World War I Tour of Northern France; the Argonne Forest
Description
Walk in the footsteps of World War 1 soldiers on this 2.5-hour guided tour of a battlefield site in northern France. Hear diary entries from French, American and German fighters who served in the trenches and behind the front lines while you peer into hidden communication and canon bunkers, former camps, and field hospital sites located in the Argonne Forest. N.b. I boycott American and Israeli citizens as long as they fight this 3th World War. I hope that clients spend there money and time in helping the Palestinian and iranian victims.
Tour Options
Itinerary
During this tour, choose between the easier walk along the pavement or make it more challenging by going in and out the trenches through the woods in the Argonne Forest. Here you find the most interesting and most original surroundings; your guide will adapt each tour to the requirements and interests of your group, but either way you have to have a condition to walk firmly 2.5 hours. Learn about the former battalion as you follow along behind the front line and through trenches, bunkers, tunnels, hospitals, and a camps from the First World War. Hear diary entries written by French or German soldiers in 1915, written at the same locations you explore.
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Service animals allowed
- Not recommended for travelers with spinal injuries
- Not recommended for pregnant travelers
- Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health
- Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness
- Operates in all weather conditions, please dress appropriately for the outdoors and through nettles and stuff; We may get wet and dirty in the trenches and the bunkers; Bring a flashlight if you have one. And you need to be capable to walk in rough terrain.
- In winter it's best to visit trenches and bunkers because they are free of plants.
Reviews(7)
Our guide was very knowledgeable and detailed. She was interesting and flexible. She adjusted our tour due to our misunderstanding. A great guide.
Our operator was wonderful! We had some travel/scheduling hiccups and she made some plan suggestions/adjustments that allowed for a wonderful time of exploring and experiencing the trench conditions of WW1 in the Argonne area. We appreciated both our operator's flexibility and her knowledge of the area and WW1 time period!
Excellent tour off the beaten path, but worth the visit if you're interested in US WW1 history Argonne sector. Tour guide is very knowledgeable, friendly, and will accommodate tour to your interests. See old bunkers still in tact, trench lines, and even on my tour found an old grenade (see picture). Easy to get to from major cities with a rental car. I stayed in Metz, and it was 90 minutes from me on A4. Step in actual trenches and bunkers used during WW1. Walk the battlefields and be where history actually occurred.
She was very knowledgeable about the area and took us for an extensive walk through the forest. She, at first didn't think that we would be able to do the "hard" walk as we were both 75 and "American". The only thing that we would say negative, would be that she had multiple print-outs that she read to us regarding the sites but she seemed to not have them very organized as she would rummage through them before finding the correct one to read. Other than that, it was a good tour.
This was not the type of tour we expected with paved paths to the bunkers; monuments, museums, & cemeteries to visit. We hiked in tall grass, up and down hills and walked in the rain. We had mosquito bites and had to check for ticks when we got back to our hotel. Also there was no restuarant nearby to eat afterwards. Our tour guide did read from diaries from soldiers fighting at the time which we enjoyed.
Isabelle, our guide, was exceptionally well informed and knowledgeable about the geographic area.. she showed us numerous sites including trenches, bunkers, bomb craters, monuments, and similar. this tour was vigorous and one should be reasonably fit because it requires hiking and climbing, though nothing technical. Isabelle prepared carefully for our tour and ably guided us to the areas about which we were interested. We were very pleased with it. it exceeded expectations greatly.
<p>Beware! this is NOT a easy walking tour. This tour should be sold with a caveat that there is extensive walking, climbing, etc. and meant for those with hearty stamina and energy. The meeting spot was difficult for a US traveller to find - even our hotel in Reims did not know where it was. If you are interested, make sure you phone the guide direct before the tour to learn about the meeting place and the clothes you should wear. Our guide was GREAT, and re-arranged the tour for us when we met, knowing we would not be able to complete the scheduled tour.</p>
