Planning a trip next year

[BarneyDave]

Hi All

 

As it is my 50th birthday my partner and I are planning a trip to the battlefields. Now I think the easiest is probably a coach tour but wondering if others have opinions about other ways to do it. Would a driving tour be a similar priced way to do it?

 

Any views much appreciated.

 

Dave 

Edited 30 April , 2018 by BarneyDave

[nigelcave]

If you have never been before (which I am assuming), then I think that a tour would be the most cost effective and, probably, the most useful approach.The main advantage is that you can concentrate entirely on your visit rather than admin and driving/navigating.

 

1. Food and accommodation will likely be cheaper than if you were trying to organise this on your own;

 

2. The coach will take you to the major places of interest without you driving around trying to find them; as a consequence you will likely get there quicker and you will be able to take in the views between stops.

 

3. When you get to any particular point (and possibly en route) you will be getting commentary from someone who knows (one hopes).

 

4. Get hold of reasonable mapping to work out where you are going and trace where you have been at the end of the day.

 

5. Possibly get hold of a guide book before you go and possibly the Holts' maps of the Salient and the Somme; the latter will help you make sense of what might otherwise be a random itinerary, as they indicate the line(s) at various stages.

 

6. I would approach the whole thing as a 'taster' and try and get on a tour that includes both the Somme and the Ypres Salient. Take a notebook, as it is quite easy to forget where you have been exactly by the end of a day.

 

Read some narrative accounts of the war before you go - if you are new to the interest keep it simple; read some memoirs - the great classics are known as that for a reason - but do so with a map in front of you so that when names of villages and towns come up you can place them (of course Google earth helps, but a paper map is still very valuable).

[chaz]

Dave, as a relative newbie to the battlefields and a home owner we can only speak from our experiences.

Plan your trip. the main thing is, I would recommend a coach trip for first time visiting.

France has strange rules, there are plenty of holidays. if the holiday is on a Tuesday ( its the date not the day). they often have the Monday off as a 'pont' (bridge) day. likewise Thursday  ponting Friday.  Our electricians only work on Working Days, so for one week in May, they only work on the Wednesday!

Also , many shops don't open on Mondays, many close between 12 and 2 for their dinner.

if you decide to do a local B&B you can find yourself back at the accommodation at 5pm sitting around with very little tv and low internet access.

our local town shuts around 7pm so no restaurants open after then. evening meals are optional but can be expensive.

Hotels, may give better options but for first time coach trips will have the meals and entertainments laid on.

the other option is to pick one of the many knowledgeable B&B's ,who can entertain you during the stay.

this then leads on to doing a general trip or checking out the details of a family members activities.

if you have a family member who served then try to get as much information before you go. as an example, both my boys went on school trips and were asked about family. they both had different agendas and both visited  great great uncles of theirs one in Terlincthun one in Connaught.

hope this helps.

[BarneyDave]

Thanks for the replies guys. Have visited the WW2 battlefields many years ago but not the WW1 ones but seems the coach trip is going to be the best thing to do. They do have various trips so probably down to exactly where we want to visit. 

But thanks for help.

[BarneyDave]

Following discussions with the boss, we are now thinking of doing a self drive tour of the Somme and Ypres battlefields. Can anyone recommend books etc I should take a look at getting for the trip?

 

Cheers

 

Dave 

[JasonMc]

I have made 5 trips and drove each time as I prefer the flexibility of it.

 

The Holt books for Ypres and Somme as mentioned are excellent and the maps are good too but I use google maps quite a bit for handiness.

Western Front-South and Western Front-North are thw two books. I bought from their own website and arrived signed by the authors which was nice.

 

I'm bringing my parents out for their first visit and the plan is roughly:

 

Day 1: Ieper area - Tyne Cot, Passchendaele, St Julien, Menin Gate for 8pm, stay Ieper

Day 2: Essex farm, Hill 60 then drive to Messines to Island of Ireland Park, Pool of Peace and a few relevant cemeteries here. Stay Ieper again

Day 3: drive into France: Vimy Ridge. stay Arras

Day 4: Beaumont Hamel, Ulster Tower, Thiepval, Loghnagar crater stay. Amiens

Day 5: Various family cemeterys etc

 

Theres a lot of other stops that are more personal but I think those spots will all be of interest to them. Hope that helps a little with the planning.

 

The following map I made up for a previous visit may be of interest also - Red icons are places I recommend visiting most.

 

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1crSVmjSK6gqYRuixLWpB4s-NLno&usp=sharing

Edited 25 May , 2018 by JasonMc

[Rob B]

Jason,

With an interest in Irish Battalions try and incorporate into your first day Mousetrap Farm where over a 1000 Irish were killed during May 1915 in the second battle of Ypres. From there you can swing onto the road to Tyne Cot and see some of the sights en route.

[JasonMc]

Thanks Rob, Yes it's definitely a major site of Irish interest and I have visited it last year.

 

Unfortunately on my previous visit the gates were locked though and I couldn't get in to see the plaque which I believe is on the farmhouse.

I had just visited some locations in Dublin where Michael Malone fought in the Easter Rising and at the same time his brother William Malone was fighting at Mousetrap farm and lost his life there. Michael is commemorated on the farmhouse but it's a pity it wasn't accessible to the public when I was there last. 

 

I typically visit 10-15 sites a day when there but not sure how long my parents attention span may be! I'm hoping also to bring them to Hulluch and Maj Redmond's grave also but will have to judge it each day ;-)

 

[BarneyDave]

Thanks guys. Have noticed the Holts books get very good review so will look into getting them and planning things. Thinking of next May, around the middle of the month and go for 4 or 5 nights. My other half seems happier to do self drive (although she doesn't drive) as she thinks it will let us have more time when we want it at some places and less at others.