Liberation Route: D-Day to Arnhem

Location: Caen

Local departure by coach or Door-to-Door service, then to our hotel in the Caen area, where we stay for two nights.

Accommodation: Hotel

Accommodation Name: hotel in the Caen area, where we stay for two nights

Location: Normandy

We begin with the British D-Day story starting at Arromanches where we see the remains of the Mulberry Harbour.<br/><br/>At Gold Beach we see where Stan Hollis was awarded the Victoria Cross on D-Day, the only VC that day, and then at Juno Beach look at the story of the Canadians seeing memorials and bunkers.<br/><br/>After lunchtime in Courseulles, we see where the British 3rd Division and Commandos landed on Sword Beach, then visit the Pegasus Memorial Museum and see where gliders came in at Pegasus Bridge in the early hours of D-Day.<br/><br/>We end at Ranville War Cemetery, where many of the Airborne soldiers are buried.

Accommodation: Hotel

Accommodation Name: Ibis Falaise

Meals: Breakfast

Location: Bayeux

Today we look at the Battle of Normandy and examine the bitter fighting for Hill 112, the ‘Verdun of Normandy’. Here we see a Churchill Tank and memorials to the fighting. We then travel through the Bocage battlefields to Bayeux, visiting Bayeux War Museum and Bayeux War Cemetery. After lunchtime in central Bayeux, we travel to northern France for an overnight at De Panne in Belgium, stopping at Calais Canadian Cemetery, where those who died in the liberation of Boulogne and Calais are buried.

Accommodation: Hotel

Accommodation Name: Ibis De Panne

Meals: Breakfast

Location: Knokke

We begin our look at the liberation of Belgium in September 1944 with a visit to the superb For Freedom Museum at Knocke, where we see amazing displays of wartime equipment and uniforms. We then examine the Canadian landings and attacks here during Operation Switchback before crossing onto the Walcheren Island. Here in November 1944 British Commandos and Canadians landed on the island to clear the Scheldt Estuary, allowing the port of Antwerp to be open. After lunchtime in Middelburg we see where the landings took place at Westkapelle, seeing a Sherman tank and nearby memorials before ending the day at Bergen op Zoom War Cemetery, and then to our overnight hotel.

Accommodation: Hotel

Accommodation Name: A-Hotel, Oosterhout

Meals: Breakfast

Location: Nijmegen

Following the Liberation Route into Holland, we examine Operation Market Garden in September 1944, following the route of ground troops of XXX Corps from Eindhoeven to the Son Bridge, and visit the Wings of Liberation Museum. After lunch we see Grave Bridge and then go into Nijmegen to look at the Waal Crossing of American Airborne soldiers in support of Guards Armoured Division. We then continue to the outskirts of Arnhem for two nights.

Accommodation: Hotel

Accommodation Name: Hotel De Bilderberg

Meals: Breakfast

Location: Arnhem

Today we have a full day at Arnhem, seeing where British Airborne soldiers landed. We visit the Hartenstein Hotel Museum, and Arnhem War Cemetery, as well as visiting Oosterbeek Church, St. Elizabeth’s Hospital. We end our day at Arnhem Bridge, looking at the famous battle here and discussing whether it was a ‘Bridge Too Far’.

Accommodation: Hotel

Accommodation Name: Hotel De Bilderberg

Meals: Breakfast

Location: Wageningen

Return home.

Meals: Breakfast