WW2 History Tours & History Trips to Berlin

Topography of Terror

This outdoor museum, situated on the site of the SS and Gestapo headquarters during the Nazi régime of 1933 to 1945, may be quite a chilling visit for your students. The site provides a detailed commentary of the atrocities that occurred there, as well as information on the German and, in particular, the Berlin resistance which is often overlooked.

Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe
(Holocaust Memorial)

The 2,711 concrete “stelae” exude a disquieting atmosphere as a memorial to the Jewish victims of the Holocaust. The underground information centre at the memorial displays the names of all known Jewish Holocaust victims and also offers true stories which allow your students to gain an insight into the lives of those who opposed the Nazi régime during its operation.

House of the Wannsee Conference

This memorial houses a permanent exhibition of the Wannsee Conference and the planned deportation and extermination of the Jews of Europe. On 20th January 1942, a meeting took place in the Wannsee Villa to plan the implementation of ‘The Final Solution’. This meeting has become known as the ‘Wannsee Conference’. The museum gives an insight not only into Nazi politics and methods, ghettos, death camps and life in concentration camps, but it also demonstrates the bureaucracy involved in planning the deaths of thousands of European Jews.

Sachsenhausen

Located 35km to the north of Berlin in Oranienburg, the entrance gate to Sachsenhausen with the infamous words ‘Arbeit macht frei’ greeted prisoners from 1936 to 1945. During this time over 200,000 people were imprisoned there. Built by prisoners for prisoners, this concentration camp was one of the most notorious death camps of the Nazi régime. The installations at the camp are preserved in their original state. In 1961 Sachsenhausen was turned into a National memorial.

The Jewish Museum

After its closure in 1938 by the Nazi regime, the Jewish Museum was opened once again as a separate department of the Berlin Museum in 1978, and as an independent institution in 2001. Through art, pictures, texts, media terminals and interactive elements, students are taken on a journey through two-millennia of German and Jewish history.

Checkpoint Charlie

The Haus am Checkpoint Charlie museum is located a few metres from where the legendary checkpoint stood. The exhibitions cover the history of the Berlin Wall and demonstrate how people were smuggled across the border. Visitors can also watch a film about the Cold War era and the Third Reich.

Hohenschönhausen Memorial (Stasi Prison)

In the former GDR, this camp stood as the central remand prison for the Ministry of State Security. With the cold war ongoing and with mistrust and suspicion all around, it is estimated that between 10,000 and 20,000 people went through the camp, imprisoned due to their political or non-conformist beliefs. There was a high death rate amongst the inmates due to the unhygienic conditions and the malnutrition that characterised life in the camp. Former political prisoners now show visitors around, explaining the history of the prison and describing life there as well as the physical and mental torture that was once administered.

Story of Berlin Museum

This museum’s unusual multimedia format allows visitors to see, hear and smell 800 years of Berlin’s history. It provides a great overview of how Berlin has developed as a city through the use of a number of interactive displays that bring Berlin’s story to life. Entry to the museum also includes a guided tour of a nuclear bunker, situated underneath the museum.

The Reichstag

The Reichstag is the seat of the German Parliament and is one of Germany’s most iconic landmarks. A target during the battle of Berlin, and the scene of one of the iconic images of WWII (The red Soviet Flag being raised over a war torn Berlin), it was also selected as the site for the German reunification ceremonies.

Day 1

• AM – Early morning departure by coach for Berlin
• Arrive in time for an evening meal at your accommodation centre

Day 2

• Morning guided walking tour of Berlin
• Afternoon visits to the Resistance Museum and the Topography of Terror
• Evening meal before departing for the Reichstag

Day 3

• Morning visit to the House of the Wannsee Conference
• Afternoon visit to Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp. Return to your accommodation centre for your evening meal
• Evening free for ten-pin bowling or free time to study

Day 4

• Morning visit to the Jewish Museum, followed by a visit to the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe
• Afternoon visit to the Checkpoint Charlie Museum
• Evening meal in central Berlin at the Hard Rock Café or similar

Day 5

• Free time in Berlin using public transport for last minute shopping and additional sightseeing
• Depart mid-afternoon for overnight coach journey to the UK

Day 6

• Arrive at your school