Hotels near POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews

POLIN Museum opened in 2013 on the site of the former Warsaw Ghetto and tells the thousand-year story of Jewish life in Poland. The permanent exhibition spans eight galleries arranged chronologically - from the legendary arrival of Jews in medieval Poland through the golden age of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, to the Holocaust and postwar diaspora. The exhibition design is immersive: you walk through a reconstructed wooden synagogue ceiling from the 17th century, a recreated prewar Jewish street, and multimedia installations with survivor testimonies.

Admission is 30 PLN (about 7 EUR). The building itself, designed by Finnish firm Lahdelma & Mahlamaki, won the European Museum of the Year Award in 2016. Allow 3-4 hours minimum for the permanent exhibition. The museum faces the Monument to the Ghetto Heroes on Zamenhofa Street, erected in 1948 - it was here that Willy Brandt made his famous Kniefall (kneeling gesture) in 1970.

Pro Tip: Thursdays offer free entry to the permanent exhibition - arrive when doors open at 10:00 to avoid the midday rush. Pair your visit with a walk along the Ghetto boundary markers embedded in the surrounding pavements.