Flanders Fields

Enjoy a trip of historical discovery on this full-day minibus tour that takes you through West Flanders, from Bruges to the Belgian town of Ypres. The city, nicknamed Wipers, was rebuilt according to a medieval blueprint after being completely razed to the ground in the early 1900s. It was also here that the Germans invaded Belgium during World War I; a strategic move to attack France from the north. You will see the remaining artifacts and places of the Ypres Salient as you discover restored trenches, stroll among war graves in Passchendale and Polygon Wood, clamber over craters and bunkers on the preserved battlefield Hill 60, and visit key war memorials.  Behold the impressive sight of the imposing Menin Gate Memorial to the missing soldiers, complete with 55,000 names, erected on the spot where the soldiers left the city for the battlefront. As your day continues you will also see the iconic poppy fields of Flanders as you ride through the countryside in an air-conditioned mini coach, perfect for relaxing and taking in the picturesque scenery. It is possible to visit an ancestor's grave if requested ahead and when in the Ypres Salient, and it is also possible to extend the tour for the Last Post Ceremony under the Menin Gate Memorial with transport back to your hotel in Bruges.  This must be requested well in advance as well and if it is available, it will incur a fee of €30 to be paid on the day of the tour.

On the way to the Flanders Fields area our guide will tell you which events led to the First World War and how the disaster developed. We stop at a very moving German Cemetery, from where we drive to a section of the WW1 trenches. We will visit the Monument of the Brooding Soldier, which commemorates the sacrifice of 2,000 Canadian soldiers during the first German gas attack. Close by is Hill 60 which had fallen into German hands but was mined by tunnelling companies of the Royal Engineers. After a short lunch in Ypres our guide will take us to the outstanding Flanders Fields museum. We will hear the touching stories behind four years of trench war. You will then be taken to the battlefield at Passchendaele and visit Tyne Cot Cemetery, the largest Commonwealth cemetery in the world where British, Irish, Australian and Canadian soldiers rest. Then our coach will take us to Essex Farm. This was the field hospital where Canadian field surgeon Dr. John McCrae wrote the famous poem "In Flanders Fields" We will then arrive again in beautiful Ypres and eat a quick snack. At 8pm we will attend the Last Post Ceremony at Menin Gate (under restoration works until mid-2025), a daily tribute to all Commonwealth soldiers and officers that were missing after battle.