Following the traces of the Holocaust:
Berlin – Warsaw – Auschwitz-Birkenau – Krakow

Morning: Arrival and transfer to the accommodation. Lunch.
Afternoon: Berlin’s historic highlights – Alexanderplatz, the Nikolausviertel, the Protestant Cathedral, the statue of Frederick the Great, Humboldt University, the famous Unter den Linden boulevard, and the Brandenburg Gate. The programme also includes a visit to the Reichstag, with access to its glass dome and rooftop terrace overlooking the city. Throughout the day, the city’s historical development is traced from its origins as a medieval settlement, through its rise as the capital of Prussia, to its role as the political centre of the Third Reich.
Evening: Dinner.

Morning: Berlin - Capital of the Third Reich:  the history of ultra-nationalist socialism and the destruction of the city during the Second World War. The “Topography of Terror” exhibition: the Gestapo headquarters, the prison, the SS headquarters and the counter-intelligence network – the most criminal institutions of the era. An overview of the structure of fascist Germany’s apparatus of terror and the work of the war’s administrative criminals.
Visit to the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe and the underground exhibition.
Afternoon: The Berlin Wall – a divided city and a divided Europe: for almost three decades, Berlin stood as the defining symbol of the Cold War and the division of post-war Europe. The history and significance of the Wall, the Iron Curtain, and everyday life in a divided city will be discussed at the former border crossing between East and West Germany, Checkpoint Charlie, and during the tour of the Wall. The day concludes with a visit to the Berlin Wall Memorial on Bernauer Strasse.
Evening: Dinner.

Morning: Berlin – a cultural metropolis: An exploration of Berlin as a European centre of culture, with its rich heritage, architectural landmarks, and diverse cultural institutions. The cultural programme may include a visit to the Museum Island, home to world-renowned collections such as the Pergamon Museum and masterpieces of European art; the Babelsberg Film Studio; or an excursion to Potsdam, including Sanssouci Palace and its historic gardens.
The following options are also recommended, as they relate more directly to the central themes of the study tour:

• The Jewish Museum Berlin – housed in the original building designed by architect Daniel Libeskind, featuring an exhibition offering an insight into the millennial history of the Jews in Germany and their cultural heritage.
• The Scheunenviertel – Berlin’s former Jewish quarter, now a trendy neighbourhood of galleries and artists. The golden domes of the New Synagogue, rebuilt after the terror of Kristallnacht, dominate the area.
• The Stasi Museum – the former headquarters of the East German (GDR) secret police reveals how this institution of terror and espionage operated.
• The exhibition at the Site of Memory at the House of the Wannsee Conference (Haus der Wannseekonferenz) illustrating the consequences of the “Final Solution”- the decisions taken by Hitler’s regime to exterminate European Jews, and the involvement of all German institutions in this process.
  Evening: Dinner.

Morning: Transfer by coach or train to Warsaw. Arrival and check-in at the accommodation. Lunch.
Afternoon: Warsaw – like a phoenix from the ashes: a walking tour of Warsaw’s Old Town, almost entirely destroyed during the Second World War and meticulously reconstructed in the post-war period. The route includes Castle Square with King Sigismund’s Column, St John’s Cathedral, the Market Square, and the historic Barbican, offering insight into the city’s destruction, survival, and reconstruction.
Evening: Dinner.

Morning: The Warsaw Ghetto and the Ghetto Uprising: Before the Second World War, Warsaw was home to one of Europe’s largest Jewish communities. During the German occupation, the Warsaw Ghetto was established, confining approximately 450,000 Jews under brutal conditions, with the majority later deported to Treblinka and murdered. The history of the ghetto and the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising of April 1943 are explored during a walking tour along the Memorial Route of Jewish Martyrdom and Struggle, concluding with a visit to the Jewish Cemetery, the mass graves of the ghetto’s victims, and the monument commemorating Janusz Korczak and the children who perished in the Holocaust.
Afternoon: The Holocaust sought not only to destroy Jewish lives but also to erase the rich cultural heritage of Jewish communities across Eastern Europe. A visit to the Museum of the History of Polish Jews provides an opportunity to explore the centuries-old history, traditions, and cultural contributions of Polish Jews.
Evening: Time at leisure or an optional programme, including a screening of a Holocaust-themed film, such as "The Pianist" by Roman Polański or "Korczak" by Andrzej Wajda, or a meeting with a survivor of the Warsaw Ghetto. Followed by dinner.

Morning: Transfer by train to Kraków. Arrival, check-in at the accommodation, and lunch.
Afternoon: A tour of Kazimierz, Kraków’s historic Jewish quarter, including a visit to the Old Synagogue, a unique example of Gothic and Renaissance architecture, now housing a museum dedicated to Jewish history and culture. The programme continues with the 16th-century Jewish cemetery adjoining the Remuh Synagogue, followed by a visit to the former ghetto area in Podgórze and the exhibition Kraków under Nazi Occupation 1939–1945 at Oskar Schindler’s Factory Museum.
Evening: Dinner at a Jewish restaurant accompanied by a performance of klezmer music.

Morning: Transfer by coach to Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum. The visit to the museum is composed of two parts:
- The exhibition in the blocks at Auschwitz I – Stammlager: the “Death block”, the execution wall, a gas chamber and a crematorium – the only ones of their kind to have been preserved.
- Auschwitz II – Birkenau, the site of the mass extermination of the Jews: prisoners’ barracks, the ruins of the gas chambers and the memorial in honour of the victims. 
Evening: Return to Krakow. Followed by dinner.

Morning: Transfer to the airport and departure from Krakow.