Although initially located outside the town, the Konzentrationslager (concentration camp, KZ for short) bore the name Dachau from the start, casting a dark shadow over the picturesque market town. Over 200,000 people entered the camp’s gates between 1933 and 1945. Today it serves as a memorial to the 43,000 people who died there during the Nazi reign of terror.

A place of remembrance, contemplation and education, the memorial museum documents the camp’s history and the atrocities committed. Tours of the site visit all the remaining buildings, the restored camp prison 'bunker', an extermination gas chamber disguised as showers and two crematoriums. Exhibitions show photographs and models of the camp, its officers and prisoners, and you can see the entrance gateway with the cruelly ironic description Arbeit macht frei (‘Freedom through work’). There’s also a heart-breaking documentary film (English version at 11:30 and 15:30) made from footage made by both the SS and liberating US troops.

S-Bahn S2 runs to Dachau a couple of times per hour, taking 15-20 minutes. Buy a Streifenkarte (€9) and cancel four strips each way. For groups of two to five, a Partnerkarte (€16) is cheaper. From Dachau station, take bus N°724/726 (every 20-40 minutes) for the short ride to the site. Bus N°720/722 runs between Dachau station and the old town; get off at Rathaus (town hall). Both Mike’s and Radius (see Tours) offer guided visits to Dachau from Munich.