This stark reminder of the world war and the misery it brought to so many has been developed well yet not over developed. It allows the visitor to wander as they may like and see as much or as little as they like. Visiting on a misty day takes your experience to a whole new level. Well worth the visit.
I was unaware of Struthof's existance and chanced upon while driving in the Vosges with my 12 year old son.They have done an excellent job of describing both the larger picture of what was going on in Europe together with detailing he daily life and atrocities of this camp. While a lot of explanations were available in English, there were too may exhibits only in French.They also managed to show that the Nazi barbarism was not only against the Jews - who bore the brunt of it - but also against other populations. They had invested effort to preserve the camp, and even its own little gas chamber in the nearby village - and to give the names of the 86 numbered victims who had been sent their from Auschwitz for their experiments.
I described the place to my friends as a "shop of horrors". Of course it's not a very fun place to see and learn about the history but it was really interesting. I was glad to see young people from various countries visiting as well.
Set in wonderful scenery (a "converted" ski resort) this site sets out the horrors of Nazi Germany.Although its a difficult and sobering subject the visitor centre lays out the background and leadup to ww2 well for the uninitiated. My only complain being that a lot of the info, particularly in the museum hut inside the perimeter had no English translation.
i have visited here twice, the first time with my wife, it was a life changing experience, The french liberated the nazi camp at the end of the war and managed to preserve the site from pillage and destruction. the camp is virtually known, it is renowned for the horrific human experiments that took place here the history of it is incredible and very moving. It is set in the beautiful tranqil valley with outstanding scenery. we stayed in Obany which is a beautiful place and not too long a car journey to get there. we then returned with our teenage children, to show them the meaning behind buying poppies for remembrance sunday. the children were affected by what they saw and read but gave them a real insight into the actual history of the ww2.
Struthoff is one of the smaller concentration camps, and is easy to walk around. It is hard to imagine that such barbarity went on in such a beautiful part of the country.The facilities are excellent and the museum provides a good background into the holocaust and the role that this particular camp played.
After driving up the winding mountain roads, into the clouds, a huge monument appears. Good car parking and a short walk to the visitor centre. Only 6 Euros entry, good value. Most exhibits are written in French, German and English. Then outside to the museum that was formally an accommodation block, not all exhibits in English, but get the gist from the photos. Then on down a fairly steep cobbled path around the perimeter to the prison block and crematorium. Unfortunately the crematorium was closed for restoration. The walk back up shows how fit you may or may not be. All in all a very sobering couple of hours. We got there as the doors opened at 9am, within the hour 6 coaches had arrived with teenage students, so pick your time or take your chance !
I came here with my wife. It's a well preserved place and a sad area but still a good place to visit and have an insight of what happened during WWII. I would recommend the place because of it's condition and good service in different languages.
This memorial gives cause to think about the terrible behaviour possible between nations. The indoor information panels about the various concentration camps in Germany and Poland remind you of the unbelievable suffering of those people unfortunate enough to be sent there. The outdoor part of the museum has been well preserved although only a small number of the buildings remain. It is a place for quiet contemplation and to pay respects to those who lived and died here and how lucky we are to have lived in relative peace for so long.
We visited in December and the camp was freezing with snow on the ground which made it really eerie. Not a huge camp but still takes a good couple of hours to visit. Mostly outdoors but with a small exhibition in the reception area.