Kazerne Dossin
Kazerne Dossin
4.5
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Monday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday
9:30 AM - 5:00 PM
Sunday
9:30 AM - 5:00 PM
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Detailed Reviews: Reviews order informed by descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as cleanliness, atmosphere, general tips and location information.
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4.5
527 reviews
Excellent
299
Very good
183
Average
33
Poor
9
Terrible
3
Phil369
Herstal, Belgium138 contributions
Apr 2014 • Family
This is a very meaningful place indeed. Very easy to reach on public transportation (30 minutes by train from Antwerp or Brussels for example). Not far from the very beautiful Market Square (where the infamous flag of the nationalist party NVA is currently flying more than ever). The museum is a must for people of any age (let's say from 15). It tells us about the Holocaust (in a mix of objects on display, efficient videos and pictures. But it is much more than that - it tells you about the importance of Human Rights all over the world in different periods of History - Apartheid and Segregation, Tien An Men Square and so on. You'll need at least four hours to visit the museum (four floors). One of the walls displays pictures of all the Jews who were deported from Mechelen to Auschwitz (the pictures having diferent colours depending on the fate of those involved). Moving beyond words. To make the visit complete, you should absolutely go to the Memorial (just across the street in the Kazerne itself) and have a look at the inner court where everything began or ended. Pedagogically very effective for young and old...
Written June 5, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Colin B
Gold Coast, Australia166 contributions
Sep 2019
Mechelen was the deportion centre for Belgium. A branch rail line was built for the deportees to be taken to concentration camps. The actual building used is opposite the Kazerne Dossin which is a architecturally great museum. This museum is a very solemn monument to the horrors of WWII and the dreadful deportation of Jews, Gypsies and Gays. You can view the actual deportation building and courtyard from a balcony in the museum. The museum shines a light on these atrocities. It is well located a short stroll from the Grote Markt in Mechelen.
Written January 7, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Geoffrey E
St. Catharines, Canada611 contributions
May 2019 • Couples
This is a very expansive site with a very extensive collection. The current temporary exhibit is about the portrayal of the Holocaust in comic strips and how that art form has been able to represent that event.
There are a lot of things to see here - easily a half-day if you’re interested.
There are a lot of things to see here - easily a half-day if you’re interested.
Written May 21, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Nate R
Sycamore, IL534 contributions
May 2018 • Friends
Tribute to the Jews of Belgium who were sent from this old army barracks to various slave camps and for the grand majority, their death. The newer, taller building hosts art shows, but I found the actual museum across the street much more interesting. You have to walk into a more nondescript building and follow the signs. No one else was in it when we entered so it felt like we were intruding...it was hard to read the personal stories and even the letters written right before arrests. Definitely worth the time.
Written June 1, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Jeffrey Z
The Hague, The Netherlands259 contributions
Apr 2018 • Solo
I was in Mechelen whilst my partner was at a business meeting, so I went along to visit this stunning museum. It is the Belgium’s holocaust museum but pays tribute to all those that also fought against the Nazis, like the resistance and political prisoners.
The Nazis rounded up thousands of Jews and Roma people from all corners of Belgium.
It’s a fitting tribute, it starts with the document process starting and then onto the transports etc. it is beautiful laid out, well set out to read about the people, their history etc.
If you in or around Mechelen this is well worth the visit. Even a day trip is on the cards as Mechelen is stunning.
Well worth the visit. Was very happy to see it.
The Nazis rounded up thousands of Jews and Roma people from all corners of Belgium.
It’s a fitting tribute, it starts with the document process starting and then onto the transports etc. it is beautiful laid out, well set out to read about the people, their history etc.
If you in or around Mechelen this is well worth the visit. Even a day trip is on the cards as Mechelen is stunning.
Well worth the visit. Was very happy to see it.
Written April 24, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Trainbleu
Brussels, Belgium28,720 contributions
Nov 2015 • Solo
The "Kazerne Dossin" wasn't at all what I expected. The museum isn’t situated in the former Dossin Barracks where people were gathered before being taken to the concentration camp of Auschwitz-Birkenau by trains leaving just outside. The former barracks have been converted into fancy housing and there is only a small memorial site in the basement and a commemorative plaque on the wall outside. The museum itself is situated in a four-storey white building by Belgian star architect Bob Van Reeth, providing a strangely aseptic environment for the exhibits. Apart from offering a panorama of Mechelen, the fourth floor allows a view into the courtyard of the former barracks.
