Our Self-Drive Tours
As
you
may
already
have
found,
there
are
many
companies
offering
battlefield
tours,
especially
at
the
centenary
of
the
Great
War.
Our
tours
allow
you
to
reveal
the
hidden
history
of
the
battlefields
at
your
own
pace,
at
a
time
and
at
a
pace
of
your
choosing,
and
for
you
and
just
you.
We
are
also
one
of
the
very
few
fully
registered
UK
battlefield
tour
companies
who
have
been
established
for
over
20
years
and
who
specialise
in
the
Great
War
(Western
Front)
and
nothing
else.
We
are
also
the
only
self-drive
tour
company
to
have
received
so
many
national
press
awards
and
recommendations,
including
Vanity
Fair's
much
coveted
‘Best
Guided
Tour'
award
a
few
years
back
and
the
prestigious
'
Country
Life'
magazine
-
see
our ‘Testimonials’ (main menu left).
Our
Self-Drive
tour
'package'
is
just
that.
It
includes
your
hotel
accommodation
and
Channel
crossing
(for
UK
travellers)
and,
most
importantly
of
all,
our
unique
Self-
Drive
battlefield
guides,
maps,
plans,
directions
etc
all
dovetailed
together
by
us,
so
all
you
have
to
do
is
just
pack
and
go
-
we
make
it
as
simple
as
that!
Please
note
that
our
Self-Drive
guides
are
are
only
available
as
part
of
a
'package'
comprising
hotel
accommodation,
and
that
our
private
1:1
guiding
option
is
only
possible when booking a Self-Drive tour.
You
may
be
unsure
as
to
whether
a
self-
drive
tour
is
for
you.
Our
best
advice
is
to
have
a
closer
look
at
our
many
testimonials
to
see
what
people
like
you
have
said
after
they
returned
from
a
self-
drive
tour.
Unlike
some
companies,
we
don’t
just
cherry-pick
the
letters
we
want
you
to
read.
The
testimonials
you
see
on
our
website
are
exactly as we received them.
People
who
wish
to
visit
the
battlefields
of
the
Great
War
quite
often
think
first
of
a
conducted
tour.
However,
for
those
truly
seeking
to
reveal
the
legacy
of
the
Great
War,
nothing
can
beat
the
freedom
of
exploring
the
battlefields
without
the
rigid
timetable
of
a
coach/minibus
group
dictating
the
pace.
How
frustrating
must
it
be
to
see
the
battlefields
passing
before
your
very
own
eyes
without
being
able
to
stop
wherever
you
want
to
stop,
for
however
long
you
want
to
spend,
exploring
what
you
want
to
explore.
The
freedom
to
explore
the
battlefields
at
your
own
pace
is
what
I
always
wanted,
and
what
today
sets our tours apart.
If
you
intend
visiting
the
battlefield
you
need
to
be
well
briefed.
Many
visitors
just
turn
up
thinking
that
all
will
be
clear,
which
will
certainly
not
be
the
case.
This
is
where
our
Self-Drive
guide
expertise
comes
in
to
play,
expertise
based
on
having
personally
conducted
over
300
small-group
battlefield
tours
over
the
past
18
years.
Our
written
guides
are
not
just
any
old
collection
of
briefing
notes,
copied
books
or
cobbled
together
maps
as
offered
by
some
companies.
Our
self-drive
battlefield
guides
are
professionally
produced
comprising
two
parts,
so
separating
navigation
from
the
main
guide.
The
navigation
section
even
includes
a
photo
of
every
junction
you'll
encounter
with
clear
overlaid
pointers.
It's
written
as
if
we
are
in
the
car
with
you.
Have
a
look
to
the
left
here
under
‘resources’
where
you
can
watch
a
brief
video
showing
you
what our guides look like.
Our
guides
are
regularly
updated
fully
bound
A4
colour
guides
which
have
been
carefully
designed
to
take
you
on
a
journey
of
exploration,
so
you
know
exactly
where
to
drive,
where
to
stop,
where
to
walk
and,
most
importantly
of
all,
what
to
look
for.
Our
guides
are
only
available
to
those
booking
a
tour
with
us
and
so
not
available
from
shops.
It
is
this
essential
combination
of
comparative
'then
and
now'
maps,
photos
and
narratives
that
have
made
our
Self-Drive
guides
so
appealing,
especially
to
the
independent
traveller
seeking
to
explore
the
past
in
greater detail.
And
lastly.
.
.if
you
are
thinking
of
booking
a
Self-Drive
tour
then
please
book
as
far
in
advance
as
possible
as
hotel
rooms
soon
get
booked
and
we can only offer those hotels we show on out ‘Hotel Options’
Where
next?
