Battles on the Hindenburg Line
5 days from £749pp
About the tour: Battles on the Hindenburg Line
Tour Introduction
Join us on a battlefield tour looking at the key battles on the German Hindenburg Line defences during the final years of the Great War, and uncover the true story of the film '1917'. Alongside a knowledgeable Specialist Guide, visit Quéant Road Cemetery, Bourlon Wood, Flesquières Tank Museum, Lock House No 1 and more.
Tour Includes
- 4 nights hotel with continental breakfast
- Specialist Battlefield Guide
- Convenient local joining points
(Deposits from £150pp)
We offer flexible payment options
Once you have booked your battlefield tour either online, or by telephone (), you have the flexibility of how you pay off the remainder of your balance. You can -
- Use our balance payment facility online to make and track your card payments. You can pay as much as you want up until your final due date or pay it all, the choice is yours.
- Send payments via online banking.
- Send payments via cheque.
- Call us and make a card payment, either a small amount or as lump sum until your final due date.
Our contact and online banking payment details will be on your confirmation invoice to remind you of your choices.
Tour Itinerary
For customers living outside of the UK, if you want to make a booking you will need to provide a UK postcode on our online booking system. If you are not able to provide a relevant UK postcode then you can enter the postcode for London Victoria Coach Station – SW1W 9TP. You should then be able to proceed to complete your booking.
If you do encounter a problem then you can speak to one of our friendly advisors who will be happy to help.
Please Note : After completing your booking, a member of our Customer Service team will be in touch to make sure everything is okay.
Either e-mail our Reservations Department or call on 01709 830 333 and they will check to see whether you can visit a particular cemetery on any of our Battlefield Tours, if we are not able to fit it into our itinerary then you could take some time out of the tour and do this independently by taxi or public transport.
Day 1
Local departure by coach, then to our hotel at Albert in northern France for a four-night stay.
Day 2 - Withdrawal to the Hindenburg Line – Bourlon Wood
This morning, we start on the northern area of the Somme battlefields near Gommecourt, looking at how the Germans began their withdrawal from these battlefields in February to March 1917, and at the ground near Rossignol Wood or Copse 125 as the Germans called it.
We then follow the German withdrawal via Bapaume to the area around Lagnicourt where the battles in the Advance to the Hindenburg Line took place in March 1917. We examine the Australian attacks here and the action involving Captain Percy Cherry, which resulted in the award of a Victoria Cross, also seeing his grave at Quéant Road Cemetery.
We then look at the real story behind the film ‘1917’ which covered the early battles on the Hindenburg Line in 1917 around Ecoust and Croisilles, seeing the battlefields there. After our lunch period in central Arras, we visit the battlefield at Bullecourt. Looking at the Australian and British actions here in April to May 1917, we have an included visit to the Bullecourt Museum, as well as the Digger Memorial.
We continue to the Vis-en-Artois Memorial, which commemorates many of those who fell in the battles for the Hindenburg Line and have no known grave. See the site of the Drocourt-Quéant Switch Line positions taken by Canadian troops in September 1918, and then look at the crossing of the Canal du Nord and the Canadian attack on Bourlon Wood, seeing the Canadian Memorial.
Included meals: Breakfast, Dinner
Gommecourt Battlefield (6)
Key Visits
- Bullecourt Memorial
- Canadian Memorial
- Gommecourt Battlefield
- Quéant Road Cemetery
- Vis-en-Artois Memorial
- Bourlon Wood
Day 3 - Battles on the Hindenburg Line – Cambrai 1917
Today we examine the British advance at Cambrai in November 1917, when hundreds of tanks helped break the Hindenburg Line defences. We start at Rocquigny-Equancourt Road Cemetery, the site of an important Casualty Clearing Station in 1917, and then visit key sites across the Cambrai battlefield at Gouzeaucourt, Trescault and the Flesquières Ridge, seeing the tank memorial.
After our lunch period in central Cambrai, we see the Cambrai Memorial to the Missing, and later have an included visit to the Tank Museum at Flesquières, where the recovered wreck of a MkIV Tank ‘Deborah’, recovered in 1998, is now on display. We then examine the fighting around Masnières, seeing the Newfoundland Memorial, and the crossing of the St. Quentin canal at Marcoing.
