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Behind the Front Lines

Life behind the lines was an important part of a soldier’s experience in the First World War. On this new tour we look at three key areas to get an understanding of what medics, padres, nurses and soldiers did out of the trenches. We’ll explore a range of significant battlefield sites in the Somme and Flanders, and along the Crimson Coast, including Vimy Ridge, Bailleulmont and Bellewaarde Ridge, before attending the move Last Post Ceremony.

Tour Includes

  • 4 nights hotel with continental breakfast
  • Specialist Battlefield Guide
  • Convenient local joining points

5 days from £649pp

Travel Options
Outbound &
Inbound Travel
Outbound
Travel
  • By Coach By Coach
Inbound
Travel
  • By Air By Air
On-Tour
Experiences
  • Coach Excursions
Departure Dates

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Itinerary

Please choose your preferred 5 day itinerary

Local departure by coach, then to our hotel in Northern France for a four-night stay.

Our tour begins along the coast belt of Northern France where the main military hospitals were located, often called the ‘Crimson Coast’. We visit Wimereux Communal Cemetery to hear the story of Canadian poet John McCrae who wrote ‘In Flanders Fields’, and then travel to Etaples for the story of the ‘Bullring’ Training Camp, also seeing the vast Etaples Military Cemetery. After lunch we we head to Saint Pol for the story of the selection of the Unknown Warrior in 1919, and then follow a route to the front line via Mont St Eloi, where British and Canadian soldiers gathered for the Battle of Arras in April 1917. Our final visit of the day is the battlefield at Vimy Ridge, having followed a typical route of soldiers from the coast to the front during the war.

Includes Breakfast

Etaples Military Cemetery

Key Visits

Vimy Trenches Etaples Military Cemetery Wimereux Vimy Ridge Memorial Saint Pol Mont Saint Eloi

Today we travel to the Somme battlefields and begin with a look at the story of men who were ‘Shot at Dawn’ for military crimes in WW1. At Bailleulmont we see the graves of the men executed, including Albert Ingham, whose father used the ‘Shot at Dawn’ phrase on his headstone. We uncover the details of the evacuation and treatment of the wounded at Bagneux British Cemetery, Gezaincourt, and then have lunchtime in Doullens with a visit to the Town Hall, which was used as a Headquarters in March 1918. In the afternoon we travel to Vignacourt, where a museum displays a unique collection of images of Great War soldiers taken by a local photographer. We then visit Puchevillers British Cemetery, before ending the day in Henencourt – a typical village where soldiers were billeted on the Somme and did their training.

Includes Breakfast

Doullens Town Hall

Key Visits

Doullens Town Hall Puchevillers British Cemetery Bagneux British Cemetery Vignacourt Museum Shot At Dawn – Bailleulmont Henencourt Chateau

We start at Bailleul, one of the main towns used by the British Army in Flanders, and visit the Military Cemetery here, which is close to the site of Casualty Clearing Stations and the Royal Flying Corps aerodrome. We then look at Godewaersvelde – ‘God Wears Velvet’ to the soldiers – and pay our respects at the grave of a nurse killed in Flanders. After lunchtime in Poperinghe, we look at those Shot at Dawn with a visit to the ‘Death Cells’, afterwards heading to Talbot House, a Belgian townhouse opened by padres for the use of all soldiers as a place to escape the war. We then follow a route to the front line via the site of the army camps up to the battlefield at Bellewaarde Ridge. After free-time in Ypres for dinner, we attend the moving Last Post Ceremony.

Includes Breakfast

Talbot House

Key Visits

Last Post Ceremony Poperinghe Talbot House Mine Crater at Bellewaarde Bailleul Communal Cemetery Godewaersvelde British Cemetery

Return home.

Includes Breakfast

Accommodation

You will stay for four nights at the Ibis Styles Arras Centre.

Travel Options

When it comes to getting you to your destination, Leger Holidays makes it easy with a selection of travel options to choose from.

Silver Service Coach

Silver Service Coach

More than simply your method of transport, Silver Service offers a coach with added comfort and facilities, such as deluxe reclining seats with leather headrests, an onboard entertainment system, and a spacious rear lounge so you can socialise with your fellow passengers.

Silver Service Coach plan

Silver Service Features

  • Specially designed reclining seats, with leather headrests, footrests and extra legroom.
  • A spacious rear lounge where you can relax, socialise and get to know your fellow passengers.
  • Our onboard entertainment and satellite navigation system makes your journey fly by.
  • Free personal headphones mean you can tune into the music channel, listen to the radio or watch DVDs being played by your crew.
  • Personal tables so you can enjoy your refreshments in comfort as you take in the passing scenery.

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