Are you looking for a school trip that brings to life the advancements in medicine during WW1?

This school trips to the WW1 battlefields around Ypres focuses on the journey of a WW1 soldier. On the first day, your group will travel to Ypres to learn about what he would have experienced on the frontline. And you will visit the graves of soldiers, both Commonwealth and German, to learn how many fell and now rest on those frontlines.

On day 2, your students will learn about the Battle of Arras, with visits to Vimy Ridge to see the trenches and Wellington Quarry to enjoy a guided tour of the tunnels there. The day will end poignantly with your group invited to attend the Last Post Ceremony at the Menin Gate.

On day 3, you will follow a soldier’s evacuation route from the frontline to an advanced dressing station, on to a casualty clearing station and then back to the UK.

By following this journey, your students will experience how conditions on the Western Front revolutionised medicine and surgery and how these advancements are still important in modern-day medicine.

Suggested Itinerary (3 days, 2 nights)

Day Morning Summary Afternoon Summary Evening Summary
1

Coach departs from school

Ferry crossing

Arrive in Calais

Drive to Zonnebeke

Visit the Memorial Museum Passchendaele 1917 for the British Dugout and German Trench Experience

Visit Tyne Cot British Cemetery

Visit Langemark German Cemetery

Check in to accommodation

Evening meal

2

Breakfast at accommodation

Drive to Arras

Stop at Vimy Ridge to visit the monument and the trenches

Visit to Notre Dame de Lorette French Cemetery and Memorial

Visit to Wellington Quarry for a guided tour of the tunnels

Evening meal at accommodation

Visit to the Menin Gate for the Last Post Ceremony

3

Breakfast at accommodation

Visit to the Hooge Crater Museum where your group can visit the medical evacuation exhibition

Visit to the advanced dressing station at Essex Farm

Visit to Brandhoek Cemetery, field ambulance post

Group to visit the death cells and shooting post in Poperinge followed by Lijssenthoek cemetery, former casualty clearing station

Drive the route from Lijssenthoek to Hazebrock and then across to St Omer past Wallon-Cappel, which is the original trainline that brought supplies to and soldiers to the frontline and took the injured back to the UK

Arrive in Calais

Ferry crossing

Arrive in Dover

Return to school

3 days, 2 nights Price from £250 pp
  • 2 night's half-board hostel accommodation with students in multibedded rooms and staff in twins/singles
  • Access to the Vamoos app to download all tour-related travel documents
  • Comprehensive travel and medical insurance including I.P.T.
  • Visits as per the itinerary
  • Free itinerary planning service
  • Free staff place ratio 1:8
  • Detailed information pack
  • Motorway tolls and taxes
  • Return executive coach travel
  • Return ferry or Eurotunnel crossings
  • VAT at current rates to tour operators

Accommodation

Educational Activities

Essex Farm

Essex Farm

Read More
+

John McCrae's 'In Flanders Fields' remains, to this day, one of the most memorable war poems ever written. It is

Museum

In Flanders Fields Museum

Read More
+

This interactive museum mixes artefacts with documentary film, audio-visual presentations and contemporary artwork to vividly portray the horror and brutality

Last Post Ceremony, Menin Gate

Last Post Ceremony, Menin Gate

Read More
+

Every evening since 1928 the Last Post has sounded at the Menin Gate at 20:00 in homage to the fallen

Memorial Museum Passchendaele 1917

Memorial Museum Passchendaele 1917

Read More
+

The museum commemorates the Battle of Passchendaele in 1917, in which there were 500,000 casualties in 100 days in which

Tyne Cot British Cemetery

Tyne Cot British Cemetery

Read More
+

Within a kilometre of the farthest point in Belgium reached by the Allied forces lies the largest cemetery for Commonwealth

Vimy Ridge

Vimy Ridge

Read More
+

In April 1917, Canadian soldiers wrested control of the escarpment here in a brief but bloody battle. A striking monument,

