Kraków and Auschwitz
Memorable multi-generational trip
In summer 2025 I visited Kraków and Auschwitz-Birkenau with my two teenage daughters, as well as my elderly parents.
As a family, we wanted to visit the concentration camps from a personal Jewish heritage perspective to remember ancestors and reflect on the past.
We were also keen to see the UNESCO city of Kraków and experience local Polish culture and cuisine.
Exploring Kraków
Over our 4 day mini-break we wandered through the Old Town, explored the Jewish quarter Kazimierz, climbed to the top of Sigismund Tower of Wawel Cathedral for stunning views, visited the Schindler Museum, biked along the Vistula river path, ate delicious modern European cuisine in the courtyard of Trattoria La Campana and experienced Michelin cookery at the stylish Farina restaurant.
We stayed at two different hotels - our family wanted a boutique, contemporary bolthole and we found the PURO Kazimierz fitted the brief perfectly.
Meanwhile my parents stayed in the charming Balthazar Design Hotel, centrally located on Grodzka, one of the bustling shopping streets leading to the main square.
Auschwitz-Birkenau experience
We hired private ground transportation to take us on the full day trip to Auschwitz-Birkenau, an hour and a half outside Kraków.
On arrival, we joined a small pre-booked group with an English speaking guide, who took us expertly around both concentration camps and described the WW2 Holocaust atrocities with empathy and dignity.
It was a truly powerful and moving occasion, one that will last in all my family’s memories for a long time.