With the centenary of the First World War due in 2014, a host of new tour offerings are geared around marking the Great War. Over 149 000 South African troops saw active duty during the four-year conflict, with over 7000 killed in infamous battles such as Passchendaele, the Somme, Ypres and Verdun.
But it is the Battle of Delville Wood that is of particular importance to South Africa: it was the first major fight involving the 1st Infantry Brigade on the Western Front. The casualties were catastrophic – as high as 80 percent –South African soldiers were credited for holding the Woods in what was described as one of the “bloodiest battles of the hell of 1916”.
Trafalgar Tour’s new 12-day ‘WWI & WWII Battlefields’ tour is generating plenty of interest from local tourists, taking you to the wars’ most significant monuments, memorials and museums through England, France, Belgium and the Netherlands.
Starting in London and ending in Amsterdam, the trip stops in Caen, Amiens, Paris, Lilles and includes daytrips to Somme, Ypres, Portsmouth and more. South African guests will be able to pay their respects at Menin Gate Memorial at Ypres, Belgium, where ‘The Last Post’ is sounded every evening at 6pm to honour the war dead.
On an excursion to Ypres, guests will also stop in Passchendaele to visit the museum and see a replica trench. Other highlights of the trip include a visit to the historic D-Day Normandy landing beaches, a ‘Be My Guest’ dinner of Dutch cuisine with a local family just outside Amsterdam, plus a tour of Paris and London with a Local Guide.
The 12-day guided holiday is priced from R23 650 per person sharing, and includes first class accommodation with breakfast daily, five dinners including the Trafalgar exclusive Be My Guest dinner in Amsterdam, overnight ferry from Portsmouth to Caen and lots of included sightseeing. You can also save up to R5200 per couple with Trafalgar’s Early Payment Discount on Easy Terms, which allows you to pay a R5000 deposit on the land portion of your holiday, and only pay the balance 90 days prior to departure. Importantly, the land price is also guaranteed once the deposit is paid.
This offer ends 27 December 2012 and is valid on selected departure dates between April and August 2013. Visit www.trafalgar.com/sa or your travel agent.
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