Auschwitz - Joint Organized Museum Tour (guided) or Tours from Krakow

We took a tour from Krakow. The tour folks picked us up at the hotel. When we arrived at Auschwitz our small group was handed over to a guide who conducted the entire tour of Auschwitz and Birkenau. When it concluded, we rejoined our Krakow driver and guide for the trip back to our hotel. Our hotel made the phone call to arrange the tour; I do not recall the price nor the company with whom we traveled.

I think it is the case that all the guiding is done by employees of the memorial/museum, no matter what sort of package you buy. I just bought a bus ticket at the Krakow bus station and a ticket to the memorial museum from the latter's website.

Same for us. Tour picked us up at our hotel and turned us over to an English speaking museum guide at Auschwitz. We happened to be the only native English speakers on our tour of 10 or so.. Excellent guide. Toured both Birkenau and Auschwitz.

I've only been once, last Autumn, so can't say which is better, although independently travelling to the memorial by local bus is obviously cheaper.

We used "Krakow Shuttle", cost per person was about 160PLN; and we were very content with it's service which was as advertised. They picked us up at our hotel (about 24hrs before they confirmed the specific pick-up time for our hotel), on the drive over they showed a documentary film, then handed us over to an official guide for the first tour, then bus to the second camp where the same guide took us around. It was useful having the same guide as he could link things he told us at each camp. Then the bus back to Krakow. There were about 12 on our tour. I think left Krakow about 8 O'clock and were back mid-afternoon.

I also had the same guide for both parts of the camp; I assume it always works that way.

Thanks everyone.

If I were to book with the museum (organised tour), and after the 3.5 hours of organised tour, can I still linger around in the camp so as to maximize the time, plus there could be some exhibits that I probably like to revisit?

I have checked around, if I were to join the tour from Krakow, I have to leave after the stipulated time; right (3.5 hour total)?

Thanks everyone.

I would imagine if you take a tour from Krakow that includes transportation to the camp, there may be an issue if you want to stay longer, because you're supposed to take the tour-provided bus back to the city. However, there would be nothing to stop you from buying a ticket on a public bus. When I visited the camp, I didn't buy a round-trip bus ticket, just a one-way. I just paid the driver on the return bus when I was ready to go back.

What I'm not sure about, unfortunately, is whether you can get back into the Auschwitz I area after your tour of Auschwitz II (Birkenau). You travel between the two by bus, and you are returned to a point outside the tourist-entry gates at Auschwitz I. Can you get back into Auschwitz I at that point? I just do not know. I suspect the answer to that question doesn't vary depending on whether you take a Krakow-based tour or not, because at the camp everyone seems to be funneled into the same process.