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ANZAC Day in The Somme - 2012
"Our 2013 Tour will be updated by the end of June"
For maximum flexibility we are offering 3 options for 2012
Option 1. |
| TOUR |
DAYS |
DEP. DATE |
PRICE
(per person twin share) |
SINGLE
SUPPLEMENT |
| ANZAC Day in the Somme |
5 |
23 April 2012 |
$1,250 |
$300 |
| Following Our ANZACS |
9 |
27 April 2012 |
$3,450 |
$500 |
| Following Our ANZACS & the Somme |
11 |
27 April 2012 |
$4,350 |
$650 |
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All prices are per person, twin share , land only |
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We make every effort to twin share single travellers upon request |
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'EARLY BIRD SPECIAL'
Book by 16th Decemember 2011 and save $100 |
| The tour commences at 1.30pm at our centrally located hotel opposite the Railway Station in Arras, an easy 50 minute train journey from Paris. Here you will be met by your Tour Manager and Battlefield Guide. This afternoon we walk (15 minutes) to visit the amazing Wellington Tunnels to discover the underground life of the Commonwealth Armies. Here we will see tunnels dug during the Middle Ages, and used in World War 1. They were expanded and linked by ANZAC Tunnellers within the ancient quarries where 24,000 soldiers were quartered before the Battle of Arras in 1917. Enjoy a welcome dinner tonight with your fellow travellers. (D) |
| We spend today visiting some of the important sites in the Somme. In and around the village of Pozieres we visit the Australian 1st Division Memorial and the famous Windmill site on the ridge. We pass by Mouquet Farm on our way to the huge Thiepval Memorial commemorating some 73,000 ‘missing’ British troops. We also visit the preserved trenches at the Newfoundland Memorial Park at nearby Beaumont Hamel and proceed on to the site of Lochnagar Crater near Albert. This massive crater resulted from the detonation of a powerful mine marking the commencement of the Battle of the Somme on 1 July 1916. Other sites of major significance include the Australian Corps Memorial at Le Hamel, where Monash first led the Australians on a very successful mission involving tanks, artillery, and infantry. We also visit the Adelaide Cemetery (where the Unknown Soldier was exhumed and now rests in the Australian War Memorial in Canberra), and see glimpses of the crash site of the Red Baron. (B, L) |
| We rise very early to drive and be in position for the ANZAC Day Dawn Service at Villers Bretonneux. Representatives from our group will lay a wreath during the ceremony. There will be hot drinks & pastries available on the coach. We usually arrive early enough to ensure good seats. After the service we will visit the local Franco-Australian Museum at the School at Villers Bretonneux. There will be time to purchase some lunch before we set off to the special local ANZAC Services held in Bullecourt at the ‘Slouch Hat’ Memorial and at the nearby Australian Memorial Park next to the statue of the bronze ‘Bullecourt Digger’. We share these services with the French villagers, and this is always a moving experience. (B) |
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This morning we have a later start and re-visit Bullecourt for a less crowded visit to the memorials. We will then visit the quaint town of Peronne including entry to the acclaimed ‘Museum of the Great War’. A visit will also be made to the 2nd Division Memorial and to the scene of "one of Australia’s finest feats of arms” in the taking of Mont St Quentin.(B, L) |
| DAY 5: Fri 27 Apr TOURS ENDS |
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Your tour ends today after breakfast. (B) |
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PLEASE NOTE: The actual itinerary may vary day to day depending upon crowds, weather, private visits and time constraints. Please request any special visits to graves or cemeteries upon booking your Tour with us.
Why Villers Bretonneux?
As part of the German Spring Offensive on the Western Front, German forces captured Villers-Bretonneux (near Amiens) from exhausted British defenders on 24 April 1918. The next day - 25 April, 1918 - the Australians retook the town in a series of house-to-house fights and the French have never forgotten their valour. The Germans were unnerved in the face of what historian CEW Bean described as the wildest charge in the history of the AIF.
The village school has an entire wing devoted to the heroism of the Australians, and a sign saying: "DO NOT FORGET AUSTRALIA" dominates the small playground. This battle occurred exactly three years after the dawn landing at Gallipoli, and is truly our "Other ANZAC Day".
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