9th Fort of the Kaunas Fortress — Attraction in Kaunas

Remarkable history encapsuled into the site of a Tsarist Russian fort. The fort barely served in WWI and then became a prison for the newly independent Lithuania. Criminals, communists and opponents of the Smetona regime were kept here. When the Germans invaded at the beginning of WWII the fort was turned into a killing ground for the Nazis. Thousands of Jews, and others, were massacred here. There is a huge and moving monument to the Jewish people who perished located on the grounds of the fort. In truth, the monument overshadows the fort. Uniquely, the monument was constructed during the soviet occupation yet bears no soviet symbols at all. It was designed and engineered by Lithuanians. The fort has been restored quite well and there are many photos, art works, videos and remnants of the horrible murders AND the deportations of Lithuanians that took place here. The displays are extensive and I would recommend at least 3 to 4 hours to explore and to reflect. Well worth the trip. Young children...

Easy access from Kaunas by bus very well documented exhibition. Take the time to see everything and wear warm clothes and shoes since the buildings are cold. There is no coffee shop but a vending machine for hot drinks and some light snacks. Possible to pay with a debit card. From Kaunas centras ( new center) take bus 23 . I took the wrong one and ended up walking 1.7 km in difficult conditions. So take 23 and walk a short way towards the highway. A passage under the highway takes you to the main building. That building where you start is not inviting but right away inside the people will make sure you find your way. I especially appreciated the first part of the exhibition pre WWII . The second part is after de war so I was afraid that part would be skipped. The actual fort contains the exhibition covering 1941-1945. The enter scan the ticket you received at the first...

My traveling companion picked this location out from a list of things to see. We had no idea this was such a dark location, based on the numbers murdered here by the Na3i's. Park was fairly well maintained, but Google maps does you no favor by directing you to the big parking lot that is quite a distance from the fort. Easy walk, unless disabled. There is apparently a parking lot much closer (but much smaller) if you look at Google maps satellite view, you will see it.

And Google, you really are terrible with your censorship. The fact I can't put historical fact (a name of a horrible regime) into this review is disgusting. It's not an opinion, it's literally just the "who" of history and what may make people decide to visit, or not. Apparently concentration camps were run by "those...