I normally head off to Europe each year with her indoors, the bike and just a general plan of where we're headed.
However this year the wife has decided that we are going to tour the battlefields. I have done a bit of research but all I can find are organised tours and guides. I would rather go it alone but sadly I am rather ignorant about the sites to be seen.
Has anyone on here done the tours and could advise of a possible route. We will either sale in to Cherbourg or Rosscof.
Cheers.

I was intending to visit some WWII sites this year on the Buell. I thought I might start at Dunkirk and pick a route across to Auschwitz. I'd be interested to get some advice too.

Hi Johnny - take the ferry from Rosslare to Cherbourg, then pick your way down the east side of the Manche peninsular - loads of Normandy Beach visiting to be done - pop into St Mere Eglise before staying over in Bayeux. Arromanches is superb - you can spend the whole day there at their D-Day Museum. Then head to Ouistreham for the Pegasus Bridge glider museum - then take the coastal backroads to Cabourg & Deauville to Le Havre. Next day head out via Abbeville & Arras and into WWI territory - meander through the Somme, & up to Dunkirk, over the Belgian border & a quick blat round Bruges before taking the overnight ferry to Hull, then take in Stamford Bridge to round off the battlefields on your way to Cairnryan to get the ferry home.

Diggertours at your service!

Excellent itinerary as always, Digger. Did a long weekend battlefield tour of the Somme. Definitely not a riding holiday, we were doing 3 or 4 miles at a time from cemetry to battlefield to museum. Really fascinating and emotional but I would go with your route to take in a variety of sights and dip into the Somme just to get a feel for it. Canadian site at Vimy Ridge is a real eye opener and an opportunity to go down into the tunnels and worth a brief spell of respect and contemplation at any of the cemeteries along the way.

Not been to any of the Normandy sites in many years but remember going to Pegasus Bridge as a young boy on my first ever trip abroad. My first French dish was served by a lady who had been working there as a young girl on D-Day

Steve

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Back on the road again!

Digger
Time to get the maps out and book the ferry. Ferry to Cherbourg is reasonable but hate to pay those robbing f#%*ers at Stenaline. Although being only one way shouldn't be as painful. Maybe I should consider chancing my arm and book a same day return special for £10. Although I have heard of one guy who was contacted and asked why he had failed to return but me thinks this could be bull. However it would be sh1t to get banned from the ferry. Would make getting of this island slightly difficult.
Cheers for the advise.

Agreed - Vimy Ridge is definitely worth a visit, with the preserved trenches and access / fighting tunnels, and large areas of woodland still roped off due to unexploded ordnance. What I found particularly eye-opening were the tightly strained buttons on the shirts of the very grown-up Canadian girl scouts who act as guides at the site.

The memorial at Thiepval is incredibly moving - a huge structure, designed by Lutyens, the columns of which are covered with the names of 72,000 who died on the Somme and have no known grave.

If you are heading northeast to the WWI sites, the rather older battlefield of Agincourt is another must-see. It's about 45km NE of Abbeville / 35km E of Etaples - look for Azincourt on the map. Despite the trouncing they received there, the Frenchies have established a very good museum / visitor centre.

The lady still works and now owns the cafe since her Mum died. I met her in August and was amazed at the souverniers and display of memerabilia (did I spel any of that wright?) in the Cafe. It's very popular with the British Army and veterans.

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Yes, you got the "display" bit right

+1 on the Arromanche museum.
There are some cracking roads along the coast as well, if you stay off the N13.
I've "done" the D-Day route several times on my travels. Very humbling.

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