Jewish Cemetery
Jewish Cemetery
4.5
9:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Monday
9:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Tuesday
9:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Wednesday
9:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Thursday
9:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Friday
9:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Saturday
Closed
Sunday
9:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Tours & experiences
Explore different ways to experience this place.
What is Travelers’ Choice?
Tripadvisor gives a Travelers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travelers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.
Are you currently on your trip?
Help us find experiences available for you.
The area
Address
Reach out directly
Best nearby
Restaurants
624 within 3 miles
Attractions
118 within 6 miles
Contribute
Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
4.5
267 reviews
Excellent
162
Very good
87
Average
10
Poor
2
Terrible
6
Roger Daniells-Smith
London31 contributions
Sep 2020
The best Jewish Cemetry I have seen. This cemetry is cared for and well maintained, AS wonderful exhibit of a funeral parlour at the entrance. Wonderful to see a Jewish cemetry not totally destroyed in Poland. Gret to combine this with a trip to nearby Radegast.
Written September 30, 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.
k l
Pittsfield, MA132 contributions
Feb 2016 • Business
This was an intense visit. As stated in other reviews, the Jewish Cemetery in Lodz is an incredibly impressive and sad place. You get a more complete understanding of the Jewish community pre WWII and when the history changes with the Nazis. It’s very visual there. Everyone should visit. We were surprised that so much of it still existed. There is a lot there, so spend the time and bring hiking shoes for the terrain.
Written August 3, 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.
WellTravelledAussie2
Sydney Australia454 contributions
Mar 2016 • Family
Well you can, because it is such an evocative experience.
Lodz had some of the richest Jews in Poland who owned massive factories and palaces. They have their mausoleums in this cemetery amongst the thousands of others far less fortunate than them.
The textile barons did their best to outclass each other in the size and beauty of their graves.
The most poignant area is the Ghetto Field which holds the graves of over 40,000 victims slain by the Nazis.
If you are in Lodz then you must make the visit.
Lodz had some of the richest Jews in Poland who owned massive factories and palaces. They have their mausoleums in this cemetery amongst the thousands of others far less fortunate than them.
The textile barons did their best to outclass each other in the size and beauty of their graves.
The most poignant area is the Ghetto Field which holds the graves of over 40,000 victims slain by the Nazis.
If you are in Lodz then you must make the visit.
Written April 19, 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.
Heather S
33 contributions
Sep 2015 • Friends
Unfortunately, we went on the spur of the moment, and our navigation brought us to the front gates, which are locked. The map on the board is only in Polish. There is a small sign, once you walk 100 meters up to the gates, that the entrance is on the side, but no directions on how to get there. You have to go through apartment house parking lots and down a narrow cobblestone way to find the small brown door with a Star of David on it. THIS is the entrance. The cemetery is neglected, and overrun with weeds. The only information we found on the LItzmannstadt Ghetto was inside the cemetery itself on a sign with small map. But outside of the cemetery we found no markings. There were no humans around at all. All in all, very sad, not just for the expected reasons.
Written September 25, 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.
mimi0352
Tallahassee, Florida67 contributions
May 2014 • Couples
As part of an invited stay in Lodz, this trip to the Jewish Museum was arranged. My husband and I actually were offered alternatives, as well, but this was something I was interested in seeing. Little did I realize the impact it would have. My husband and I had been to Auschwitz-Birkenau, where, of course, we were effected profoundly, but I did not realize this cemetery would have such a comparable effect. Without a doubt this experience was quite enriched by having a guide and I suspect the same guide others have used. He is a Ph.D student at the Lodz University and worth seeking out. This man is not only knowledgable generally, he knows this cemetery thoroughly.
Every experience relating to this tour was of interest, from the paying of (nominal) tour fees in the small office with wood burning stove, to the calico cat which followed us through the cemetery, to the transport area beyond the cemetery, to the ghetto, to the children's park with its most poignant sculpture, where I broke completely. Every aspect was enhanced by the guide.
Although the history throughout the cemetery was wretchedly depressing, I found the general aesthetic fascinating and curious. I actually knew very little about Jewish cemeteries, generally. I did not know that men and women were buried in separate areas or that all markers were supposed to be fairly similar. I found it interesting that there were also exceptions to all of these rules, usually pertaining to wealth and influence. The Helena Rubinstein family, for example, was buried together in a fairly small plot not far from the cemetery entrance.
