Dates The third WW2TV group tour will start on Sunday March 31st 2024 with everyone arriving the day before (30th) for a welcome dinner and talk. There will be 6 full days of touring, with a final half day (morning) on Saturday April 6th.
The fourth WW2TV group tour will start on Sunday October 6th 2024 with everyone arriving the day before (5th) for a welcome dinner and talk. There will be 6 full days of touring, with a final half day (morning) on Saturday October 12th.
Basic Details I will be the Battlefield Guide and Magali will be Tour Manager, but also sharing some of the French experience of the battle. The touring days will be of around 9 hours, and the group size will be limited to 25 guests. Everyone will need to make their way to Normandy independently, but once with us, apart from one free evening the group will stay together. Breakfasts and lunches will be included along with 6 of the 7 evening meals (one free night.) The breakfasts will be continental buffet style but with eggs etc. Lunches will be either a packed lunch from one of our favourite bakers with fresh baguette sandwiches or we will stop at a brasserie for a jambon/saucisse fites type hot lunch.
Transport The group will travel on a French bus/coach, using a Company we know and trust based in Caen.
Itinerary We are still tweaking the details, but here are the proposed days. It's not intended to be a comprehensive Battle of Normandy tour, in that we won't be visiting all of the D-Day beaches or covering all of the inland fighting. Think of it as a Paul and Mag's Favourites tour. We'll cover the areas we love in some detail, offering our guests an on-the-ground experience we don't think is offered elsewhere.
Day 1 - Omaha and The Beach Landings. This day will feature a boat trip of the Pointe du Hoc and Omaha Beach sector (weather/seas permitting) or a walk along the 5 miles of the beach. We will also include an extended exploration of the WN60 and F1 Draw area. We will cover how Widerstandsnests work, what the Atlantic Wall was supposed to achieve and how the landings fared. So many tours go for a single brief stand on the beach and then whizz off to the Cemetery. We will spend a day in the area including acknowledging the British Commando attack on Port en Bessin, where we will have our evening meal.
Day 2 - British Commandos and Airborne. The focus of today's route is to explore the vital "linking" job of both the British Army and Royal Marine Commandos. We will start on the Atlantic Wall near Merville-Franceville, visit a super viewing area at Amfreville looking towards Ouistreham and Sword Beach before moving down from the "Airborne Ridge" for lunch near Pegasus Bridge. Then we will cover the Commando assaults inland from Sword and Juno, finishing with a look at 46 Royal Marine Commando's attacks near Rots.
Day 3 - US Airborne and cutting off the Cherbourg Peninsula. We will cover perennial favorites like La Fiere Bridge and the Cauquigny Causeway as well as examining the VII Corps push across the peninsula - taking in the fighting near La Haye du Puits and Hill 95 near Saint-Catherine. We will then head back east to finish in Angoville-au-Plain - the subject of my book Angels of Mercy.
Day 4 - Terrain Day. Arguably the most important day of the week. The aim of this day will be to get across how the terrain in Normandy influenced the battles and campaign. In the morning we will look at some of the engagements between the Canadians and the 12th SS and British forces and Panzer Lehr. After lunch the highlight will be a walk/hike through some beautiful and imposing hedgerows in the area north of Saint Lo. So many tours just point out hedgerows while driving past. With us, you will walk through them, spending a couple of hours really getting to grips with this feature - so peculiar to the region.
Day 5 - Cobra, Avranches and Mortain. Today is all about the American breakout and Operation Cobra, including visiting Periers and the area of the massive bombardment ahead of Bradley's advance south. We then follow Middleton's VIII Corps thrust south to Avranches - where we will have lunch. Then it's off to Saint Barthelemy and Mortain to cover the ensuing German Counter-attack (Operation Lüttich) including a visit to the amazing Hill 314.
Day 6 - The Falaise Pocket. This day will conclude our understanding of the bloody campaign. We will walk through Major Currie VCs' battlefield in Saint-Lambert-sur-Dive, stop and explore the legendary Moissy Ford area and consider the columns of German men and vehicles that attempted to escape to freedom across the shallow stream. We then move off through the Corridor of Death to the wonderful visitors centre memorial at Montormel (the only museum visit of the week).
Day 7 - Remembrance. Today's tour will conclude at lunchtime to allow people time for their onward journeys. The tour will commence at the striking British memorial at Ver Sur Mer, before winding our way through the countryside to the Commonwealth Cemetery at Ryes-Bazenville. Our final stop will be at the American Cemetery overlooking Omaha Beach.
Tour HQ The toughest decision to make was where to stay. There were three priorities, the first being access. We didn't want to be based in the middle of nowhere, losing valuable time each morning and evening just getting to a main road. The second consideration was comfort. With the touring days being long, tiring and potentially emotionally draining, we wanted a place with top-notch rooms and super service. The third consideration was to create and maintain a great "group spirit" during the tour. We wanted to essentially "take over" a single hotel, so the breakfast room and bar area could become "ours" for the week. In the end we selected the 4 Star Belle Normandyhttps://en.bellenormandy.com/. Which in fact is right opposite where we live in the middle of Bayeux - 5 minutes drive from the N13 highway. The hotel is pretty-much brand new with some of the rooms being decorated just this month. It's absolutely perfect for our needs, the hosts Cedric and Elodie are delightful and we will have a wonderful and convivial stay there.
Briefings and Lectures We fully expect some of the guests on the inaugural April tour will be historians in their own right. So that means we intend to have evening presentations - much like what we do on WW2TV but private and exclusive. We will let you know later who and what might be talked about but it's very exciting.
Bonuses All tour guests will receive an exclusive WW2TV Normandy Tour Hoodie and a hardback book of photos and maps for you to take with you each day and take home as a souvenir. it will include "then and now" photos and other details to enhance your experience.
Physical Requirements This is always an important consideration and something we have given lots of thought to. On the one hand we want the tour to be suitable for as many people as possible. On the other, we don't want it to be a drive-by sightseeing tour. We want to get you in and on the battlefields. I don't like tours where a "them and us" situation occurs where some intrepid guests go off with a guide and the others sit on the bus. That's why although we do expect to cover a few miles on foot each day, it won't be at a frantic pace. There will be breaks and pauses. For example on the bocage/hedgerow walk on Terrain Day, we will allow at least 2 hours to cover what we think will be less than 3 miles. The same will apply to any walking along Omaha beach - there will be plenty of breaks.
Photos and Reflection A vital aspect we think, is to allow time to reflect on what we have seen and to take photos. I've been part of tours that run at breakneck speed - often brilliant, but lacking time for guests to catch their breath. Rest assured there will some time allocated at stops to take photos, walk around and ask questions.
Group Spirit As soon as we have commitment from guests we will start Facebook and WhatsApp groups so the guests can get to know each other. We will discuss reading suggestions, talk about the exact itinerary as it is refined etc.
Connections Please let us know if you will require transport from the ferry port at Ouistreham (Caen) or from Paris or elsewhere, because we may book shuttle transport or be able to assist you.
Thanks for reading and please let us know if you would like to book with us.