Hooge Crater Museum

Hooge Crater Museum

Read More
+

On the site where some of the fiercest battles were fought is the 'Hooge Crater' Museum 1914-1918, one of the

Newfoundland Memorial Park, Beaumont-Hamel

Newfoundland Memorial Park, Beaumont-Hamel

Read More
+

On the first day of the battle of the Somme, eight hundred men of the Royal Newfoundland Regiment went over

Somme 1916 Museum

Somme 1916 Museum

Read More
+

From the ninth to the sixteenth centuries, the people of Albert, like many in the region, got used to hiding

Thiepval Memorial to the Missing

Thiepval Memorial to the Missing

Read More
+

The slaughter on the Somme wiped out a generation, and continues to cast a shadow on Britain’s popular consciousness. This

Wellington Quarry

Wellington Quarry

Read More
+

Beneath the streets of Arras lie impressive chalk quarries which date back to the Middle Ages. In 1914, Arras was

Cultural Activities

Leonidas Chocolate Shop

Leonidas Chocolate Shop

Read More
+

Hans and Stephanie are always happy to welcome you to their chocolate shop! Situated in the Grote Markt main square

Supporting you every step of the way

1 Creating Your Perfect Trip

We'll tailor make your school trip to meet your specific requirements

2 Launching your trip to parents and students

Head to our resources section for FREE promotional materials

3 After you've booked

Your dedicated Itinerary Coordinator will work with you on the finer details of your trip

4 While you're away

You'll be able to reach us 24/7 during your trip if you need our help

5 After your trip

Head back to our resources section to continue the learning

Need help?

I wanted to use my languages in a role that helped promote travel as part of school life. – Laura Lucas Tour Consultant

Don't take our word for it …

The tour company and our coach driver were A*! We are looking forward to booking with you again next year! The destination was gorgeous! Very quaint and in the heartland of the Rhine Valley – beats all the river cruises you see on the adverts! — Surbiton High School , October 2018

Your School Trip is Fully Protected

As a fully-accredited school travel company, booking with Halsbury Travel offers you complete peace of mind. Our accreditations are your guarantee that:

  • Your school trip will be fully financially protected
  • Your group’s safety will be prioritised
  • Your trip will be a quality educational experience
Find out more about our accreditations

Safety prioritised

As an Assured Member of the School Travel Forum (STF) we have an effective Safety Management System in place.

As well as reassuring you that your group's safety will be prioritised at all times, this will also help you to meet your due diligence and reduces the amount of External Provider paperwork required.

High quality service

Our Accreditations

We are a Member of ABTA, which means we are obliged to maintain a high standard of service to you by ABTA’s Code of Conduct.

Quality educational experiences

The Learning Outside the Classroom (LOtC) Quality Badge is your reassurance that Halsbury Travel is committed to offering LOtC activities that are safe and beneficial to learning.

Financial protection for coach tours

For non-flight packages, the Association of Bonded Travel Organisers Trust Limited (ABTOT) provides financial protection under The Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements Regulations 2018 for Halsbury Travel (5493), and in the event of their insolvency. ABTOT cover provides for a refund in the event you have not yet travelled or repatriation if transportation was included in your package. Please note that bookings made outside the UK are only protected by ABTOT when purchased directly with Halsbury Travel.

Financial protection for flight trips

All air tours and flights arranged by us are also ATOL protected. Our ATOL number is ATOL 5079. Protection extends primarily to customers who book and pay in the United Kingdom.

The Halsbury Difference

School trips designed by teachers for teachers

Originally founded by teachers in 1986 and with several former teachers in our team, we understand the pressures on you as Group Leader and work hard to relieve them.

Trips tailored to your curriculum and learning objectives

We’ll design your trip around your specific learning objectives and curriculum, to ensure it meets your particular requirements.

Rewarding loyalty scheme

Work together with other teachers in your school to save thousands of pounds on future school trips with our multi-trip loyalty scheme!