Many things learned that day surprised me. Moreover, many things transcended knowledge and were incomprehensible in their horror. It was interesting to see an iron bed at one point that was left as a marker, but never removed in lieu of a proper gravestone, but it was the cemetery area of predominantly unmarked graves which was almost too much to bear, followed by the large grassy ditches left as reminders of the mass graves dug, although not filled, before the war ended, and the wall lined with plaques for loved ones in unknown graves which had the greatest impact.
To say that this was a rich experience would be an understatement. My ability to distance myself from the dark history by compartmentalizing was put to the test unsuccessfully. How I even withstood the initial.tour of the body preparation building remains a mystery. Despite all of this, I am beyond appreciative to have had the opportunity I had to take this tour....exactly as I did.
Every experience relating to this tour was of interest, from the paying of (nominal) tour fees in the small office with wood burning stove, to the calico cat which followed us through the cemetery, to the transport area beyond the cemetery, to the ghetto, to the children's park with its most poignant sculpture, where I broke completely. Every aspect was enhanced by the guide.
Although the history throughout the cemetery was wretchedly depressing, I found the general aesthetic fascinating and curious. I actually knew very little about Jewish cemeteries, generally. I did not know that men and women were buried in separate areas or that all markers were supposed to be fairly similar. I found it interesting that there were also exceptions to all of these rules, usually pertaining to wealth and influence. The Helena Rubinstein family, for example, was buried together in a fairly small plot not far from the cemetery entrance.
Many things learned that day surprised me. Moreover, many things transcended knowledge and were incomprehensible in their horror. It was interesting to see an iron bed at one point that was left as a marker, but never removed in lieu of a proper gravestone, but it was the cemetery area of predominantly unmarked graves which was almost too much to bear, followed by the large grassy ditches left as reminders of the mass graves dug, although not filled, before the war ended, and the wall lined with plaques for loved ones in unknown graves which had the greatest impact.
To say that this was a rich experience would be an understatement. My ability to distance myself from the dark history by compartmentalizing was put to the test unsuccessfully. How I even withstood the initial.tour of the body preparation building remains a mystery. Despite all of this, I am beyond appreciative to have had the opportunity I had to take this tour....exactly as I did.
Written September 4, 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.
DTripper1
Dongguan, China132 contributions
Jul 2013 • Couples
I wouldn't recommend a trip to Lodz but if for some reason you decide to come here and you want to see something striking, this cemetery is a good place. It's the largest Jewish cemetery in Europe with more than 180,000 people buried here. In some ways, it shows perfectly well the before and after of World War II and the Holocaust in Poland. The before is represented by the countless graves spread over endless acres, including a few almost palatial tombs of rich industrialists, but mostly the much more humble graves of ordinary Jews. This shows how important the Jewish population was in Lodz. The after is represented by the decrepit and overgrown condition of the cemetery, which appears to be open (and barely maintained in most sections) thanks only to the generosity of a few people. In places, it is almost like a jungle or rain forest and you cannot see the gravestones for the trees. The other way the war and Holocaust are represented here are the plaques on the wall honoring those who died in the Lodz Ghetto or the death camps. Very moving.
If you have a relative buried here and want to visit the grave for the first time, contact the cemetery before going (there is a web page) and arrange for a guide to take you around, otherwise you'll probably never find what you are looking for.
If you have a relative buried here and want to visit the grave for the first time, contact the cemetery before going (there is a web page) and arrange for a guide to take you around, otherwise you'll probably never find what you are looking for.
Written August 3, 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.
CityHopperJerusalem
Jerusalem113 contributions
Apr 2013 • Family
Soo huge! Incredible to think that the whole jewish population of Lodz dissapeared, but seeing this cemetery you understand how big and rich the jewish community was.
Some tombstones are mausoleum! We made a tour with a guide and it was worthwhile.
Some tombstones are mausoleum! We made a tour with a guide and it was worthwhile.
Written April 18, 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.
watemark
Gdynia, Poland26 contributions
Oct 2017 • Friends
If you've never been to any Jewish cemetery, you'll be surprised. It's completely different than Chirstian. But if you know what to expect, the history of WW2 and Litzmannstadt Ghetto will paralize you. In general, this place remains the same as it was in 1944. Evidences of tragic history might be overwhelming.
Another piece of history are mausoleums built by factory owners, which reminds of Lodz's golden age. Interesting and beautifull architecture. It's good to compare them with mausoleums from another (Christian) cemetery - on Ogrodowa Street.
