Battlefields of the Western Front

Be met at the airport and transfer to your hotel in the historic centre of Paris. Later this evening, you’ll have the chance to get to know your fellow travellers and Tour Director at a Welcome Reception.

Arrive in Paris and begin your European journey in style. This morning, set out on a guided tour taking in some of the city’s best-known landmarks, including the Avenue des Champs-Élysées and the Arc de Triomphe. The afternoon is yours to explore at leisure. Perhaps relax at a cafe and wander the elegant boulevards.

Travel from Paris to Bayeux in Normandy today. Little fighting occurred here during the Second World War, and the town became one of the first French centres of importance to be liberated following the D-Day landings. On arrival, visit the Bayeux War Cemetery, the largest Commonwealth Second World War cemetery in France, where more than 4,000 servicemen are laid to rest. Later, admire the impressive Bayeux Cathedral.

Enjoy a special Insider Experience today exploring the Normandy landing beaches.

Insider Experience – Normandy Beaches

Visit the coastal town of Arromanches, where the remains of the remarkable Mulberry harbours at Gold Beach can still be seen — an extraordinary engineering achievement that helped supply Allied troops after D-Day. You’ll also view the Arromanches 360 Circular cinema presentation.

Continue to Omaha Beach, one of the most fiercely contested landing sites of 6 June 1944. Nearby, visit the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial, set on a bluff overlooking the shoreline and the English Channel. More than 9,000 American servicemen are buried here, including Medal of Honor recipient Theodore Roosevelt Jr. This eight-kilometre stretch of coast witnessed some of the heaviest casualties of the landings, making it one of the most poignant sites in Normandy.

Head to the charming harbour town of Honfleur today. On a guided tour, wander the old port lined with colourful houses and visit the Saint-Catherine's Church. Your visit concludes with a tasting of Honfleur’s famous caramels at a local confectionery.

Later, visit the Thiepval Memorial to the Missing of the Somme, the war memorial dedicated to over 70,000 missing British and South African servicemen, and the nearby Pozières Memorial. You will also stop at Caterpillar Valley Cemetery, where many New Zealand soldiers are buried. Today these quiet fields and villages stand as a moving tribute to the thousands who served and lost their lives.

Travel to Villers-Bretonneux today for a moving Insider Experience.

Insider Experience – Somme Battlefields

Visit the Franco-Australian Museum of Villers-Bretonneux, located within the historic Victoria School. In the playground, the words 'Do Not Forget Australia' remain painted as a lasting symbol of gratitude from the local community.

Later, visit the Australian National Memorial, overlooking the surrounding countryside. You will also explore the Sir John Monash Centre, named after General Sir John Monash, commander of the Australian Corps, whose leadership contributed to key Allied victories on the Western Front, including the Battle of Le Hamel in July 1918. Through immersive multimedia displays and personal accounts, the centre brings to life the experiences of the Australian soldiers who served here.

You will visit a series of important sites along the Western Front today. Begin at the Australian Memorial Park in Bullecourt, which honours Australian soldiers who fought in the First and Second Battles of Bullecourt in 1917, where heavy losses were suffered during attempts to breach the Hindenburg Line. Continue to Fromelles (Pheasant Wood) Military Cemetery, established after the recovery of Australian and British soldiers from a mass burial site discovered in 2008. The men were killed during the Attack at Fromelles in July 1916 and later reinterred with full military honours.

Later, visit the nearby Australian Memorial Park, located on the Fromelles battlefield and home to the moving ‘Cobbers’ sculpture of Sergeant Simon Fraser rescuing a wounded compatriot from No Man's Land after the battle. Your final stop is V.C. Corner Australian Cemetery and Memorial which commemorates more than 400 unidentified Australian soldiers who lost their lives at Fromelles, a poignant reminder of one of Australia’s most tragic days of the First World War.

This morning visit the Flanders Fields Museum in Ypres, where engaging exhibits tell the story of the First World War across the West Flanders region. Housed within the Cloth Hall, the historic building was largely destroyed during the war and carefully reconstructed in the years that followed. The afternoon is yours to spend at leisure.

Insider Experience – Menin Gate Last Post Ceremony

This evening, enjoy dinner at a local restaurant before attending the moving Last Post Ceremony at the Menin Gate Memorial to the Missing. The memorial stands on the route taken by British and Commonwealth soldiers as they marched from Ypres towards the Ypres Salient. Inscribed on its walls are the names of more than 54,000 servicemen who died in the area and have no known grave. Since 1928, the Last Post Ceremony has been performed every evening as an act of gratitude and remembrance. At precisely 8:00 pm, buglers sound the 'Last Post', honouring the fallen in a tradition that has continued almost uninterrupted for nearly a century.

Continue to Amsterdam today. After arriving, the rest of the day is free to explore at your own pace.

Your adventure comes to an end today with a transfer to the airport for your onward flight.