50.51° N · 14.15° E
An eighteenth-century fortress town that the Nazis turned into a ghetto and Gestapo prison, an hour from Prague. A hard but necessary visit, guide included.
What to do
Each plan says how long it takes, who it's for and whether you can book.
Memorial · 2 h · 310 CZK with the ghetto · guide included with booking
Museum · 1 h 30 · included in the combined ticket · 9:00 to 17:00 in summer
Exhibition · 45 min · included in the combined ticket
Itineraries
Days and weekends already planned out, with how to get between each stop and who to book with.
Plan the trip
Each choice narrows the next: the season shapes how best to travel, and how you travel decides where you stay and where you eat.
When to go
All year: the sites are open every day, from 9:00 to 17:00 from April to October and until 16:00 from November to March, and closed from 24 to 26 December and on 1 January. Spring and autumn are more pleasant for walking between the town and the fortress.
How you travel
Choose how you're travelling and we'll tell you where to stay, how to get around, where to eat and which services you'll need. We only show the ways of travelling that make sense here.
Terezín has no airport or practical train: you fly to Prague, with direct flights from Madrid, Barcelona and other Spanish cities, and continue by bus from Florenc or Nádraží Holešovice, about an hour, or by hire car on the D8 motorway, about 60 km. It is a day trip from Prague.
Without a car, Terezín works well: the bus from Prague stops in the town, the whole former ghetto is seen on foot and the Small Fortress is about 20 minutes' walk away. Wear comfortable shoes and bring water: inside the memorial there are only vending machines.
By car, Terezín is about 60 km from Prague on the D8 motorway, under an hour. The car saves the walk between the town and the Small Fortress and lets you eat in Litoměřice or continue to Bohemian Switzerland.
Who you're with
A trip with a toddler is not the same as one with a teenager. Pick yours to see what works and what to bear in mind.
Terezín is a visit for teenagers who have already studied the Second World War: the Small Fortress, the cells and the execution yard, and the drawings by the children of the ghetto in the museum leave their mark. Prepare them beforehand and leave time to talk afterwards.
Where to stay
We show you what suits the way you travel.Change how you travel
Why we like it: A simple hotel on a quiet street next to Terezín park, with 24 rooms of one to four beds, a restaurant and its own parking.
Why we like it: A four-star hotel in the Renaissance Salva Guarda palace, on the main square of Litoměřice, about 3 km from Terezín, with a restaurant and café.
Services for this trip
Where to eat
From set lunch menus to Michelin stars. We mark the price level and what to order at each place.
What to order: a Czech dish from the menu of the day.
What to order: a game dish or the knedlíky with mushroom sauce, with a Žernoseky wine.
Map
The places to stay and services on the map are the ones for the way you travel. Turn on the layers you want and tap a point to see its details.
Nearby
The closest places, whichever country they are in.
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Tips
It is included in the ticket, but only with advance booking.
It is the longest part; leave the ghetto for the afternoon.
Inside the memorial there are only vending machines.
Dogs are not allowed in the fortress, the museums or the exhibitions.
Terezín is a fortress town that Emperor Joseph II had built in the late eighteenth century to defend Bohemia from Prussia: a grid of streets and barracks surrounded by brick walls and moats and, across the River Ohře, a smaller fortress. During the Nazi occupation the Small Fortress was a Gestapo prison and the whole town became a ghetto through which tens of thousands of Jews from Bohemia, Moravia and other European countries passed on their way to the extermination camps. Today it is a memorial and a small, quiet town. It is a hard visit that is worth preparing for.
By bus, about an hour from Florenc or from Nádraží Holešovice, on metro line C. Terezín has no practical railway station. The bus drops you in the town, near the Ghetto Museum.
By car, about 60 km along the D8 motorway, under an hour. Park next to the Small Fortress to start there, then move the car into the town.
There are two areas, about 20 minutes' walk apart:
A combined ticket of 310 CZK opens both areas. The guided tour is included, but it must be booked by phone or email; without a booking it is not guaranteed. There is a printed guide and an audio guide for your phone.
A whole day from Prague, without rushing: the Small Fortress in the morning, lunch in the town or in Litoměřice, and the ghetto in the afternoon. Inside the memorial there are only drink and food vending machines.
It is not a visit for small children, although under-10s go in free. For teenagers who have studied the Second World War, the Ghetto Museum and the Small Fortress are among the most valuable parts of the trip; talk to them beforehand about what they will see.
There are few places in Terezín: the Parkhotel has a restaurant open to the public and rooms. About 3 km away, Litoměřice, a royal town on the Elbe with a large square, has more atmosphere; the Grandhotel Salva occupies a Renaissance palace there.
Questions
About an hour by bus or car.
310 CZK for the combined ticket for the Small Fortress and the ghetto; 240 reduced and 630 for a family.
The guided tour is booked by stating the language; if no guide is available, there is a printed guide in many languages and an audio guide for your phone.
No. Terezín was a ghetto and a prison; people were deported from here to the extermination camps.
24 to 26 December and 1 January.
With teenagers, yes, if you prepare the visit. It is not recommended for small children.
Geocaliahttps://www.geocalia.com/en/czechia/terezin