I recommend to visit with a guide - there are no information boards for tourists, so you experience the cemetery as it is. Without knowledge won't be that touching. Tickets cost about 6 PLN each. Every first Sunday in month is free, on Saturdays the cemetery is closed.
Another piece of history are mausoleums built by factory owners, which reminds of Lodz's golden age. Interesting and beautifull architecture. It's good to compare them with mausoleums from another (Christian) cemetery - on Ogrodowa Street.
I recommend to visit with a guide - there are no information boards for tourists, so you experience the cemetery as it is. Without knowledge won't be that touching. Tickets cost about 6 PLN each. Every first Sunday in month is free, on Saturdays the cemetery is closed.
Written January 11, 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.
Followeveryrainbow
Ra'anana, Israel406 contributions
Nov 2016 • Solo
Cemeteries are not really tourist attractions but memorials to the lives of the people and communities buried in them. At the vast, sadly deteriorating Lodz Jewish cemetery, every step attests to a once-thriving community that was decimated by the Nazis and that has been left with too few members to care for it. In the oldest part of the cemetery, which opened in 1892, the gravestones lean sadly in every direction, covered with decades of leaves and moss, with many headstones broken or missing completely, and with their once fine engravings worn away to illegibility. In the southern part of the cemetery is the so-called Ghetto Field, a chilling testament to the horrors of the Nazi regime. Unlike in the Warsaw Ghetto, where those who died (of starvation, disease, shootings, etc.) were shoveled into mass graves, those who died inside the Lodz Ghetto were buried in individual plots that were kept note of, although without headstones. Some 43,500 people who died in the four years of the ghetto's existence are buried in this large, windswept, grass-covered field, and only a very few have stones or markers of some kind that were put up after the war. The ghosts at these tragic, unmarked graves cry out for us to remember them, and it is a wonder some sort of philanthropic campaign has not been launched to give them names. Finally, no one who visits the cemetery can miss the large pits along the brick wall, which deserve a moment of contemplation in their own right. When the Germans liquidated the ghetto in mid-1944 and sent the remaining Jews to Auschwitz -- making for a total of around 160,000 Jews they sent from Lodz to be killed at Chelmno or at Auschwitz -- they left a few hundred Jews behind to clean up the ghetto, and made them dig what were to be their own graves once they'd finished. But the arrival of the Red Army spared those last survivors, and the after the war it was decided to keep the pits as they were as a memorial.
Written January 13, 2017
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.
Tania Z
21 contributions
May 2016 • Friends
As a jewish young woman I felt very emotional when I saw te grave of four youths from the Bnei Akivah youth movement who were assassinated in an antisemitic attack. Also I was marveled at the size of some graves and at the amount of people who died in the Lodz ghetto, and still got a proper jewish burial there (the Nazis didn't want te smell of death, so they let them bury). It was generally a moving experience, I recommend going.
Written May 24, 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.
Hello. What is the average time spent in the cemetery? Are there guides there that speak English? We don’t want to rush through but also have limited time in Łódź so want to plan accordingly!
Written February 10, 2018
How do I arrange for a tour guide of the Jewish Cemetery and Ghetto. I will be in Lodz April 9-11. Thanks.
Written December 20, 2014
My apologies for my brief and less than helpful response for now, but I have no more time for this right now. For some reason, back spacing to delete while writing Trip Advisor reviews, causes my computer screen to freeze. This has only ever happened when dealing with the Trip Advisor website! After losing my extended response here, I wasted more time attempting to contact Trip Advisor about this problem, but there is no allowance for such an enquiry from their "help" centre.
My short answer here, though, is that while you can indeed, just show up and self-tour, a knowledgeable, experienced tour guide will enhance your experiences exponentially. Too many elements of this exceptional place will be missed without one. For me, if you have made the effort to get this far, you should not settle for a partial, certainly incomplete experience. I do have the name of the Ph. D. student from the University of Lodz who provided the tour for my husband and me, but I am reluctant to include it here.
Good Luck!
Written December 21, 2014
Showing results 1-3 of 3
*Likely to sell out: Based on Viator’s booking data and information from the provider from the past 30 days, it seems likely this experience will sell out through Viator, a Tripadvisor company.
Is this your Tripadvisor listing?
Own or manage this property? Claim your listing for free to respond to reviews, update your profile and much more.
Claim your listing