Have
a
look
at
our
Somme
and
Ypres
Self-Drive
itineraries
(links
all
bolow)
then
simply
go
to
our
‘Get
a
Quotation’
page
and
email
us
(or
phone)
with
the
tour
you
have
in
mind
(there’s
some
helpful
advice
on
our
quotation
page)
and
we’ll
send
you
a
bespoke
quotation based on how many people/nights/rooms etc.
Battlefield location
map (click to enlarge)
Somme Battlefield Tours Ltd Wimborne Dorset BH21 1EJ Tel: +44 (0) 7776 195773 or +44 (0) 1202 840520
info@battlefield-tours.com
One of the very first self-
discovery tour guides,
produced by the Michelin
Tyre company in 1919!
(click pages to enlarge)
A quick reminder of what’s
included with our Self-Drive
tours:
•
Channel crossing
Dover-Calais by
Eurotunnel
•
En-suite selected
hotel accommodation
including breakfast
•
Our acclaimed guide
material, directions,
maps etc - without
doubt the most
important component!
•
Us being here pretty
much all the time to
help you in any way
possible (we don’t
close like other travel
agents…)
Below - example pages
from our Self-Drive
guide. Each guide
comprises a separate
navigational section with
lots of extra ‘must sees’
as you travel along the
itinerary routes, as well
as the bulkier main
section which describes
in much greater detail
the key sections shown
on our Tour Itineraries
page.
Above - example ‘Part I’
navigational pages
Above - example ‘Part I’
navigational pages
Please click the poppy to hear one of the most
moving readings of Col John McCrae’s 1915 poem
‘In Flanders Fields’
If you have any queries
about travelling with
Eurotunnel, including
travel updates, arriving at
the terminal and
submitting your Advanced
Passenger Iformation, then
please click here to go to
our Home Page where
you’ll find some helpful
guidence at the bottom of
the page.
Full menu
Somme Battlefield Tours Ltd Tel: 07776 195773 or 01202 840520 info@battlefield-tours.com
The
picture
at
the
top
of
this
page
is
one
of
the
very
first
Self-Drive
tours
driving
around
the
raw
Ypres
battlefield
still
littered with the debris of war in 1919!
As
you
may
already
have
found,
there
are
many
companies
offering
battlefield
tours,
especially
at
the
centenary
of
the
Great
War.
Our
tours
allow
you
to
reveal
the
hidden
history
of
the
battlefields
at
your
own
pace,
at
a
time
and
at
a
pace
of
your
choosing,
and
for
you
and
just
you.
We
are
also
one
of
the
very
few
fully
registered
UK
battlefield
tour
companies
who
have
been
established
for
over
20
years
and
who
specialise
in
the
Great
War
(Western
Front)
and
nothing
else.
We
are
also
the
only
self-drive
tour
company
to
have
received
so
many
national
press
awards
and
r
e
c
o
m
m
e
n
d
a
t
i
o
n
s
,
including
Vanity
Fair's
much
coveted
‘Best
Guided
Tour'
award
a
few
years
back
and
the
prestigious
'
Country
Life'
magazine
-
see
our
‘Testimonials’
(main
menu left).
Our
Self-Drive
tour
'package'
is
just
that.
It
includes
your
hotel
accommodation
and
Eurotunnel
Channel
crossing
(for
UK
travellers)
and,
most
importantly
of
all,
our
unique
Self-
Drive
battlefield
guides,
maps,
plans,
directions
etc
all
dovetailed
together
by
us,
so
all
you
have
to
do
is
just
pack
and
go
-
we
make
it
as
simple
as
that!
Please
note
that
our
Self-Drive
guides
are
are
only
available
as
part
of
a
'package'
comprising
hotel
accommodation,
and
that
our
private
1:1
guiding
option
is
only
possible
when
booking
a
Self-
Drive tour.
You
may
be
unsure
as
to
whether
a
self-drive
tour
is
for
you.
Our
best
advice
is
to
have
a
closer
look
at
our
many
testimonials
to
see
what
people
like
you
have
said
after
they
returned
from
a
self-drive
tour.
Unlike
some
companies,
we
don’t
just
cherry-pick
the
letters
we
want
you
to
read.
The
testimonials
you
see
on
our
website
are exactly as we received them.
People
who
wish
to
visit
the
battlefields
of
the
Great
War
quite
often
think
first
of
a
conducted
tour.
However,
for
those
truly
seeking
to
reveal
the
legacy
of
the
Great
War,
nothing
can
beat
the
freedom
of
exploring
the
battlefields
without
the
rigid
timetable
of
a
coach/minibus
group
dictating
the
pace.
