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Visiting Treblinka, you would never know it was the second-deadliest of all Nazi extermination camps, just behind Auschwitz. Though it claimed almost as many lives, nothing remains of the original site which largely remains hidden in the woods. Though there’s less to “see” here, it still has a very big story to tell.

This post gives you all the information you need for adding a trip to Treblinka into your Poland itinerary. Safe travels!

Part of the model inside the museum

What is Treblinka?

Along with Auschwitz-Birkenau, Belzec, Chełmno, Majdanek, and Sobibór, Treblinka was one of the six major Nazi death camps during the Holocaust. It was a killing center established specifically for the extermination of Polish Jews as part of Operation Reinhard and the Nazi’s “Final Solution to the Jewish Question.”

The Nazi SS, with the help of authorities from the General Government in Poland, opened Treblinka as a forced labor camp in November 1941. Just seven months later, they expanded the camp to add a killing center (referred to as Treblinka II), hidden in the woods about a mile away.

The majority of staff hired to work the camp came from the T4 euthanasia program. Treblinka also utilized Sonderkommandos–specially chosen Jewish prisoners forced to work in the killing center, removing bodies from the gas chambers and either burying or burning them. Because of how much they knew, Sonderkommandos were regularly murdered anyway and replaced with new arrivals.

One of the many memorial blocks around the museum area

Treblinka as a killing center

Treblinka II operated from July 1942 until September 1943. The forced labor camp, Treblinka I, continued operating until July 1944. In that time, the SS murdered somewhere between 700,000 and 800,000 Jews, Roma, and Soviet POWs in the camp’s gas chambers or by shooting or other methods. (Exact numbers are impossible but extensive research puts the victim count somewhere around there.) After Auschwitz, Treblinka was the deadliest extermination camp.

The first transport of Jews to Treblinka II arrived on July 23, 1942 from the Warsaw ghetto. All following transports came mostly from occupied Poland, but also from Austria, Czechoslovakia, France, Germany, Greece, Yugoslavia, and the Soviet Union.

The preferred method of extermination involved gas chambers and carbon monoxide gas from engine exhaust. (Similar to the methods used at Belzec and Sobibór.) Lacking crematoria, the bodies were then burned on specially constructed grates out in the open.

Some historical information

Treblinka Uprising

Early in 1943, Treblinka’s prisoners formed a resistance group. On August 2, fearing the camp would soon be liquidated and knowing they were going to die either way, they acted. They stole weapons from the armory, set buildings on fire, and blew up a petrol tank.

Hundreds of them stormed the main camp gate to try to escape. Many were killed instantly by machine-gun fire but around 300 of them managed to escape. Of those who escaped, most were quickly tracked down and killed. Of the ones who were able to escape, only about 100 survived the war.

Entering the memorial space

Camp liquidation

The prisoner uprising was covered up by the camp’s authorities and prisoner transports began to die down. The last transport arrived from nearby Białystok on August 23, 1943. From then until November 17, the camp was liquidated—its buildings were dismantled and the remaining prisoners were killed (shot with arrows to the back of the head).

Like what happened at Belzec and Sobibor, the SS plowed over the former killing center and burial ground at Treblinka and planted flowers to disguise the fact that anything evil had occurred here. Using bricks from the demolished gas chambers, they rebuilt a house on the property and installed a Ukrainian family there to pretend to be farmers. The Soviet Red Army took over the site at the end of July 1944.  

Some sad history from this area

Visiting Treblinka today

Like Belzec and Sobibór, no original structures from the Treblinka extermination camp still exist today. Following the end of the war, the Soviet government made no attempt to preserve the site at Treblinka. The area was abandoned, eventually fenced off, and even further landscaped over.

In the late 1950s, nearly 200 farmers from nearby villages. purchased the site. Eventually, the giant monument you can see today was inaugurated here on April 21, 1958, at the former location of the gas chambers.

Visiting Treblinka today, you can visit a small museum on the camp’s history and see several monuments and memorial areas at the former location of Treblinka II (the killing center in the woods).

Map of the current site

Why visit Treblinka?

Unlike some former camps like Auschwitz and Dachau, there aren’t any original camp structures to see here. Even so, one reason everyone should visit is simply to bear witness. The Nazi regime tried really hard to rid the world of these people and then did everything it could to cover up its crimes. These victims and what happened here could easily have vanished from history.

