My wife and I have just returned from a wonderful holiday that took us from Rome to Paris and then London via the two day battlefields tour with Sacred Ground Tours.
We selected Phil largely because of the testimonials provided by previous clients and two days later it was clear how accurate those reviews were. As with some of their other customers, Sacred Grounds personalized our tour to allow us to visit the grave of a relative, shot during the campaigns of 1918 and buried just outside of Villers-Bretonneux. In addition, Phil went out of his way to drop us off at Lille at the end of the second day rather than return us to Arras – this saved us considerable time the following day when catching the Eurostar to London.
During our two wonderful days touring the WW1 battlefields with Sacred Ground Tours we not only visited important memorials, cemeteries and battlefields and drove through gorgeous countryside but we also climbed hills, walked along dirt paths and through over grown bunkers and combed ploughed fields for war relics.
On our first day we were picked up by Mathilde in a nine seater van and with only Karen and I and two other Aussie tourists, we had plenty of room. Mathilde has a Masters in History and during the day outlined broad war strategies up to and including the Battles of the Somme in 1916 as well as providing interesting details of specific battles and fascinating pieces of information about anything and everything. Of particular note was our visit to the Villers-Bretonneaux War Memorial and the newly opened John Monash Museum.
Last time I had seen the Memorial was on the televised ANZAC Day ceremony last year, full of people, chairs and flags, dignitaries, wreaths and TV crews. On our visit it was quiet with only one or two people looking at the headstones and a couple of gardeners tending the beds of flowers. We walked up to the Memorial, explored inside and then climbed the stairs to the top of the tower where we had a 360 degree panoramic view over the cemetery, the surrounding farms and the surrounding towns.
Mathilde then drove us a few kilometers to Hangard Wood where we found the grave of my Great Uncle who died just over a hundred years ago. It was very moving to spend some time contemplating the sacrifices he had made along with the thousands of others who were buried in the graves we visited during the two days.
Phil was our host on day two and where Mathilde was great with her knowledge of the battles, Phil was even better from a personal and practical perspective. For example, at Fromelles where my Grandfather fought, not only did he talk about the battle but he also pointed out where my Grandfather would have started his charge and where he would have raced across the fields to where he would have laid in no-mans’ land after being injured. We finished that part of the tour scouring through a nearby paddock searching for war souveniers.
As we continued through the day, Phil pointed out all the battlefields that my Grandfather would have fought at. And, in addition to the memorials and cemeteries on our itinerary, Phil took us through old bunkers and pillboxes and along trenches and craters littering the battlefields. At Polygon Wood, we approached the memorial down a long dirt path through the most marvelous forest. Our second day ended in the best possible way with the service at Menin Gate.
Lunch on both days and dinner on Day 2 at Ypres were excellent affairs.
In summary, a very special two days with not only a professional tour company with great itineraries, good transportation and meals but with two very personable, experienced and informative guides. I highly recommend Sacred Ground Tours.