How
frustrating
must
it
be
to
see
the
battlefields
passing
before
your
very
own
eyes
without
being
able
to
stop
wherever
you
want
to
stop,
for
however
long
you
want
to
spend,
exploring
what
you
want
to
explore.
The
freedom
to
explore
the
battlefields
at
your
own
pace
is
what
I
always
wanted,
and
what
today
sets
our tours apart.
If
you
intend
visiting
the
battlefield
you
need
to
be
well
briefed.
Many
visitors
just
turn
up
thinking
that
all
will
be
clear,
which
will
certainly
not
be
the
case.
This
is
where
our
Self-Drive
guide
expertise
comes
in
to
play,
expertise
based
on
having
personally
conducted
over
300
small-group
battlefield
tours
over
the
past
18
years.
Our
written
guides
are
not
just
any
old
collection
of
briefing
notes,
copied
books
or
cobbled
together
maps
as
offered
by
some
companies.
Our
self-drive
battlefield
guides
are
professionally
produced
comprising
two
parts,
so
separating
navigation
from
the
main
guide.
The
navigation
section
even
includes
a
photo
of
every
junction
you'll
encounter
with
clear
overlaid
pointers.
It's
written
as
if
we
are
in
the
car
with
you.
Have
a
look
to
the
left
here
under
‘resources’
where
you
can
watch a brief video showing you what our guides look like.
Our
guides
are
regularly
updated
fully
bound
A4
colour
guides
which
have
been
carefully
designed
to
take
you
on
a
journey
of
exploration,
so
you
know
exactly
where
to
drive,
where
to
stop,
where
to
walk
and,
most
importantly
of
all,
what
to
look
for.
Our
guides
are
only
available
to
those
booking
a
tour
with
us
and
so
not
available
from
shops.
It
is
this
essential
combination
of
comparative
'then
and
now'
maps,
photos
and
narratives
that
have
made
our
Self-Drive
guides
so
appealing,
especially
to
the
independent
traveller
seeking
to
explore the past in greater detail.
And
lastly.
.
.if
you
are
thinking
of
booking
a
Self-Drive
tour
then
please
book
as
far
in
advance
as
possible
as
hotel
rooms
soon
get
booked
and
we
can
only
offer
those
hotels
we
show
on out ‘Hotel Options’ page.
Where
next?
Have
a
look
at
our
Somme
and
Ypres
Self-
Drive
itineraries
then
simply
go
to
our
‘Get
a
Quotation’
page
and
email
us
(or
phone)
with
the
tour
you
have
in
mind
(there’s
some
helpful
advice
on
our
quotation
page)
and
we’ll
send
you
a
bespoke
quotation
based
on
how
many
people/nights/rooms etc.
Battlefield
location map
(click to enlarge)
One of the very first self-
discover tour guides,
produced by the Michelin
Tyre company in 1919!
(click images book and
pages to enlarge)
A quick reminder of what’s included with our
Self-Drive tours:
•
Channel crossing Folkstone-Calais by
Eurotunnel (just 35 minutes!)
•
En-suite selected hotel accommodation
including breakfast
•
Our acclaimed guide
material/directions/maps etc - without
doubt the most important component!
•
Us being here pretty much all the time to
help you in any way possible (we don’t
close like other travel agents…)
For 2020-2021 we will be
including a free copy of
Trevor Yorke’s excellent
book ‘The Trench’ with
every Self-Drive guide
tour we arrange.
Below - example pages
from our Self-Drive
guide. Each guide
comprises a separate
navigational section
with lots of extra ‘must
sees’ as you travel
along the itinerary
routes, as well as the
bulkier main section
which describes in
much greater detail the
key sections shown on
our Tour Itineraries
page.
Above - example
‘Part I’ navigational
pages
Somme Battlefield Tours Ltd
Wimborne Dorset BH21 1EJ
+44 (0) 7776 195773 or +44 (0) 1202 840520
info@battlefield-tours.com
Getting to Eurotunnel termini click here
We recommend Eurotunnel Channel crossing (included with our
Self-Drive tours).
YouTube
If this is your first time using Eurotunnel then just click the
above YouTube link to see a helpful 9-minute dash-cam video
showing the procedure for arriving at the
Eurotunnel complex near Folkstone.
My special thanks to Craig Rogers for creating
this most helpful video.
Also, checkout for a mixed bag of other short videos
uploaded by travellers.
Menu
Clients who have booked a Eurotunnel Channel crossing:
Please click here for our guide to completing your
Eurotunnel Advanced Passenger Information (API)
Somme Battlefield Tours Ltd Tel: 07776 195773 or 01202 840520
info@battlefield-tours.com
Our Self-Drive
Tours
We recommend and include Eurotunnel - the
fastest and easiest way to cross the Channel!
