The new three-day tour organised by Somme Battlefield Tours Ltd focuses on both the Ypres and Somme battlefields of the Great War.  The tours are particularly suited to the more discerning battlefield visitor, who prefers to visit the battlefield  as part of a small, unhurried group, rather than just one of a large coach tour. For this reason our tour groups are made up of no more than six (6) persons.  Travelling as part of such a small group allows us to pretty much 'go as we please' (using a much smaller luxury vehicle), thus making the tour more of an 'adventure'.

We appreciate that travelling as part of such a small group results in a higher per-person cost, but we believe the benefits are well worth the extra expenditure.  The informality of travelling as part of such a small group allows for greater flexibility and an altogether more friendly and unhurried atmosphere. It is also far more suited to the informal exchange of questions and answers as we explore some of the most poignant battlefields of the Great War.

In addition to visiting the more memorable sites, we also get 'off the beaten track' as much as possible, to places where one can still find the remains of trenches, craters etc - places where larger tour operators possibly haven't the time or means to reach or find.  There is usually enough time for those who wish to have a rummage around the battle-scarred terrain, which can be a quite absorbing pastime! 

The tour cost includes:

• Pick-up central London, Ashford or Folkestone (we can arrange other pickup points).
  

• Eurotunnel crossing.
  

• Two  nights full board 2 or 3 star hotel accommodation         (including 2/3 course   lunches)
  

• All museum entrance fees.
  

• Briefing packs, including copies of original trench maps, photographs to compare 'then and now' etc.
  

After time for a freshen up at our hotel we take a walk around the ramparts, ending up at the Menin Gate in time for the playing of the Last Post; a particularly moving ceremony that takes place at 8 pm each evening. We then return to our hotel for our evening meal.

The morning is spent visiting the new 'In Flanders Field' Museum (situated in the rebuilt Cloth Hall - see above pictures) and St Georges Chapel.  Later in the morning we drive south to the Somme battlefield, taking a 'proper' lunch (included in cost) at Avril Williams Guest House (as featured in the recent BBC series 'War Walks'), situated just behind the old Front Line at Beaumont Hamel .
After lunch we visit:
Serre, and the Sheffield Memorial Park (and memorials to the Accrington and other 'Pals' battalions), the Redan Ridge, Sunken Road & 'White City' (from where the famous film of the detonation of the Hawthorn Mine was taken), Newfoundland Park (battlefield left as it was, including trenches etc), Thiepval (memorial to the Missing), the huge mine crater at La Boisselle and the infamous Delville Wood.  Our hotel will be situated in the centre of Albert, the main 'battlefield town' for the Somme battlefield, directly opposite the famous Basilica (of leaning tower fame…).

The morning is spent visiting other sites, as well as a German cemetery (Fricourt) and the Somme museum, housed in tunnels under Albert town centre.  Lunch is again taken at Avril Williams Guest House, after which we head back to Calais (stopping at Vimy Ridge Canadian Memorial Park if time permits), arriving back in London at about 6 pm.