I feel we owe it to Treblinka’s victims to learn about their experiences, what they endured here, and how hard they fought to resist. And, to stick it to those who thought they could get away with it. There will never be a befitting punishment for these heinous crimes, but it’s important to say We see you and We know what you did. If for no other reason, visit Treblinka so that what happened here won’t be forgotten.

Info panel on some of the excavations

Where is Treblinka extermination camp?

Treblinka extermination camp museum is located in northeastern Poland, about halfway between Warsaw and Białystok.

How to get to Treblinka

This historical site is pretty remote, so driving to Treblinka is going to be the easiest and most efficient way to get here. (Rent a car here if you need one.) The Treblinka museum is a:

  • 1 hour 20-minute drive from Warsaw
  • 1 hour 20-minute drive from Białystok
  • 2.5-hour drive from Lublin (and the Majdanek concentration camp)

GPS address: Muzeum Treblinka, 08-330 Kosów Lacki, Wólka Okrąglik 115, Poland

Hidden in the woods

Once here, you’ll turn off the main road onto a side road where there’s a white sign that says Muzeum Treblinka. Continue down this road through the trees and follow the blue arrow signs until you reach the parking lot. You can pay for parking at the small building on the right and enter the museum grounds from here.

Visiting Treblinka by tour

Given its proximity to Warsaw, you also have the option of visiting Treblinka on an organized day tour. Here are a few options to consider:

The replica gate into the memorial area

What you can see at Treblinka

Visiting Treblinka, you’ll be able to visit the small museum and several memorial areas, and explore some of the original camp locations (though no original buildings remain).

Treblinka Museum

The small museum at Treblinka has a permanent exhibition that presents the history of both of Treblinka’s two parts: the labor camp and the killing center. Because the camp was completely destroyed and covered up by the fleeing SS, much of the exhibit focuses on artifacts recovered from the archaeological research done here. It also includes a model of how the original camp was laid out.  

Some of the exhibits are shown in both Polish and English, but some are only in Polish. (Have a translator app handy and this won’t be a problem.)

The Treblinka Museum
Some artifacts outside the museum

Treblinka memorials

Walking from the museum farther into the woods, you’ll pass several memorial structures like the two large blocks signifying the gate into the camp (shown above), the concrete blocks that represent the railway, and the 11 stones that feature the names of the countries from which Jews arrived here. Throughout the area, you’ll find several information signs and other memorial markers that denote the location of different areas of the camp.

Further in, you’ll come to the large stone monument designed by Franciszek Duszeńko and erected here in 1964. (He also designed the Monument to the Defenders of the Coast on the Westerplatte in Gdansk.) Surrounding it, 17,000 stones symbolize Jewish headstones.

The large Treblinka monument

Other memorial spaces

Continuing on, you can also visit the former locations of such sites as: the former camp grounds, the gravel pit where forced laborers worked, a symbolic cremation site, the outlines of the prisoner barracks in the labor camp, and more. You’ll find more informational signs and panels spread around these forested areas and even more monuments and memorials. Refer to the map here to see how they’re all spatially connected.

Farther up the main road from the Treblinka museum area (about 4 minutes by car), you’ll be able to see the Commemoration of the Former Treblinka Railroad Station. Look on the map for “Upamiętnienie dawnej stacji kolejowej w Treblince” (just 3.8km away. Completed in 2020, there’s now a paved parking area for visitors and a few information boards.

The railroad memorial

What you need to know for visiting Treblinka

Here are a few important things you need to know for visiting Treblinka:

Prepare for the elements

After visiting the museum, you’ll spend most of your time at Treblinka outside. Definitely take the day’s weather into consideration when heading out in the morning. In rainy weather, wear a rain jacket and rain pants, bring an umbrella, and maybe have a towel handy in the car. If you use them, walking poles would definitely help here.

In the summer, wear a sun hat and sunscreen, bring a bottle of water, and maybe consider bringing a small portable fan if it’s really hot. In the winter, be sure to dress extra warm and prepare for trudging through snow.

Likewise, you’ll need to wear some outdoor-appropriate shoes. You’ll be walking a lot here on a variety of surfaces: gravel, uneven stones, grass, mud, dirt, and more. Weather depending, those surfaces could also be wet, snowy, and slippery.

