slowder27

I have a plan to visit Krakow next week and I looking for trip to Auschwitz and maybe to Zakopane. I found some company on google search and tripadvisor. Has anyone use www.krakowtrip.co.uk or www.krakowdiscovery.com for a trip?? Mayby some recommendation.

adrienne

For Auschwitz, you must use their guides between April and October. You can get there using public transportation; no need to hire a car service. The Auschwitz web site gives information on getting there by bus.

Zakopane is also very accessible by bus or train. It's 2 hours each way from Krakow. There are taxis at the bus depot and I'm sure at the train station as well.

Andrew

adrienne: <i>For Auschwitz, you must use their guides between April and October.</i>

...UNLESS you arrive at the camp before 10:00am or after 15:00 (3 PM), when you are able to enter without a guide. There were a few buses leaving Krakow early in the morning when I visited in September 2012; I took one of them to get me there before 10 (takes about 90 minutes one way as I recall) and was able to go in alone.

The bus you take from Krakow is to Oświęcim (Polish name for Auschwitz). There is a train, too, but the train station in Oświęcim is not close to the camp, whereas a bus will drop you right outside the camp. To get back to Krakow from the camp, the public buses may not leave from the camp parking lot but right outside it (perhaps across the street from where you were dropped off), only about 1/4 of a mile from the camp entrance.

adrienne

Thanks, Andrew. I did know that you could enter without using a guide but I thought that the OP wanted a guided tour and I was pointing out that even though he/she books one of those tours the Auschwitz guides will be used, not the guides of the tour company.

slowder27

Yes, i know that is possible to visit camps without the guide but i would like to go with the English speaking guide.
I`m not interesting to go with a public transport so why I asked about tour company.

adrienne

I've used Cracow City Tours for the salt mine and a private guide for sightseeing within Krakow and for a day trip outside Krakow.

The Auschwitz guides speak English.

Do you want a driver to get you to Auschwitz and then use the Auschwitz guides? If so, I can recommend someone.

I didn't see a tour from those companies that would get you to Auschwitz in time to use their guides; you will have to use the Auschwitz guides.

kja

I believe you can arrange to get to Auschwitz with a tour from the tourist office in Krakow, and many hotels will make those arrangements, too. Well worth seeing. Plan a quiet evening.

Leely2

We booked while we were in Krakow--I think a day or two ahead of time. The trip is very sobering, don't miss it.

I used Krakow Direct. There are some other recommendations on this thread:

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...-auschwitz.cfm

isabel

I was just there in July. There are tons of tours that pick you up at your hotel and drive you to Auschwitz - then hand you over to the 'official' guides. They can booked at the tourist office, and there were several locations around the main square and main streets where you could book them. My hotel was a small B&B and they booked it for me, I think virtually every hotel in Krakow can do this for you. They can also be booked on-line. I think they are pretty much all the same. The one I took included a 45 minute video which was a very good introduction, plus helped pass the time on the rather boring drive. Booking the day before was fine in July.

slowder27

Thank you for reply. I found someone and booked a private transfer there. I do not want book trip via hotel because I read a lot of bad review a group tour organize from seekrakow.com and discovercracow.com
Anyway, thanks for your help.