Trenches at Vimy
Armistice 1918 - The Great Vigil
Tour Based in Arras Over Three Days (One full day and two half days)
-
Cost Includes your Vehicle, Driver and One Passenger, two
nights hotel accommodation
© Content, itineraries and tours copyright Battlefields by 4x4 LLP (Registered in England and Wales - Reg OC398338) Terms and Conditions
Costs below are for your vehicle,
driver and one passenger.
Just £100 deposit required at booking
to secure your place
2024 Armistice Special
Join us on the battlefields to get a true experience and immerse yourselves into the
night before the Armistice
Part of this tour will include attending a ceremony and lighting candles in
remembrance as well as some night laning on the battlefield to reach some of
the cemeteries that are off the beaten track so that they too are remembered.
Tour dates: TBC
The Battle of Arras is often overlooked, but at the end of 38 days of fighting in the
spring of 1917, along a front stretching 20 kilometres from Vimy Ridge to the plain of
Bullecourt, 300,000 personnel on both sides were listed as wounded, missing or
dead. The British Army suffered an average of 4,000 wounded and killed every day -
the highest average daily casualty rate of any British offensive on the Western Front.
For many, their experiences at Arras were the most brutal of the war. Most visitors
travel around the battlefields by car or bus; however, on our tours we rarely see other
vehicles on the lanes we use to traverse the area
Our tour starts near the historical market town of Arras; the frontline for much of
WW1.
Over three days we will give you an insight from a different perspective of this
famous battlefield, traveling in a small convoy of 5-6 vehicles, on tracks once trod by
infantry.
You’ll receive CB commentary as we drive along our route so you can really get a
sense of where troops came from and what their objectives were.
To book, click on the link above. We only require a £100 deposit per vehicle
or full payment if the tour is less than six weeks away. Eight weeks before
the tour we will send you a balance request and invoice. Once the balance is
paid we will send you an information pack including meeting places, times,
booking references etc.If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us at:
info@battlefieldsby4x4.com
This year is the 101st anniversary
of the end of WW1. There are
many celebrations planned and
Battlefieldsby4x4 will be part of
it. Join us for a three day tour
with a difference!
In addition to our normal Arras tour, this
special Armistice tour will include:
•
Two night’s accommodation in a twin bedded
room on a bed and breakfast basis
•
An optional three course meal with wine on the
Friday evening, in a restaurant adjacent to the
market. Allow around €30pp
•
Access to a ceremony on the evening of the
10th
•
Partake in the special activities planned,
including some night laning
Please be aware that at this time of year,
lanes are likely to be wet!
Be prepared to get your vehicle muddy!
NO DATES CURRENTLY AVAILABLE
Example Itinerary:
Day 1
Independent travel to Arras, Pas-de-Calais.
1pm: Welcome, introductions and briefing. The tour starts with a drive along some
tracks towards Vimy Ridge where you soon become aware of its strategic significance.
We visit the Canadian National Memorial, Vimy and trenches before moving on to
Lichfield crater and the Maison Blanche German Cemetery before heading into Arras to
arrive around 16:45 for a visit to the Wellington Quarry
We usually have a table booked for 19:30 at a well-appointed restaurant in the centre
of Arras. This is optional but gives you chance to relax after your journey and also get
to know each other over deliciously, typically French courses in a local restaurant. The
cost is approximately €30pp excluding drinks.
Day 2
We meet at a local supermarket so you can stock up on fuel and provisions for the day
before setting out, using many green lanes, to venture to key areas of the battlefield.
We start the day heading south of Arras to visit the last remaining vestiges of the
Hindenburg Line. We’ll pass many small ‘battlefield’ cemeteries, where soldiers buried
their comrades during or shortly after the battle.
Meet near the centre of Arras and head out again after dark to a small remote
cemetery, accessible only by 4x4’s where we’ll participate in a evening vigil ceremony
and light up the headstones with candles.
Day 3
During the last day of the Tour we cover the Battles of the Scarpe and land over which
saw intense fighting as the British armies advanced towards the small town of Monchy-
le-Preux that had been fortified by the German armies. We include the Arras Memorial
and Faubourg d’Amiens Cemetery where over 37,000 casualties are commemorated
and take part in the Centenary Service of Remembrance of the Armistice.
Tour ends early afternoon.
(Non-contractual Tour example, subject to alteration when necessary as
timing of local commemorations are yet to be confirmed – All times are
local)