Friday 30 April to Tuesday 4 May 2010.
This new and exciting tour offers a chance to experience two unique aspects of Flanders - the First World War and its great beer brewing tradition. We will be concentrating on the Western Front, around the notorious Ypres Salient, then moving south to Mons, which saw the first British shot fired on the Germans at the opening of the war in 1914.
This tour will include visits and some guided tours of outdoor sites, bunkers, trenches and memorials, plus several specialist First World War museums. We will look at what Allied soldiers were drinking in bustling behind line towns such as Poperinge. We will also have a very special session with Frank Becuwe, author of Bier Aan Het Izerfront - Het verhaal van de dorst in de Groote Oorlog (2009) (Beer on The Izer Front - The Tale of Thirst in the Great War. We will visit De Snoek Brewery in Fortem which not only survived the war but appears to have prospered whilst slaking the thirst of the Tommies, and French and Belgian soldiers. We will also hear about what effect the war had on the breweries of Flanders generally and will include visits to at least three other Belgian breweries in and around the Western Front.
The first two nights of this tour will be spent near Ypres in the Oude Abbdij in Lo (the old St. Louis malt house and brewery, converted into a hotel) and the third and fourth nights in Hotel Ibis Mons Centre Gare at Mons, where the British Expeditionary Force first engaged with the Germans in 1914.
We always use our own luxury coach throughout the Tour. Included in the price are breakfasts each day, all brewery visits, admission charges, and coach travel from Colchester or Chelmsford, plus still and sparkling water which is available on the coach free to all travellers. Arrangements can be made for different joining points on the way from Colchester to Dover or even on the other side of the channel. Personal insurance is not included but is strongly advised, as is carrying the European Health Insurance Card. Apply online, by phone or via the Post Office.
The price of this extended five day tour will be announced early in the New Year once we have finalised various expert guides on the ground for both beer and history. If you would like to join us on this tour or if you need more information, please call Podge on +44(0)1245 354677, or send Podge an email.
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