The Holocaust remains one of the darkest chapters in human history—a systematic genocide that claimed the lives of six million Jews and millions of others, including Roma and Sinti people, people with disabilities, LGBTQ+ individuals, Slavs, political prisoners, and all those the Nazi regime deemed “undesirable.” Across continents, memorials and museums stand as places of mourning, memory, and moral responsibility.
Visiting these sites is not about dark tourism—it is about witness. Each location preserves stories, honors lives cut short, and reminds future generations of the consequences of hatred, indifference, and unchecked tyranny.
Yad Vashem, Jerusalem, Israel
The World Holocaust Remembrance Center is Israel’s central memorial to the victims of the Holocaust. Its moving exhibits, the Hall of Names, and the Children’s Memorial create a deeply personal experience of remembrance.
Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, Berlin, Germany
Near the Brandenburg Gate, 2,711 concrete slabs form a vast, unsettling field. The abstract design evokes disorientation and loss, reflecting the scale and dehumanization of the Holocaust.
Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum, Poland
The preserved grounds of the largest Nazi concentration and extermination camp stand as powerful testimony. Barracks, belongings, and memorial spaces confront visitors with the reality of industrialized murder.
Shoes on the Danube Bank, Budapest, Hungary
Sixty pairs of iron shoes line the riverbank, honoring Jews shot into the Danube by fascist militiamen. The empty footwear is a haunting symbol of lives abruptly ended.
Pinkas Synagogue, Prague, Czech Republic
The synagogue’s walls bear the handwritten names of nearly 80,000 Czech and Moravian Jewish victims. Upstairs, children’s drawings from Terezín add heartbreaking personal voices.
Anne Frank Statue, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Standing near the Anne Frank House, the statue honors the young diarist whose words gave a face to millions of silenced children. It is a place of quiet reflection on lost potential.
Judenplatz Holocaust Memorial, Vienna, Austria
Designed as an inside-out library, the memorial represents stories that can never be read. It stands over the remains of a medieval synagogue destroyed in a pogrom.
Mémorial des Martyrs de la Déportation, Paris, France
Tucked behind Notre-Dame, this solemn underground memorial honors 200,000 people deported from France. Its narrow, stark interior evokes confinement and loss.
Rumbula Forest Memorial, Latvia
This forest site marks the murder of about 25,000 Jews from the Riga Ghetto. Stones engraved with victims’ names surround a central Star of David memorial.
Babi Yar Memorials, Kyiv, Ukraine
The ravine where over 33,000 Jews were murdered in two days in 1941 is now marked by several memorials. They honor Jewish victims as well as Roma, POWs, and others killed there.
Memorial to the Sinti and Roma Victims of National Socialism, Berlin, Germany
A quiet pool of water in Tiergarten commemorates the hundreds of thousands of Roma and Sinti murdered in the Porajmos. Fresh flowers are placed daily on its central stone.
Stolpersteine, Across Europe
These small brass “stumbling stones” are set into sidewalks outside victims’ last chosen homes. Each bears a name, restoring identity and memory to everyday streets.
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Washington, D.C., USA
Beyond its powerful exhibitions, outdoor memorial elements like glass panels etched with names connect personal stories to global history.
New England Holocaust Memorial, Boston, USA
Six glass towers etched with numbers evoke both concentration camp tattoos and the six million Jews murdered. Visitors walk through the structures in an immersive experience.
Holocaust Memorial, Miami Beach, USA
Centered on a massive sculpted arm reaching skyward, this memorial was created by survivors. The surrounding figures and inscriptions express grief, resilience, and remembrance.
Philadelphia Holocaust Memorial Plaza, USA
An open civic space designed as a “living classroom,” the plaza combines monuments, educational elements, and public programming dedicated to Holocaust memory.
Oregon Holocaust Memorial, Portland, USA
Set in Washington Park, the memorial incorporates personal artifacts like a suitcase and shoes. These everyday objects symbolize lives interrupted and futures stolen.
San Francisco Holocaust Memorial, USA
Located at the California Palace of the Legion of Honor, this sculpture depicts emaciated bodies and a lone survivor. Its stark realism forces confrontation with suffering and survival.
Hyde Park Holocaust Memorial, London, UK
A large stone bearing Hebrew and English inscriptions from the Book of Lamentations stands as Britain’s national Holocaust memorial. Its simplicity underscores universal grief.
Memorial to the Holocaust of the Jewish People, Montevideo, Uruguay
Constructed of pink granite, this memorial overlooks the sea. Its solemn design connects memory with the enduring presence of Jewish life in Latin America.
Shanghai Jewish Refugees Museum Memorial, China
This memorial honors the thousands of Jewish refugees who found shelter in Shanghai during the war. It tells a lesser-known story of survival amid global upheaval.
Forest of the Martyrs, Israel
Planted in the Jerusalem hills, this living memorial includes trees symbolizing the six million Jewish victims. It blends nature, renewal, and remembrance.
Why These Places Matter
Holocaust memorials are not only about the past—they are warnings for the future. They challenge visitors to confront prejudice, defend human dignity, and resist hatred in all its forms. By remembering the victims as individuals, not numbers, these sites ensure that memory becomes responsibility.
To stand in these places is to say: we remember, we bear witness, and we will not forget.
By New York Jewish Travel Guide Staff
