1st trip somme/Ypres

[mcfc1923]

Had my first taste of a Somme/Ypres battlefield tour, 3 days 2 nights. The tour people were great, the company of the other passengers was great, stayed at the

Tabl Hotel Cambrai, nice and comfortable.

The ferry crossing was great, the beer even better. Vimy Ridge Memorial was closed as were the tunnels, Delville and Mametz wood were seen through the coach window, went through the town of Albert, although we didn't stop ther, and on the last morning managed to stop outside the Menin gate and stretch our legs for about 20 mins.

Thiepval and Tynecot were mind blowing, and visiting my gt uncle's grave was something i will remember for the rest of my days.

I will be doing my best to get back to France later this year, but this time it's a walking tour which would have to include the last post and museum visit's and Tommy's bar which i have heard so much about.

Any info on a tour company that could fulfill my requirments would be much appreciated.

best regards

jim

[Bernard_Lewis]

Glad it went well. The Somme and Salient must be a rush in 3 days! Pity you didn't get a chance to linger at Mametz/Delville etc. though I am sure that honouring the memory of your relative made the trip worthwhile in its own right.

Which travel firm did you go with?

Bernard

[Bernard_Lewis]

Oops. Forgot to say - I went with Flanders Tours a few years back and found them really good. Not the cheapest but the attention to detail etc. was great. Plenty of walking and time to linger at most of the main sites we visited (we just did the Somme - Ypres when I've saved enough!)

Bernard

[burlington]

Looking at your itinerary for your first trip and the way that you seem to have been whisked past important areas I would suggest either that you decide to DIY OR that you find a company which specialises in very small groups which may give you a lot more time on site especially if you concentrate on a particular area rather than doing two or more centres.

A DIY effort gives YOU total control and it can be a bit lonely at times but this does depend in part how you organise it and where you stay.

Good luck

Martin

[paullaw1155]

Jim

I have heard good reports about Leger travel. Some friends have been with them.

I was going to go with them this year, butdecided to arrange a diy tour 5 days 4 nights.

My first tour was with Galina travel which was a self drive tour, they no longer cater for self drive. If you look at there itinerary it will give you some very usefull information/ideas.

Hope you find a good tour company, it does seem to have been a whistle stop tour that you did.

Cheers

Paul

[mcfc1923]

Cheers Pals, certainly given me a lot to think about, the tour company i went with was war research society run by Ian Alexander, and on reflection i have say i did see a lot more memorials than i mentioned and the tour guides were faultless in there knowledge of ww1, and they even held ther remembrence service at the small cemetary where my gt uncle was buried, and if it was not for one of the tour guides i would never have had a photo taken beside my relatives graveside as my camera had packed in,( must remember to always take a charger for a digital camera with me next time) for an introduction to the Somme and Ypres it was perfect, i would recommend them to anybody that's for sure, infact on reflection once again, they were first class, but next time it's the walking tour with the last post included. And as you quite rightly say Bernard , honouring my gt uncle was worth the trip in it's own right.

Checked out the tour companies mentioned, thing is, living in Manchester

and being a bit of a lazy bounder plus i don't drive, i prefere starting my journey

from a manchester pickup point rather than Dover or Victoria London which most only cater for, so the Leger company seem my best bet at the moment, although

the single room supplement for most of the companies really does make a hole in the pocket at times, but i suppose that's down to the hotel.

Idid find a company called ''The Somme Battlefield Tours LTD'' they do conducted, self drive and personnal tours, anyone tried this company?, they ain't cheap but they look good. and with a personnal tour will be able to be taken wher i want to go, but that will not be untill next year, so for the moment will check out the Leger brochure that arrived this morning for my trip later in the year.

cheers for all your help pals

jim