Rated Excellent on Trustpilot
Over 105 Years Experience
Committed to Sustainable Tourism
Rated Excellent on Trustpilot
Over 105 Years Experience
Committed to Sustainable Tourism
5 Days
TBC
From Only £499.00
Join us in Northern Belgium and follow in the footsteps of the young men who fought in the First World War.
This holiday operates under our Optimum Experience brand.
With elegant space-maximising interior design, our Optimum Experience vehicle offers incredible passenger comfort with a selection of fine tours and destinations to choose from. Our Optimum holiday packages include a wide range of excursions, events and admissions, accommodation in a minimum 3* hotel (unless otherwise stated) and, on all our European Holidays, a Skills Representative too! Why not also book our door-to-door service and make your next holiday stress-free?
After pickups this morning, we travel across the English Channel through France and into Belgium. After checking into our hotel, an evening meal is included tonight.
Today's full day excursion takes us through the Flanders countryside, where the poppies once grew here. Our first stop is Tyne Cot Cemetery, the world's largest British and Commonwealth military cemetery. We continue onto Essex Farm, where Canadian soldier John McCrae penned his poignant 'In Flanders Fields' poem, where you can explore military bunkers as well as memorials and a cemetery. Today's final visit takes us to Ypres. Why not also take the opportunity to visit the 'In Flanders Fields' museum or explore the array of chic shops and eateries before witnessing the famous nightly last post ceremony at the Menin Gate war memorial to the missing at 8pm this evening?
We travel to Bruges, the 'Venice of the North', this morning, famous for its chocolate and lace. Designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, its medieval fairy?tale centre combines cobbled lanes, dreamy canals, market squares, soaring towers and historic churches. After free time to explore, we return to Blankenberge this afternoon, a charming seaside resort home to Belgium's only pier, a busy marina and plenty of cafes, bars and restaurants where you can explore a choice of restaurants this evening.
After breakfast this morning, enjoy a leisurely start to your day beside the sea in Blankenberge. We later visit Ostend, the cosmopolitan 'City by the Sea'. We recommend a visit to Ostend's thriving harbour, where you can visit the raised bow of the HMS Vindictive, a heavy cruiser sunk by German submarines in May 1918, now a memorial and silent witness to the Great War. Elsewhere, this thriving seaside resort is renowned for its mussels, a delicacy in Belgium, and its seafood specialities, including Ostend Sole (sole filled with shrimps and mussels) - perfect for your evening meal before we return to your hotel.
We leave Blankenberge this morning and travel to Poperinge, where you'll find historic Talbot House. Founded in the Great War as a 'home from home', this everyman's club was a sanctuary of peace for British soldiers during WWI; today, it's a living museum full of surprising stories and home to over five hundred exhibited items. From here, we continue onto our return ferry crossing back home.
Blankenberge's Alfa Inn is a family-run hotel and is found within an old monastery; this hotel offers modern accommodation and is a short walk to the local beach.
Hotel Facilities
Restaurant
Bar
Lift
WiFi
Garden terrace
Wellness centre
Below is a list of pick-up points available on this tour.
| Name | Address |
|---|---|
| Alfreton | Bus Station, Hall Street, Alfreton, DE55 7BT |
| Arnold | High Street Bus Stop, Outside Leisure Centre Car Park, Arnold, NG5 7EE |
| Beeston | Lace Road, behind the Cricketers Pub Beeston, NG9 2LA |
| Bulwell | Aldi (Bus Stop SW12), Sellers Wood Drive, Bulwell, NG6 8GE |
| Chesterfield | Coach Station, Beckingham Way Chesterfield, S40 1TH |
| Derby | Bus Station, Bay 27 & 28, Derby, DE1 2AY |
| Heanor | Market Place, Wilmott Street (Market Square side) Heanor, DE75 7EG |
| Ilkeston | Wharncliffe Rd, Market Place, Ilkeston, DE7 5GF |
| Leicester | St Margarets Bus Station, Stand SA, Gravel Street, Leicester, LE1 3AG |
| Leicester Fosse Park | Leicester Fosse Park, Bus Stop, Fosse Park Avenue Next to ASDA (opposite petrol station), LE3 2LL |
| Long Eaton | The Green, Outside Poundland Long Eaton, Notts, NG10 1HQ |
| Loughborough | Amber Rooms, The Rushes Loughborough, LE11 5BE |
| Lutterworth | George Street, Outside Wycliffe Rooms Lutterworth, LE17 4EG |
| Mansfield | Fire Station Bus Stop, Rosemary Street Mansfield, NG19 6AA |
| Nottingham | Mount Street, Alongside the Grosvenor Casino, Nottingham, NG1 6HE |
| Ripley | Market Place, Express Stand Ripley, DE5 3FJ |
| Rotherham | Interchange Bay C1/ C2, Frederick Street, Rotherham , S60 1QB |
| Sheffield | Pond Hill, Opposite Penny Black Public House Sheffield, S1 2BG |
| Toton | Tram Stop Park and Ride, Toton Lane Notts, NG9 7JA |
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