General Information

The museum housed in the former administration building of Oskar Schindler’s Factory of Enameled Vessels, Emalia, tells the story of the man himself and of the Jewish prisoners of the nearby Płaszów concentration camp, who were the inspiration for Steven Spielberg’s hit film “Schindler’s List”.

Additional Information

The museum is located in the administration building of the former plant at Lipowa street, in Krakow’s industrial district of Zabłocie, on the right bank of Vistula. The exhibitions include period items, photos and documents with multimedia and fixed arrangements, designed to give a genuine experience.

There are many guided tours around Oskar Schindler’s factory. One of the most interesting ones is the 1.5-hour tour “Krakow: Schindler’s Factory Tour with Entrance Ticket” (certified by GetYourGuide and organized by a tour company), which includes a live tour guide fluent in German, English, French, Spanish, and Italian. This tour allows for free cancellation up to 24 hours in advance and offers the option to reserve now and pay later, ensuring flexible travel plans. At the time of writing, this tour was graded at 4.5/5 by the community. Some visitors expected more focus on Schindler and his factory but found the tour covered broader wartime history and the treatment of Jews. Others appreciated the tour’s creativity and depth, describing it as an engaging and informative experience. However, concerns were raised about the clarity of explanations due to large group sizes.

Another option to explore Oskar Schindler’s factory is the 1.5-hour skip-the-line tour titled “Krakow: Schindler’s Factory Tour with Entrance Ticket,” provided by an independent tour guide based in Krakow. This guided tour offers insight into Oskar Schindler’s story and Nazi-occupied Krakow, featuring a live English-speaking guide. Visitors appreciated the informative historical details provided, though some expected more focus on the factory itself and the film “Schindler’s List”. The museum is well-organized but can be crowded, and guides are praised for their extensive knowledge and engaging presentations.

If you’re up for exploring multiple attractions efficiently, consider the “Krakow: Jewish Quarter and Schindler Factory by Golf Car” tour. Mixing a serious topic with golf cart hopping might seem unusual, but visitors find it surprisingly engaging. This tour offers a 1.5-hour guided exploration of Krakow’s Jewish Quarter and Schindler’s Factory by electric golf car. You’ll have a knowledgeable guide providing audio commentary in multiple languages, visiting important churches and the Jewish Ghetto, and highlighting Oskar Schindler’s heroic actions during WWII. It’s well-rated for informative guides and convenient transportation.

Collection: Highlights

Items illustrating the life of Oskar Schindler, the factory and the lives of its Jewish workers form the core of the exhibition. The museum also presents pre-war Krakow, the German invasion in 1939, everyday life under Nazi occupation, the resistance movement and underground Polish state and last but not least, the Soviet capture of Krakow.

Collection: Explained

The central part of the exposition concerning Oskar Schindler himself is his office. About one sixth of the museum’s permanent exhibition is dedicated to Schindler, his factory and the history of Jewish workers who used to work there. The museum’s facilities of Schindler’s Factory consist of three parts. These include its permanent show, the screening room and space set aside for temporary displays. The permanent exhibition is entitled ‘Krakow under Nazi Occupation 1939-1945’, which correctly summarises the contents. The screening room is designed as a venue for lectures, movies, meetings and various cultural or educational activities.

Oskar Schindler: Highlights

Oskar Schindler was a German industrialist who is credited with saving over 1,100 Jews during the Holocaust by employing them in his enamelware and ammunitions factories, which were located in what is now Poland and the Czech Republic respectively. He is the subject of the novel “Schindler’s Ark” and the film based on it, “Schindler’s List”.

The Factory: Highlights

As an opportunistic businessman, Schindler was one of many who sought to profit from the German invasion of Poland in 1939. He gained ownership from a bankruptcy court of an idle enamelware factory in Krakow. With the help of his German-speaking Jewish accountant Itzhak Stern, Schindler obtained around 1,000 Jewish forced labourers to work there.

The Factory: Explained

Schindler renamed the factory Deutsche Emaillewaren-Fabrik, or DEF. He quickly adjusted his lifestyle to match his income and gained respect as a guest at Nazi SS elite parties, engaging in casual conversations with high-ranking SS officers, often to his advantage. Initially motivated by financial gain due to lower costs associated with Jewish labor, Schindler later began protecting his workers regardless of expenses. For instance, he would argue that certain unskilled workers were indispensable to the factory’s operations. The factory’s designation as “essential to the war effort” became crucial in Schindler’s efforts to safeguard his Jewish employees. Whenever his workers, known as “Schindler Jews,” faced deportation threats, he secured exemptions for them, including wives, children, and disabled individuals, presenting them as essential mechanics and metalworkers. Inside the factory, Jewish workers were treated with civility, unlike the harsh conditions prevalent in the neighboring Płaszów camp, where there was frequent shouting, abuse, and arbitrary killings.

As the Red Army approached Auschwitz and other eastern concentration camps, the SS began evacuating remaining prisoners westward. Forewarned about the factory’s closure, Schindler convinced SS officials to allow him to relocate his 1,200 Jewish workers to Brünnlitz (Brněnec) in the German-speaking Sudetenland, thereby saving them from certain death in gas chambers. Schindler’s employee, Mietek Pemper, played a crucial role by compiling and typing “Schindler’s List,” which included 1,200 names—1,000 of Schindler’s workers and 200 other inmates—sent to Brünnlitz in October 1944.