Warsaw Ghetto Tour: Jewish History, Synagogue & POLIN

4.99

(135 reviews)

What’s the experience like?

I’ll admit I felt a bit nervous before our Warsaw Ghetto tour—curious but also unsure what it would feel like to walk those streets. Our guide, Marta, met us outside our hotel (she was early and smiling, which helped). The city felt busy and loud that morning but as soon as we stepped into the old ghetto area, everything seemed quieter. There was this sudden hush in the air—maybe just my own nerves or maybe something about the place itself.

We started at the Nożyk Synagogue—the only one left from before the war. It’s still in use, which surprised me for some reason. The smell inside was a mix of old wood and something sweet, maybe wax? Marta told us how it survived when almost nothing else did. I tried to imagine people gathering there decades ago, just living their lives. Then we walked along these narrow streets where fragments of the ghetto wall are still standing. You can run your hand over the bricks if you want; I did and they felt colder than I expected.

There were stops that hit harder than others. The spot where the bridge once connected the Small and Big Ghettos—Marta showed us an old photo on her phone so we could picture it. She told us about Władysław Szpilman (from “The Pianist”) and pointed out where he hid during those years. At Miła 18, she grew quiet for a moment before telling us what happened there; I caught myself holding my breath. It’s strange how normal traffic sounds drifted in while she spoke—life going on all around.

We finished near the Ghetto Heroes Memorial and POLIN Museum (though we didn’t go inside this time). Marta explained why Willy Brandt knelt here—it meant something big for both Poland and Germany. I didn’t expect to feel so much just standing on a sidewalk with strangers. Even now, days later, I keep thinking about those walls and how easy it is to forget what happened unless someone shows you.