After our return this evening, we visit the nearby Le Tommy Café, a WW1-themed establishment with its own private museum and trench system, where we have an included dinner in the café.
Included meals: Breakfast, Dinner
Flesquières Tank Museum (5)
Key Visits
- Le Tommy Café
- Cambrai Memorial
- Flesquières Battlefield
- Flesquières Tank Museum
- Rocquigny-Equancourt Road Cemetery
- Newfoundland Memorial
Day 4 - Breaking the Hindenburg Line – 1918
We begin at the Somme American Cemetery, looking at the fighting here in September 1918 when Australian and American soldiers fought side by side breaking the German defences. We visit the American Memorial at Bellicourt, look at the Ricqueval area and the St. Quentin Canal Tunnel entrance, and, at Ricqueval Bridge, see the amazing exploits of British troops who captured it intact.
After lunchtime in central St. Quentin, we look at the final battles on the Hindenburg Line in October 1918 in the battlefields around Beaurevoir and Joncourt, seeing where the war poet Wilfred Owen was awarded a Military Cross for his bravery.
We then follow the route of the British advance to the Sambre Canal, seeing the Lock House No 1 where two Victoria Crosses were awarded for bravery in November 1918. And, at Ors, we see where British soldiers crossed the canal and visit the grave of Wilfred Owen, buried alongside others who fell in the final great British battle on the Western Front.
Included meals: Breakfast, Dinner
Lock House No 1 (5)
Key Visits
- Lock House No 1
- Ors Communal Cemetery
- Somme American Cemetery
- St Quentin Canal
- Joncourt
- Bellicourt
Day 5
Return home.
Included meals: Breakfast
Specialist Battlefield Guides
All of Leger’s battlefield tours are accompanied by specialist guides. Their individual in-depth knowledge of warfare will be informative, as well as enhance your overall experience, as they recreate a fascinating perception of the history and factual events of each battle. Discover the actual catalysts for war, the strategies employed and the final, inevitable outcomes, as well as experiencing the emotional human side of the front line.
Please note: On certain tours, you may get tour guides other that the ones listed below.
Hotel
If you prefer, then you can join the tour at the hotel. To do this, we will require a copy of your passport for identification purposes and you must advise us at the time of booking.
No reduction will be given if you should choose to do this.
All hotel rooms benefit from private bathroom facilities.
Some hotels have tea and coffee making facilities. Please check the tour pages for more information or call our Customer Service Department on 01709 830333
Most hotels have a lift, please call our Customer Service Department on 01709 830333 for more information.
Some hotels have ground floor rooms. Please email for information on individual hotels or call our Customer Service Department on 01709 830333.
Your hotels will supply towels in your room.
We are unable to guarantee that the hotel will be able to meet your dietary requirements. We find that the majority of European countries do not generally cater for vegetarians and that the meal supplied may well be what everyone else is having minus the meat.
We will of course endeavour to arrange for a vegetarian meal at the hotel. We do however suggest that you advise us of your dietary requests at the time of booking and recommend that you speak to the receptionist on arrival with regard to your request.
Ibis Albert
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About the hotel
The Ibis Albert hotel in France offers a relaxed stay, conveniently located just 2km from both the Albert train station and the Le Musée des Abris-Somme 1916. Guests can enjoy their comfortable rooms, featuring free Wi-Fi, flat-screen TVs, and en-suite bathrooms.
Hotel Features
- English Speaking Staff
- Guest Lounge
- Lift
- Restaurant
- WiFi Available
Room Features
- Bath and/or Shower
- Hairdryer
- TV
Travel Options
Departure times given for each region are approximate. Please check your travel documents to confirm the actual timings.
Front row seats can be reserved for £14pp (up to 6 days duration), £22pp (7 & 8 days duration) and £25pp (9 days duration and over) on all European tours. In addition to this seats on the second row can be reserved for £7pp (up to 6 days duration), £14pp (7 & 8 days duration) and £15pp (9 days duration and over). This offer is only available for bookings of two or four persons on the front row and is subject to availability. Guaranteed front/second row seats cannot be reserved on feeder journeys to/from the U.K. port. Children under 15 years cannot occupy a front row seat due to French Law. Central view seats are free.
