Overview
This interesting and moving tour provides new insight into the plight of the Polish Jews during WWII
Warsaw was once home to the 2nd largest Jewish community in the world (after New York). Today, the city is the center of the movement within Poland to re-establish Jewish communities and revitalize Jewish life.
Guided by an expert in Polish and Jewish history, our tour begins at the Jewish Historical Institute, a center for the study of the culture and history of Polish Jews. Right next door is the site of the former Great Synagogue, one of the grandest buildings constructed in Poland in the 19th century. Sadly, it was destroyed in 1943. We will see the Ester Rahel Kaminska State Jewish Theatre, named after ‘the mother of Yiddish theatre.’
The Jewish Cemetery of Warsaw has become quite forested since WWII and is filled with monuments and graves of notable politicians, spiritual leaders, inventors and economists. At the Monument to the Ghetto Heroes, we remember the Warsaw ghetto uprising. Pieces of the former ghetto walls serve as haunting memorials. At the Umschlagplatz Memorial we mourn the loss of 300,000 Warsaw Jews who were deported en masse to Treblinka extermination camp.
We will visit the neo-Romanesque Nozyk Synagogue, the only surviving synagogue from the pre-war period. It houses the offices of ‘Midrasz’, the Jewish monthly newspaper as well as the Head Rabbi of Warsaw and Poland.
Along the route we will visit several other sites including Castle Square, St. John’s Cathedral, the Old Town Market Square, the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, the Monument to the Warsaw Uprising, the monument to the Victims of Katyn, the Royal Castle and the Grand Theatre.
No visit to the city is complete without a visit to Warsaw’s Museum of the History of Polish Jews POLIN housed in a post-modernist glass building with its multi-media exhibit of Polish Jewish life over the last millennium.
- Admissions, food, and beverages are not included in the price of this tour.
- Entrance fees to museums and synagogue tours must be paid in local currency in cash at the time of the visit. A few locations accept credit/debit cards.
There are often slightly reduced fees for children, students and those over age 60.
Approximate entrance fees:Jewish Historical Institute - 12 Polish Zloty (approximately 2.80 Euros)
Nozyk Synagogue - 10 Polish Zloty (approx 2.5 Euros)
POLIN - 25 Polish Zloty (approx 5.90 Euros). On Thursdays, entrance is free.
The Praga Museum of Warsaw (on Tuesdays when POLIN is closed) 10 Polish Zloty (approx. 2.50 Euros)
- This tour can accommodate a maximum of 7 guests.
- This tour can accommodate those with walkers and collapsible wheelchairs provided the guest can transfer in and out of the vehicle with assistance. There are ramps at most stops. Please indicate if anyone in your party has limited mobility during the checkout process.
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YOU MUST BRING YOUR PASSPORT IN ORDER TO VISIT THE SYNAGOGUE.- Please note: on Tuesdays, as the POLIN museum is closed, we will visit the Praga Museum instead, where you can learn about the interconnected Polish-Jewish history and listen to interviews with the witnesses of the Nazi occupation in Warsaw.
- You may not have time to see everything mentioned in the tour description. As this is a private tour, it is entirely customizable. Contact ShoreTrips for more information.
- If you would like to include some time for shopping, please inform your guide at the beginning of the tour.
Days offered: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Sunday
Departures:- 09:00 AM, duration: 6 hours
