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Ypres was the most important British battlefield of the First World War with more than 250,000 British and Commonwealth dead falling in defence of Flanders Fields. It was here the legend of the Flanders Poppy was born; poppies grew on the disturbed ground of the battlefields and were seen everywhere after the fighting, with the blood red colour symbolising the fallen. We take tours out into Flanders to see the key locations around Ypres where the fighting raged.
4 days from £399 pp
We offer flexible payment options
Once you have booked your tour either online, or by telephone ( 01709 787 463 ), you have the flexibility of how you pay off the remainder of your balance. You can:
Our contact and online banking payment details will be on your confirmation invoice to remind you of your choices.
We make our way to the port of departure and coach interchange where you will join your tour coach for the crossing to the Continent. Upon arrival in France we head to Ypres in Belgium and our hotel for a three-night stay.
We start our tour at the In Flanders Fields Museum in Ypres.We take time to see the displays and follow the story of someone who served in WW1 with the new interactive ‘poppy’ bracelets. We then walk down to the Menin Gate and look at the missing of Flanders and see the Ramparts of Ypres, the only surviving original feature of pre-1914 Ypres. After lunch at Hooge we see a preserved British Trench – Yorkshire Trench – and then see where the ‘Last Fighting Tommy’, Harry Patch, fought in 1917, seeing his memorial. At Langemarck we look at the German dead in Flanders and contrast this with a visit to Tyne Cot; the largest British Cemetery in the world, with its visitors’ centre. At Frezenberg we see the Scottish Memorial.
Included Highlights
Today, we start at Hill 60, with its evidenced of the ‘underground war’ at Ypres and then travel to Zonnebeke and visit the Passchendaele Museum with its new system of re-created trenches. Here, you can walk through British and German trenches, go into dugouts and shelters and see the whole story of trench warfare. After lunch, we travel to the Messines Ridge, scene of mine warfare in 1917, and see some of the preserved craters at St Eloi and Spanbroekmoelen; two of the largest mine craters in Flanders. At Bayernwald we see the German trench system where Hitler fought in 1914. At Messines we visit the smallest British cemeteries in Flanders, before looking at the story of the Christmas Truce and the static front around Ploegsteert: ‘Plugstreet’ to the British, were Winston Churchill served in 1916. We end on Kemmel Hill, overlooking Flanders, where so many soldiers died in defence of Ypres.
Included Highlights
We leave the hotel after breakfast and travel to the Channel port. You will leave your tour coach behind as you join your transfer vehicle for your return journey to your original departure point
Travel Insurance from £27.00 (4 days) (includes insurance premium tax, prices per person). Single Room Supplement from £119.00 (4 days).
Local departure by coach, then to Ypres, where we stay for three nights.
We start our tour at Essex Farm, where Canadian poet John McCrae wrote ‘In Flanders Fields’ in 1915 seeing the concrete Dressing Station Bunkers and the nearby cemetery and memorials.
At the new Visitor’s Centre at the Zwanhof we look at the static front north of Ypres, visiting the preserved Yorkshire Trench. We then look at the mining operations on the Bellewaarde Ridge at Railway Wood, seeing the unique Royal Engineers Grave and the newly accessible WW1 mine craters.
After lunch at Hooge, with a visit to the trenches here, we travel down the Messines Ridge to Messines itself before seeing the Ploegsteert Memorial to the missing.
We end the day at Prowse Point where we look at the story of the Christmas Truce in 1914 seeing the memorials and discussing myth over reality.
Included Highlights
Today we start at Tyne Cot Cemetery, the largest British and Commonwealth Cemetery in the world. We then look at gas warfare in WW1, seeing the moving Brooding Soldier Memorial at Vancouver Corner.
At Langemarck we look at the burial of the German dead and then travel to Zonnebeke for our lunch period. In the afternoon we visit Polygon Wood and Black Watch Corner, seeing one of the bunkers in the wood. We then see Zillebeke Churchyard, the so-called Aristocrat’s Cemetery where many regular soldiers from 1914 are buried, and end at Hill 60: a large area of preserved battlefield with bunkers and mine craters.
