Like two huge, blood-soaked tectonic plates, the grinding Western Front was a battle fought by a rollcall of nations who made the supreme sacrifice. This sweeping tour traverses the trenches, saps, sangars and fortifications of the Front visiting a range of places sacred in our memory of the conflict. From the shattered landscape of Verdun in the east to the fields of Flanders in the west the tour traverses many of the most iconic battlefields of the war in Europe: the Aisne, Meuse-Argonne, Marne, Arras, Mons, Somme and Ypres, a town synonymous with the entire First World War. This far-reaching tour is an excellent way of appreciating the dramatic narrative of the Western Front set in the context of the war’s last witness, the landscape itself.

The battlefields of the Western Front saw the deaths of almost one million British and Commonwealth soldiers during the First World War. From the firing of the first shots by the British near Mons in August 1914 to the signing of the Armistice at Compiègne four years later the bloodletting continued as attested to by countless cemeteries and monuments along the Front, most notably Douaumont, Thiepval, the Menin Gate and Tyne Cot. Starting as a war of manoeuvre, the fast-moving German armies swept through Belgium taking all before them until brought to a halt. The stagnation of trench warfare ensued with the Allies attempting to break the deadlock through a succession of costly and indecisive battles. But during those years both sides significantly developed their armies, weaponry and tactics to such an extent that the final months of the war saw troops once more on the move, employing tactics that would develop into the German Blitzkrieg of the Second World War.

Day 1: Arrival and Namur Forts: Morning Eurostar London St Pancras to Brussels (or join tour at Brussels South/Midi Station). Drive to Namur to gain an overview of the nineteenth-century forts that ringed the city and were bombarded into submission by German artillery in August 1914. Continue to Verdun and our hotel for two nights. (D)

Day 2: The Battle of Verdun: A full day exploring the Battle of Verdun (February – December 1916) including the ridge of Les Éparges, the Herméville Canon, Spinacourt and Douzey, the Mangiennes German Cemetery, and the highly poignant Douaumont Ossuary. Our day finishes at Fort Douaumont, a bitterly contested strongpoint which changed hands several times. (B, D)

Day 3: The Meuse-Argonne offensive: Today we explore this huge battle, waged from September to November 1918, involving a staggering 1.2 million Allied troops, and the main offensive of the American Expeditionary Force (AEF) in the war. Our tour will include the area around Montfaucon where the American 1st Army forced a general German retreat; the American Cemetery and Memorial; and the remarkable Butte de Vaquois, scene of intense underground mining activity. We visit the Monument to the Dead of the Champagne battlefield at Navarin before driving to Château-Thierry, and our hotel for two nights. (B, D)

Day 4: ‘The miracle on the Marne’: In September 1914 German advances were halted near Paris on the Marne and today we explore this dramatic victory. We also visit Belleau Wood where the US 4th Marine Brigade fought though most of June 1918. (B, D)

Day 5: Château-Thierry, Kaiser Offensive and Armistice: We begin by visiting the Château-Thierry Monument to the American and French forces from where we learn about the battle for the town in July 1918, one of the first actions of the AEF, and a prelude to Belleau Wood. We drive to Compiègne, site of the signing of the Armistice to end World War One on 11 November 1918, where we view a replica of the railway carriage within which this historic event took place. Our day concludes at Saint Quentin where we view locations associated with the Kaiserschlacht (Kaiser offensive) of Spring 1918 including Manchester Hill. Hotel in Saint Quentin – three nights. (B, D)

Day 6: British first shots, retreat and last 100 days: Drive to Casteau where we view the location of the first British shots fired on the Western Front on 22 August 1914. At Mons we examine the events of the 23rd when British forces attempted to halt the advancing 1st German Army at the Mons–Condé Canal. Tracing the ensuing retreat of the British towards Le Cateau we detour to Le Quesnoy, site of the last engagement by New Zealand forces in the war on 4 November 1918. At Ors we visit the Forester’s Cottage Memorial where the British poet Wilfred Owen (1893-1918) spent his last night before being killed only days before the end of the war. We also stop at his grave nearby. We discuss the events of September 1918 when Allied forces breached the formidable Hindenburg Line and visit the Riqueval bridge which was daringly captured by Captain Charlton and his men. Return to Saint Quentin. (B, D)

Day 7: The Somme valley - last 100 days: This morning we explore the events of 1918 when Allied forces including large contingents of British, Australian and American troops, halted the Kaiserschlacht advance. We see where British and Australian forces pushed the enemy back from the strategic transport hub of Villers-Bretonneux and Le Hamel where combined arms were used so successfully. We return east to follow the Allies as they repelled German forces and broke their line at Mont St Quentin and Péronne, considered the greatest military achievement of the war. (B, D)

Day 8: The Somme battlefield: a full day spent exploring some of the most iconic sites of the Battle of the Somme (1917): including Delville Wood, Mametz, Lochnagar Crater, Pozieres and Thiepval. We will also visit some of the lesser-known sites. Drive to Arras and our hotel for two nights. (B, D)

Day 9: Arras, Vimy and the underground war: The protection afforded by caves and tunnels was a major feature of the war and we start by visiting the Carrière Wellington at Arras – a huge underground town with a capacity for 25,000 soldiers. We move on to Vimy Ridge to view underground tunnels used for storage, hospital and command positions. The nearby Canadian National Memorial is located on the site of the 1917 battle of Vimy Ridge where we can also view a preserved area of the pock-marked battle landscape. (B, D)

Day 10: The Ypres Salient (north): Today we explore the five battles of Ypres in the period 1914 to 1918 and some of the most evocative sites connected with them. These will include the Menin Road (made famous in the painting by Paul Nash), Hooghte, Polygon Wood, Pilkelm Ridge, Passchendaele, Langemark German Cemetery and the Tyne Cot Cemetery and Memorial to the Missing. This is the largest Commonwealth cemetery in the world with 11,961 burials and the names of nearly 35,000 men whose graves are not known. Hotel in Ypres for two nights. (B, D)

Day 11: The Ypres Salient (south): We start with an examination of life behind the lines at Poperinge and the unusual recreation centre known as ‘Toc H’. Then to the Cemetery at Lijssenthoek, site of a Casualty Clearing Station, and testimony to the number of casualties who succumbed to their wounds. Moving to Messines Ridge we tour the 1917 battlefield and Ploegsteert – known to British troops as ‘Plug Street’ –scene of vicious fighting in the early stages of the war. In the evening we attend the poignant Last Post Ceremony at the Menin Gate in Ypres. (B, D)

Day 12: Depart: There is free time in the morning to explore Ypres and perhaps do some last-minute shopping. Drive to Brussels. Evening Eurostar Brussels to London St Pancras (or perhaps extend your stay in Belgium). (B)