Auschwitz-Birkenau is a memorial and a cemetery, not an attraction, and the Museum asks visitors to treat it as one. What follows is practical information about access, because getting it wrong means being turned away at a place you may have travelled a long way to reach.
Entry is free. A booked card is not optional.
Every visitor must hold a personalised entry card booked in advance and carry photo ID matching it. Cards are not sold at the entrance.
Since 1 March 2026 all entry cards are issued online only. The Museum ended on-site issuing after tour operators’ last-minute schedule changes pushed visitors into queueing at the ticket window at three and four in the morning, producing crowding that needed police intervention. Any guide describing an on-site window, or telling you to arrive early and queue, is describing something that no longer exists.
The free card does not mean free roaming
Unguided individual entry is only permitted from a set hour late in the day, and the hour moves with the season: from 13:00 in December, 14:00 in January and November, 15:00 in February, 16:00 in March and October, and 17:00 from April to September. Before those hours, entry is with an educator only.
Free cards can be booked up to seven days ahead. Educator-guided cards and group reservations open three months ahead. Individual cards are non-changeable and non-refundable.
Guided study cards, 2026 rates
- General tour, 2.5 or 3.5 hours — 140 PLN in Polish, 150 PLN in another language.
- Study tour, 6 hours — 180 PLN Polish, 190 PLN other languages.
- Online tour, 2.5 hours — 60 PLN.
Buy only from the Museum
The Museum’s wording is unambiguous: visit.auschwitz.org is the only official source of entry cards, and it cooperates with no outside companies. It takes no responsibility for bookings made through third parties. Sites reselling the free card at a markup are charging you for something the Museum gives away.
We have deliberately placed no booking link of any kind on this page.
Rules of the visit
- The Museum states that visits by children under 14 are not recommended.
- Bags must not exceed 35 × 25 × 15 cm. Larger items stay in your vehicle or a paid locker.
- Photography for personal use is allowed without flash or tripod, but is prohibited in Block 4 and in the basement of Block 11.
- Visitors are asked to behave with due solemnity and respect, and to dress appropriately.
Open daily except 1 January, 25 December and Easter Sunday. Last entry ranges from 14:00 in December to 19:00 in high summer; visitors may remain 90 minutes after final entry. Wheelchairs can be borrowed free of charge, though the historic ground is uneven.
Source: auschwitz.org, checked 26 August 2026.