC, the Holocaust Museum LA in California, and of course the Yad Vashem in Jerusalem.
