United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

I eagerly anticipated my recent visit to the USHMM looking forward to learning more about the event through displays and memoribilia. Unfortunately, my expectations were a lot higher than the museum provided. Most of the displays along the tour consisted of familiar, rehashed photos (found in most any related book), greatly enlarged for dramatic emphasis. The artifacts throughout the exhibits consisted almost entirely of "castings from the original". These "castings" consisted of everything from an operating table to a door frame; thus the USHMM is a sad tour of replicas. The highlight of my visit to the USHMM, and DC too, was speaking with a holocaust survivor and asking her questions about her experiences as she recalled her teen years in Auschwitz and her later liberation by the Soviet army. Priceless memory.

It is a sad museum since it showcases one of the worse crimes in humanity but it is an execellent learning experience. It learned so much while I was in there. When you go in you get a to pick a liitle pasaport of a victim and which you can read about their lives before the holocaust. If you want to go I suggest you get the tickets at the museum website ahead of time because they are only a number of tickets given each day for the exihibition.

Was there is September 2007. Taking a trip to the DC area this Spring and will plan to take more time at the Holocaust Museum. Two things: Protestant. Mostly German Ancestry. It is for all of us to see and to understand that treating humans with kindness and respect has no religion nor ethnicity. Surprised what opened up for me after my visit! Highly recommend for all.

I have read in history books about the Holocaust but after going to the museum my life has been changed forever. Never in my life time is my new slogan. I saw things in this museum that shocked me. I would advise this museum to everyone take your children (10 and up) they need to know about this awe time in our worlds history so they will know when to stand up and say Not in my on my watch

My second time here, first as an adult. It is an amazing journey. I can not see how some people believe this did not happen!

Very informative. The room of shoes that belonged to the imprisoned tore

We have to take our children and even ourselves to places like this and learn and remember so that these things dont happen in the future. The Holocaust survivors are now elderly and very soon will no longer be with us anymore. So we as a new generation have to tell their stories. This place does just that and we were blessed to even meet a Holocaust survivor that works there. I have also visited Yad Vashem in Israel and they are both nice and informative. The building is fairly large so you need at least 2 hours to go through it. It is all set up with a few places that are designed to teach the children about it. Some of the other things are a little scary for them, so you have to make the decision about what and when you want to introduce your child to things. Parking is a little tricky. We parked near the building at a parking garage a few streets over and down from the building which costs currently 16.00 a day to park, but you are blocksfrom the Smithsonian and Jeffeson Memorial, etc.

I find it more than a little scary that more and more students don't know much about the Holocaust. I recommend this museum if you have children (old enough to understand and walk through for at least an hour possibly much more). I took my friend to this who had never been and she told me that it changed her. It personalizes the Holocaust in a way that grabs your attention and won't let go. I suggest getting tickets online instead of waiting in line. It is a minimal cost to get the tickets ahead of time (I think the last time I bought tickets it was $.50 per ticket) and then you're sure to get in at the time you want. If you wait in line you don't always get in or the time that fits with your schedule. You should block off enough time to see this museum. On my second time through I took almost 4 hours but that's because I went into all the corners and really looked and listened. I've gone with friends for an hour and a half and that seems to be more than enough. You have to see it to make sure that we do not forget what has happened and to make sure that when we see it happening again we can make a stand and stop it.

This place is so interesting! I really liked this place. I have always been fansinated with the Holocaust and going here taught me a lot about it. I can't wait to go back to it because this place is so well manufactured that you actually learn from this museum. I think that everyone should learn about the Holocaust then take a trip to this museum because it is a perfect addition to anything lesson about the Holocaust!! It is totally worth the time and money to get into. I really enjoyed it. I went when I was in 8th grade on a school trip and I think this was the favorite part of my trip. I am now a freshman in college and returning there with a class that is focused on learning about the holocaust through multiple lens. I throughly enjoy this place.

If you give yourself only one hour, you'll have to rush. Plan on three hours. You likely won't need that much time, but if you finish early, there's plenty to do nearby. On the other hand, if you rush through, you'll only feel depressed because the first half leaves you without much hope. The museum (that I could tell) was designed as a complete experience, all four floors have an important message. If you miss out on the lower floors (the last part of the experience) you'll miss the most important part of that message. There's more to the Holocaust than the massacre, but the massacre is all you'll see in a rush.