Informative signs around the monument space

Accessibility

The Treblinka Museum is wheelchair accessible. The memorial spaces are paved with rough stones mixed in with dirt. Take a look at the photos in this post so you can judge if the outdoor spaces are a fit for you.

A few additional things to know:

  • Visitors under the age of 14 are not recommended
  • Guided tours are available (in English) if coordinated in advance. See this page for details and contact info.
Rough ground all around

How to act at Treblinka

Hopefully you won’t see any inappropriate behavior while visiting Treblinka like I’ve seen at many camps and historical sites. Even so, here are a few simple rules to follow yourself while here:

  • Don’t take selfies at Treblinka – This really should go without saying, but taking selfies at former extermination camps is extremely disrespectful. Focus on the subject matter, not yourself.
  • Don’t take photos of yourself at all – For whatever reason, I always see people posing for photos in front of things like camp gates and memorials. This is seriously clueless and distasteful; just don’t do it.
  • Dress respectfully – Keep in mind that this is a memorial, a graveyard, a place of mourning and remembrance, and dress accordingly.
  • Act respectfully – Maintain silence as much as possible, avoid loud talking, laughing, goofing off, making phone calls, eating and drinking, etc.
Some of the museum information

Visiting Treblinka: Essential information

Here’s all the necessary visitor information you need to plan your trip to Treblinka (accurate as of March 2025):

  • Website: muzeumtreblinka.eu
  • Admission and parking: 7PLN (about $1.75US) but free on Mondays
  • Hours: The Treblinka museum is open daily from 9am – 6:30pm
    Closed: January 1, Easter, and December 25

Suggested books for visiting Treblinka

Here are a few great books you can read to prepare for visiting Treblinka:

  • Night by Elie Wiesel (1960) – The most essential book to read before visiting any of Poland’s death camps. Though it takes place at Auschwitz and Buchenwald and not Treblinka, it presents an unforgettable account of one man’s experiences here. A must-read. Get your copy here.
  • Belzec, Sobibór, and Treblinka: The Operation Reinhard Death Camps by Yitzhak Arad (2018) – All about the experiences of those deported to these three camps. Get your copy here.
  • Spaces of Treblinka: Retracing a Death Camp by Jacob Flaws (2024) – Includes testimonies and recollections from Jewish, German, and Polish witnesses to create a holistic representation of Treblinka during its operation. Get your copy here. (Written by my friend and former professor.)
Names of the countries where the prisoners came from

Suggested movies and TV shows for visiting Treblinka

Here are a few great movies you can watch to prepare for visiting Treblinka:

  • Schindler’s List (1993) – Best Picture Oscar winner directed by Steven Spielberg. It takes place at Płaszów concentration camp rather than Treblinka but it’s one of the greatest movies ever made about the Holocaust and what the camp system was like. Currently available on Netflix and Amazon Prime.
  • Hitler and the Nazis: Evil on Trial (2024)  – Netflix docuseries on Nazi war crimes, extermination camps, and the Nuremberg Trials.
  • The Grey Zone (2001) – Incredible film highlighting the role of the Sonderkommandos (the Jewish prisoners forced to assist in the mass exterminations of other Jews). Currently available on Amazon Prime and free on the Tubi app.
  • The Pianist (2002) – Best Picture Oscar winner based on the true story of Wladyslaw Szpilman, a Polish Jew who spent the war in hiding in occupied Warsaw. It’s one of the best ever made. Currently available on Amazon Prime and free on the Tubi app.
Historical information near the museum

Where to stay in Warsaw

Warsaw is the closest major city to the Treblinka Museum and Memorial which is also where I stayed before my visit. Here are a few suggestions on where to begin your hotel search:

  • Royal Tulip Apartments – This is where I stayed and it was fantastic. Comfortable modern rooms, balcony with a view, and a perfect location for exploring Warsaw. Check it out here.
  • Puro Warszawa Centrum – Ultra modern rooms, awesome reviews, restaurant on site with a terrace, and close to many of the most popular museums and attractions. Check it out here.
  • Hotel Indigo Warsaw Nowy Świat by IHG – Swanky, art-forward hotel near the Old Town with some really cool architecture and great reviews. Check it out here.

There are plenty more Warsaw hotels to choose from though; see all Warsaw hotel options here.

My balcony at the Royal Tulip Hotel

More info for your visit to Poland

Like this post? Have questions about visiting Treblinka? Let me know in the comments below. Thanks for reading.

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