The exhibits, mainly photographic material and videos, are ordered in a thematic way by floor. On the ground floor there are two short films providing some background. “Mass” on the first floor retraces the history of Germany in the period 1918-1940 and paints the situation of Jewish citizens and businesses in Belgium before the Second World War “Fear” is the theme of the second floor where pictures and videos document the persecution of Jews, confiscations, arrests and captivity. The third floor is dedicated to the transports from the Dossin Barracks. Together with the pictures, the survival statistics (3 out 999, 0 out of 1000 …) are truly heart-wrenching. The sadness deepens when the visitor is confronted with the fate of the ghettos in Eastern Europe and the extermination of disabled and mentally ill people. For those who have already visited concentration camp sites and Jewish musea elsewhere and have read about the subject, a lot of what is shown should be familiar.
The entrance fee of 10€ includes a visitor’s guide (available in English) containing a numbered description of the photographic material and an audio guide for the ground floor. As the museum is huge, there is an awful lot to take in and you will you need at least three hours to visit it. I started reading the explanation of every picture and didn’t manage to finish before closing time.
For me, the most poignant part of the museum was the huge picture wall spanning several floors, composed of black and white identity photographs representing the staggering number of over 25 000 men, women and children deported from Dossin. Only some of the pictures have a hue of colour: these are the about 5% survivors. On the whole, this museum has more of a didactic character; it didn't leave the same lasting impression as places like the Risiera di San Sabbia near Trieste in Italy or concentration camps sites all over Europe.
Visitors who don’t like elevators should be aware that the glass and metal see-through stairs might provide an even scarier alternative. From Mechelen railway station I walked to the museum along the Dijle river (about 2 km) but it was not a very interesting walk. A better alternative is to take bus 500 (direction “Antwerpen-Boom-Rumst”) at the station and get off at Nokerstraat. A direct train to Mechelen-Nekkerspoel takes you within 1 km from the museum.
The exhibits, mainly photographic material and videos, are ordered in a thematic way by floor. On the ground floor there are two short films providing some background. “Mass” on the first floor retraces the history of Germany in the period 1918-1940 and paints the situation of Jewish citizens and businesses in Belgium before the Second World War “Fear” is the theme of the second floor where pictures and videos document the persecution of Jews, confiscations, arrests and captivity. The third floor is dedicated to the transports from the Dossin Barracks. Together with the pictures, the survival statistics (3 out 999, 0 out of 1000 …) are truly heart-wrenching. The sadness deepens when the visitor is confronted with the fate of the ghettos in Eastern Europe and the extermination of disabled and mentally ill people. For those who have already visited concentration camp sites and Jewish musea elsewhere and have read about the subject, a lot of what is shown should be familiar.
The entrance fee of 10€ includes a visitor’s guide (available in English) containing a numbered description of the photographic material and an audio guide for the ground floor. As the museum is huge, there is an awful lot to take in and you will you need at least three hours to visit it. I started reading the explanation of every picture and didn’t manage to finish before closing time.
For me, the most poignant part of the museum was the huge picture wall spanning several floors, composed of black and white identity photographs representing the staggering number of over 25 000 men, women and children deported from Dossin. Only some of the pictures have a hue of colour: these are the about 5% survivors. On the whole, this museum has more of a didactic character; it didn't leave the same lasting impression as places like the Risiera di San Sabbia near Trieste in Italy or concentration camps sites all over Europe.
Visitors who don’t like elevators should be aware that the glass and metal see-through stairs might provide an even scarier alternative. From Mechelen railway station I walked to the museum along the Dijle river (about 2 km) but it was not a very interesting walk. A better alternative is to take bus 500 (direction “Antwerpen-Boom-Rumst”) at the station and get off at Nokerstraat. A direct train to Mechelen-Nekkerspoel takes you within 1 km from the museum.
Written March 2, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
flemish01
Savannah, GA294 contributions
Sep 2015 • Solo
This museum holds so many memories within its walls that it engulfs visitors with solitude and respect.
Located in 18th century barracks, the museum was once the transit center for Jews during WWII to be transported to the concentration camps.
The exhibit is both beautiful, respectful and heartbreaking.
Highly recommended during your visit!!!
Located in 18th century barracks, the museum was once the transit center for Jews during WWII to be transported to the concentration camps.
The exhibit is both beautiful, respectful and heartbreaking.
Highly recommended during your visit!!!
