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In Flanders' Fields

In Flanders' Fields

4 days day day
from £529££pp
2027 May Jul Aug Oct

‘In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.’

Written by Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae, In Flanders Fields is one of the most famous pieces of wartime writing and helped to establish the poppy as an emblem of remembrance. On this break we journey to the Belgian and French battlefields immortalised in McCrae’s poem, which saw some of the most intense fighting of the First World War and thousands upon thousands of casualties. Across Flanders Fields, cemeteries and memorials proudly honour those who fought for our freedom, laid to rest in eternal comradeship across the Ypres Salient, Arras and the Somme areas. We discover these symbols of commemoration over three informative days with a battlefield guide, learning stories of enduring bravery and sacrifice at key sites such as Tyne Cot Cemetery, Menin Gate Memorial (where The Last Post is played every evening), Vimy Ridge Memorial, Lochnager Crater, the preserved trenches at Beaumont-Hamel Newfoundland Memorial Park and much more.

Highlights

  • Return coach travel & LeShuttle crossings
  • 3 nights at the Alize Hotel, Mouscron (JG4 rating) with breakfast plus one dinner
  • Welcome drink
  • Porterage
  • Excursions to Ypres & locations significant to Passchendaele & The Somme
  • Admission into Sanctuary Wood Museum, Hooge Crater Museum & Peronne Museum of the Great War
  • En-route visit to Arras & Vimy Ridge Memorials
  • Accompanied by an expert Battlefield guide on two full days of visits

Itinerary

LeShuttle to Calais and on to our first stop, Vimy Ridge Memorial, Canada’s largest national memorial found overseas and unveiled by Edward VIII in July 1936. The gleaming marble monument honours 60,000 Canadians who gave their lives in France, many during the successful battle for Vimy Ridge, a seven-kilometre ridge with important views over the Allied lines. Our next visit is the Arras Memorial in the Faubourg d’Amiens British Cemetery, which commemorates a further 35,942 soldiers who died in the Arras district with no known grave. 
We then stop in the historic city of Arras itself, famous for the UNESCO-listed Gothic tower which overlooks the town square, before we cross into Belgium to check into the Alize Hotel in Mouscron. 

  • We visit various locations around Ypres and Passechendaele, the scenes of some of the biggest battles in the First World War. The area serves as a place of pilgrimage and memorial, and our guide leads us to several different places to pay our respects. We start with Sanctuary Wood Museum, one of the few places on the Ypres Salient where a British trench system can be seen, discovered and preserved by a farmer who returned to reclaim his land after the war. Be sure to take in the battlefield relics and objects of interest inside the museum, such as a British Army cook’s wagon.
  • Next is Hooge Crater, created by a massive mine explosion detonated by British forces on 19th July 1915 during the Battle of Hooge. The site now houses a museum, which features a rich collection of artefacts, photographs and displays that bring the history of the war and the battle fought here to life. 
  • We then head to Tyne Cot Cemetery. The largest Commonwealth Cemetery on the Western Front, it is located in what was once the Ypres Salient, a strategically significant location where French, Belgian, German and Commonwealth soldiers fought almost continuously during World War One. Originally honouring 343 fallen soldiers, the site was largely expanded after Armistice Day on 11th November 1918, mainly by concentrating graves from the surrounding battlefields and smaller cemeteries. Although 11,961 servicemen were eventually laid to rest here, a staggering 8,373 of the burials are sadly unidentified, with a further 34,991 names forever etched onto the Memorial to the Missing.
  • Passchendaele Canadian Memorial, our next stop, commemorates the valiant efforts of the Canadian Corps during the Battle of Passchendaele in 1917. The site marks a pivotal moment where Canadian forces played a crucial role in capturing the ridge after weeks of relentless fighting in treacherous conditions. Now surrounded by landscaped grounds, the memorial offers a serene place to pause and reflect on the sacrifices made by the soldiers. 
  • We then head into central Ypres where there is free time to find dinner at leisure, before our last visit of the day to the Menin Gate. This is where the city’s daily act of remembrance, The Last Post, is played in honour of those who fell in the Ypres Salient from 1914-1918. At exactly 8pm every evening, the police stop traffic around the memorial to let the buglers complete the world-famous fanfare.

  • After breakfast, we explore key sites of the Somme, beginning with the medieval town of Peronne on the River Somme, well known for its Museum of the Great War, which, as we see, documents the military, social and cultural effects of WWI. Following time for lunch, we move on to Lochnagar Crater, once the Western Front’s deadliest square mile. The large crater was formed when a mine detonated underneath the German front line on 1st July 1916, caused by the British Army’s 179th Tunnelling Company Royal Engineers (nicknamed ‘The Moles’). This explosion signified the start of the Battle of the Somme, and this day was to become the bloodiest day in the history of the British Army, with 57,000 casualties.
  • We continue to the Beaumont-Hamel Newfoundland Memorial Park, the largest protected battlefield site of the Somme area, with harrowing trench lines and shell holes visible on both sides. It’s also one of the few places where no-man’s land can be seen in a preserved natural state, and the extensive park is also home to a visitor centre, cemeteries and memorials, including the Caribou statue, the symbol of the Newfoundland Regiment. Apart from the Vimy Ridge Memorial, this is the only National Historic Site of Canada located outside North America and, as of September 2023, is recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. 
  • Next, we head to Thiepval Memorial to the Missing of the Somme, which commemorates 72,337 British and South African servicemen who were killed on the Somme battlefields between July 1915 to February 1918. Seven Victoria Cross recipients are honoured here, and on top of the red-brick arch, a French inscription reads “Aux armées Française et Britannique l'Empire Britannique reconnaissant: To the French and British Armies, from the grateful British Empire.” Please note that entrance to the museum here is not included.

We check out of our hotel and begin our journey home. En route, we return to Ypres for a morning at leisure for you to spend as you wish. You may like to enjoy a spot of shopping, a relaxed meal or choose to visit the In Flanders' Fields Museum, located in the historic Cloth Hall. Through interactive exhibits, personal stories and a vast collection of artefacts, the museum provides a comprehensive look at the war's impact on the region and its people, with a unique poppy bracelet system that personalises the experience by connecting guests to specific wartime stories. Later, we continue to Calais for our journey home on LeShuttle. 

Accommodation

Conveniently located in the centre of the pretty Belgian city of Mouscron, just steps away from the Grand Place and a range of restaurants, the Hotel & Aparthotel Alize Mouscron has everything we need for a comfortable stay. The hotel features a sauna, fitness room, free Wi-Fi, en-suite rooms with flat-screen TV, hairdryer and tea and coffee-making facilities.

Hotel Rating

Accommodation in our JG4 category is of an even higher standard, typically offering a wide range of facilities and services. Bedrooms are designed to make your stay the most comfortable possible and the staff provide a service that reflects the detail and quality. You can also expect higher standards of food and beverages.

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