Please note: On some coaches the legroom on front seats may be slightly less than that available on other seats due to the presence of a modesty board in front.
If your tour is cancelled for any reason and front/second row seats are not available on your new tour you will be refunded the supplement. No other compensation will be payable.
Alternatively, we can take seating requests on your booking. However, requests are not guaranteed. All seat numbers are confirmed on travel documents approximately 7-10 days prior to departure.
We guarantee that all passengers on the same booking will be seated together on the main tour coach. Seats on the transfer coaches to and from the U.K. port are not allocated.
Hot and cold drinks are served on the main tour coaches. Prices are approximately £1 or 1.25 Euro per drink. Prices will be confirmed by the driver. Drinks may also be served on the transfer coaches but this is not guaranteed.
Transfer vehicles are routed approximately 2-3 weeks before departure and will depend on where passengers are booked to travel from on any particular date as to which route is taken. If you require further detailed information regarding the route to the port you can contact our Customer Service Department on 01709 830333 two weeks before you are due to travel.
With regard to the route taken by the main tour coach, this is determined by the driver.
All main tour coaches have on-board toilets. Transfer vehicles to and from the U.K. port may not have on-board toilets. When non-British coaches are used on transfers and tours (air holidays only) an on-board toilet may not be available. However, comfort stops will be made during long journeys.
All coaches feature air-conditioning. Should the air-conditioning system break down for a period exceeding 12 hours, compensation will be awarded up to a maximum of £10 per fare-paying passenger per tour.
Depending on the location of your pickup point, you may be picked up by coach (not necessarily the on you are touring on), minibus, taxi, National Express or Megabus service. You may then be taken to another centralised pickup location or service station. We operate a passenger interchange at Stop 24 Services, where you will meet the tour coach you are holidaying on and then continue on with your outbound journey. Similarly, on the way home, you may also change transfer vehicles at another location, to take you to your final drop off point.
One medium sized suitcase per person, which should weigh no more than 20kg when full. We may refuse to carry larger or heavier cases. Hand luggage can be stored in the overhead racks aboard the coach.
It could be either - This will be confirmed in your travel documents.
When it comes to getting to the Battlefields, Leger Holidays make it easy, with a selection of travel options for you choose from.
Silver Service Coach
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Silver Service Features
- Sit back and relax in specially-designed, deluxe reclining seats, with leather headrests, footrests and more legroom than standard coaches.
- Enjoy the perfect temperature onboard with climate control.
- Relax and have a chat in the spacious rear lounge.
- Servery on board offering a range of refreshments.
- Porterage* at most hotels, so you really don’t have to lift a finger.
- Time flies with our onboard entertainment system.
- With free personal headphones you can tune into the music channel, listen to the radio or watch DVDs.
- Onboard toilet
Silver Service Seating Plan
Silver Service Virtual Tour
Luxuria Coach
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Luxuria Features
- Deluxe armchair-style seats with leather exterior, central arm rests with cup holders and retractable calf rests give you a more comfortable journey.
- Every seat has its own, fully interactive, touch screen T.V. offering a wide choice of entertainment so you can control what you want to watch and when.
- There’s also a selection of double and single seats, including four seats face-to-face with tables. And with a total of 7 single seats available, these are ideal for passengers travelling independently.
- Plug sockets and USB points at each seat mean you can keep your devices fully charged throughout your journey.
- Onboard toilet.
Luxuria Seating Plan
Luxuria Virtual Tour
Travel Extras
With an overnight stay or the option to meet us at the interchange, our travel extras allow you to create a travel experience to suit your needs...
Join coach at Interchange
+ Find out moreJoin your tour coach at the interchange.
On most tours if you’d prefer to join your tour coach at Stop 24 services, you can park your car in the car park which is accredited by the Park Mark safer parking scheme and is monitored 24 hours a day by CCTV. Payment for the parking is made on arrival using the self-service machines.
Excludes tours to Ireland and the U.K. and tours travelling via Brittany Ferries.