Written September 13, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
George H
Mechelen, Belgium191 contributions
Aug 2014 • Family
I've given this five stars not because it's fabulous, rather it is simply a place that everyone should try to visit. Particularly poignant in these troubled times, a visit to Kazerne Dossin will educate our children and will move even those of us with the thickest skin to contemplation. The role played by Mechelen during the nazi occupation is less well known than other more infamous events during the holocaust, and this museum informs us without bias of that role. It reminds us that something as innocent and worthy of pride, such as having fantastic infrastructure and the best rail links to the European network, could lead to so much tragedy and a haunting, dark chapter in the history of this ancient city.
Written September 13, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Drell
Europe53 contributions
Oct 2013 • Couples
The museum used to be housed within part of the actual barracks, and was at once intimate and immensely powerful.
Since a new museum building was opened in 2012, the original space in the barracks has been stripped to form a sanitised memorial, and the new impersonal and illegible museum houses the story, artefacts and images.
Having visited the original museum twice in the past, and been bowled over by the power of the personal stories it told, I confess to being deeply disappointed by the new museum and its result of drowning those personal stories of deportation in a sea of information set in an impersonal architecture verging on the totalitarian. The very verticality of the building (it is set in a 5-storey tower with uncomfortable stairs) is uninviting, reinforced by repeated notices forbidding the use of certain stairs, and incoherent routes leading to toilets rather than exhibitions.
I can only assume that the museum curator and architect failed to grasp the undeniable power of the original museum and its important message. For such a potentially significant museum to be split off from its origins (one has to cross the road from the original barracks where the people were herded before deportation) is to miss completely the history within the fabric of the original building.
The guidebook handed out with one's ticket contains incoherent diagrams and fails to adequately guide the visitor through the building.
Since a new museum building was opened in 2012, the original space in the barracks has been stripped to form a sanitised memorial, and the new impersonal and illegible museum houses the story, artefacts and images.
Having visited the original museum twice in the past, and been bowled over by the power of the personal stories it told, I confess to being deeply disappointed by the new museum and its result of drowning those personal stories of deportation in a sea of information set in an impersonal architecture verging on the totalitarian. The very verticality of the building (it is set in a 5-storey tower with uncomfortable stairs) is uninviting, reinforced by repeated notices forbidding the use of certain stairs, and incoherent routes leading to toilets rather than exhibitions.
I can only assume that the museum curator and architect failed to grasp the undeniable power of the original museum and its important message. For such a potentially significant museum to be split off from its origins (one has to cross the road from the original barracks where the people were herded before deportation) is to miss completely the history within the fabric of the original building.
The guidebook handed out with one's ticket contains incoherent diagrams and fails to adequately guide the visitor through the building.
Written October 26, 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Beatrice van Langenhove
16 contributions
Sep 2021
It was the place where Jews from miles around were assembled before being put on transport.... The pictures tell the stories....On the second floor there were camp uniforms on display and a friend and I sang the Hatikva once in front of them.... I visited the memorial several times already.... Very moving each time....
Written January 21, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hoeveel tijd moeten we voorzien voor een bezoek ?
Sven J
Schelle, Belgium161 contributions
Wij hebben 3 uur rond gelopen en niet alles kunnen zien. Zeker als je alles wil lezen en horen heb je voldoende tijd nodig
Kan je ook zonder gids een bezoek brengen?
bono13
Westerlo, Belgium102 contributions
Geen probleem
Where were they taken to
nirakram
Bonheiden, Belgium30 contributions
They were taken to German destruction & work camps, such as Auschwitz, Buchenwald, Bora Bora. Here, if you were healthy you had to work in the most bad circumstances or they went to the gaschambers.
typetalkjane
Ilford, UK185 contributions
What are the opening hours in November please.
nirakram
Bonheiden, Belgium30 contributions
Dear typetalkjane,
Kazerne Dossin is open in november from monday to friday from 9h00 till 17h00. ! Closed on wednesday. In weekends open from 9h30 till 17h00.
Kind regards
Imperator
Stockport, England27 contributions
How do I get there by public transport from Mechelen station?
Kazerne Dossin
Mechelen, Belgium
If you get off at Mechelen station (2 km from the museum), take bus number 500 (in the direction of Antwerp-Boom-Rumst), bus number 2 (in the direction of Tivoli) or bus number 5 (in the direction of Tivoli). Get off at the Frederik de Merodestraat bus stop. After about 50m you turn left into the first street: Jodenstraat. Walk to the end of this street. Turn right into Goswin de Stassartstraat. After 100m, you’ll find Kazerne Dossin at your left-hand side.
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