Included Highlights
Return home
Travel Insurance from £27.00 (4 days) (includes insurance premium tax, prices per person). Single Room Supplement from £119.00 (4 days).
Book online OR call our friendly travel advisers on:
01709 787 463
If you prefer, then you can join the tour at the hotel. To do this, we will require a copy of your passport for identification purposes and you must advise us at the time of booking.
No reduction will be given if you should choose to do this.
We are unable to guarantee that the hotel will be able to meet your dietary requirements. We find that the majority of European countries do not generally cater for vegetarians and that the meal supplied may well be what everyone else is having minus the meat.
We will of course endeavour to arrange for a vegetarian meal at the hotel. We do however suggest that you advise us of your dietary requests at the time of booking and recommend that you speak to the receptionist on arrival with regard to your request.
You will stay for three nights at the 3-star Novotel in the centre of Ypres, near the Menin Gate and the market place.
Sint-Jacobsstraat 15, 8900 Ieper,
Front row seats can be reserved for £14pp (up to 6 days' duration), £22pp (7 & 8 days' duration) and £25pp (9 days' duration and over) on all European tours. This offer is only available for bookings of two or four persons on the front row and is subject to availability. In addition to this, seats on the second row can be reserved for £7pp (up to 6 days duration), £14pp (7 & 8 days duration) and £17pp (9 days duration and over). Guaranteed front/second row seats cannot be reserved on transfer journeys to/from the interchange. Children under 15 years cannot occupy a front row seat due to French Law. Central view seats are free.
Please note: On some coaches the legroom on front seats may be slightly less than that available on other seats due to the presence of a modesty board in front.
If your tour is cancelled for any reason and front/second row seats are not available on your new tour, you will be refunded the supplement. No other compensation will be payable.
Alternatively, we can take seating requests on your booking. However, requests are not guaranteed. All seat numbers are confirmed on travel documents approximately 7-10 days prior to departure.
Transfer coaches are routed approximately 2-3 weeks before departure. The route taken depends on where paassengers are booked to travel from on any particular date as to which route is taken. If you require further detailed information regarding the route to the port you can contact our Customer Service Department on 01709 830333 two weeks before you are due to travel.
With regard to the route taken by the main tour coach, this is determined by the driver.
When it comes to getting you to your destination, Leger Holidays make it easy, with a selection of travel options for you to choose from.
All of our coaches are modern and comfortable, and you can be assured of a high level of service. On selected air holidays, the executive coach may not have an onboard toilet or drinks facilities.
You can join your coach at your nearest joining point – we’ve hundreds to choose from throughout England, Scotland and Wales. To find your nearest pick up, search using your postcode below.
*Please note pickups are subject to availability.
Why not go the night before your tour for a relaxing start?
You can park for FREE for up to nine days at the Holiday Inn Ashford North and enjoy an overnight stay with English breakfast from just £39.50 per person (Based on 2 sharing a twin/double room on a B&B basis, subject to availability. Single supplements and terms and conditions apply.) We’ll then collect you from the hotel on the day of departure and return you there at the end of your holiday.
To book this package, please call the hotel on 01233 713333, quoting ‘Leger Holidays’ and your booking reference. If your holiday is longer than seven days you can pay for additional days’ parking. Ask one of our friendly reservations team for more details when you book your holiday
On most holidays if you’d prefer to join your tour coach at Stop 24 services, you can park your car in the car park which is accredited by the Park Mark safer parking scheme and is monitored 24 hours a day by CCTV. Payment for the parking is made on arrival using the self-service machines. Excludes holidays to Ireland and the U.K. and tours travelling via Brittany Ferries.
On Single Traveller holidays and coach holidays of 7 days’ duration or more, you don’t even have to think about getting to your local joining point. If you live within 20 miles of one of our free joining points we’ll pick you up from your home and take you to meet your transfer vehicle, then return you back home at the end of your holiday. The cost is from £35 per booking each way for up to four people per booking.
If you live a little further afield, you can also take advantage of this convenient option for an additional charge – please enquire at the time of booking.
Travelled on this tour? You can submit your review to: feedback@leger.co.uk
To book this tour, just give our friendly team a call on 01709 787 463 or book online at www.leger.co.uk
