Liberation of the Netherlands - 80th Anniversary
APR 23 - May 7, 2025
TOLY TOURS, in partnership with HONOUR THEM WELL presents
Liberation of the Netherlands 80th Anniversary Tour
Join us as we commemorate the 80th Anniversary of the Liberation of the Netherlands! We will explore places of Canadian and allied significance and honour those who played such an important role in the liberation of Europe.
Day 1 Flight to Paris – April 23/24
Welcome to Paris – The City of Light! This evening you will meet your hosts for a sublime welcome dinner cruise on the River Seine!
Overnight Paris - Included Dinner.
Day 2 Pre Normandy / British Invasion Beach - April 25
Travel to Normandy by coach, stopping for lunch at La Ferme de Billy, known for its outstanding buffet lunch and well-known award-winning Calvados de Normandie.
A guided tour of Pegasus Bridge Museum is next, followed by coffee at the first house liberated in France, now, well known as Cafe Gondree.
Continue to see Sword Beach before heading to Caen for a guided tour before dining in the heart of the historic Vaugueux district.
Overnight in Caen - Breakfast and lunch included.
Day 3 - Canadian Landing Site and inland - April 26
Today it will be our honour to visit sites of Canadian significance in Normandy.
First stop, Canada House in Bernières-sur-Mer, the first house liberated on D-Day by Canadian soldiers with the Queen’s Own Rifles of Canada, and next, the Juno Beach Centre at Courseulles-sur-Mer, with a guided tour of the museum, bunkers, and beach.
After a picturesque lunch, we continue to pay our respects at Beny-sur-Mer Canadian War Cemetery, where more than 2,000 Canadians fought and died in the first days of the invasion. Following in the footsteps of the allies’ advance, we will make stops nearby including the site of the Memorial at Carpiquet Airport, the Abbaye-d'Ardenne massacre and Putot, and the Memorial at Mesnil-Patry.
Overnight in Caen - Included breakfast.
Day 4 - Normandy Coast April 27
Explore the fantastic Caen Memorial Museum before continuing to Arromanches. Take in the beauty of this French coastal town. Here we will see the Arromanche 360 Circular Cinema and the new Invasion Museum. Tonight, we all sit down to a spectacular seaside diner.
Overnight Arromanches - Included Breakfast / Dinner
Day 5 - Normandy D-Day Experience - April 28
Today we will be joined by volunteers of the D-Day Academy, who will highlight various aspects of the Allied experience in their vintage Second World War vehicles. Longues-sur-Mer battery, the Advanced Landing Ground - B3 built principally by Canadians; the new British Normandy Memorial and the D-Day Academy Museum. Next stop, the medieval city of Bayeux. Wander the narrow-cobbled streets of the historic town centre, before returning to Arromanches for dinner.
Overnight Arromanches - Included breakfast / dinner.
Day 6 - Dieppe / Arras - April 29
Today we will travel to Arras, and step back in time to the First World War. We set off to the seaside village of Dieppe, site of the nine bloodiest hours in Canadian military history. We will pay our respects to the Canadians buried there and then; the afternoon is yours to explore.
Overnight in Arras - Breakfast included.
Day 7: Somme - April 30
Somme offensive of 1916; See the battlefields where approximately 1.2 million men were killed or wounded. Stops include Beaumont Hamel, dedicated to the Newfoundland forces who died on the first day of the battle. Continue to Thiepval Memorial to the Missing of the Somme, honouring over 72,191 missing with no known grave. Lunch in Albert, also visiting the spectacular Musee Somme 1916. We have the option of stopping at many sites including Adanac Cemetery, Regina Trench Cemetery, Courcelette Canadian Memorial.
Overnight in Arras - Included Breakfast
Day 8 Somme/Flanders - May 1
Today we journey to the Canadian National Vimy Memorial, the site in France which is dedicated to the memory of Canadian Expeditionary Force members killed (with no known grave) during the First World War. We will visit the new Visitor Education Centre; explore some of the many miles of trenches and tunnels the Canadians dug in preparation for the battle, will visit the cemeteries, and will stand in awe at Walter Allward’s extraordinary sculpture, the 125-foot high Vimy Memorial. Continue onto Ypres for visit to In Flanders Fields Museum. Not to be missed this evening is the Last Post Ceremony held at the Menin gate.
Overnight in Ypres - Included Breakfast
Day 9 – Flanders - May 2
This day allows for further exploration of the battlefields, memorials and cemeteries in the Ypres Salient. A visit to Essex Farm, where Lt. Col John McCrae wrote his famous poem, In Flanders Fields; St. Julien Canadian Memorial, where the Canadians withstood the first gas attacks; Langemark German Cemetery; Passchendaele Canadian Memorial; and Tyne Cot Commonwealth Cemetery. We will lunch at nearby Cafe De Dreve, where the owner, Johan, has collected a large range of artifacts from the First World War. We will visit the Passchendaele 1917 Memorial Museum and return to Ypres for our last night in Belgium.
Overnight at Ypres - Breakfast included.
Day 10 - Netherlands - May 3
This morning, we leave Belgium to explore the path of Liberation of the Netherlands in the Scheldt Region.
On September 12, 1944, the First Canadian Army was given the task of clearing the Scheldt of German occupiers. The flooded, muddy terrain and the tenacity of the well-fortified German defenses made the Battle of the Scheldt especially grueling and bloody. We travel to Walchren Island and visit Bevrijdingsmuseum Zeeland Museum, a local museum sharing the unique history of the Canadian liberation of the Scheldt Estuary in the fall and winter of 1944-45.
We will lunch nearby in the seaside town, Yerseke, and will then visit the nearby Bergen-op-Zoom Canadian War Cemetery. Continue to Apeldoorn, where we will stay for the next 3 nights.
Overnight in Apeldoorn - Breakfast included.
Day 11 - Remembrance Day in the Netherlands - May 4th
At Holten Canadian War Cemetery, we join officials of the Dutch & Canadian Governments, a member of the Dutch Royal family along with the local citizens on Dutch Remembrance Day.
After, visit Royal Canadian Legion Branch 005 in Lochem, taking in lunch at Restaurant Mondani. Return to Apeldoorn to take part in planned Remembrance Day activities including a Silent March and evening of Remembrance.
Overnight - Apeldoorn. Breakfast included.
Day 12 - Liberation Day - May 5th
On May 5th the Dutch celebrate Liberation Day. This day in 1945 officially marked the ending of World War 2. The commemorations and festivities in Wageningen stand out because the German general Blaskowitz and the Canadian general Charles Foulkes negotiated the German terms of surrender in Hotel de Wereld, ending the Second World War in the Netherlands. Today we will attend the full day Dutch Liberation Day festivities in Wageningen.
Overnight - Apeldoorn/ Breakfast included.
Day 13 - Amsterdam - May 6
This morning, we will travel to Lisse, and visit the Keukenhof Gardens, where the tulips will be in mid-season! Lunch in Keukenhof Gardens. Furthering on to Amsterdam, your hosts will lead you a guided walking tour. Where you will see the famous canals and its unique history. This evening, enjoy a farewell dinner in Amsterdam.
Overnight in Amsterdam - Breakfast and Dinner included.
Day 14 – May 7
Transfer at your leisure to the airport for the flight home or extend your stay in Europe.
$5475 per person*
*based on a Double occupancy , all prices in CDN dollars. See Inclusions and Exclusions below
*Optional Paris & Loire Valley Extension*
$1400 pr person
The below Itinerary is an optional pre tour extension with 3 nights in Paris - Terms and Conditions below
Day 1 Flight to Paris
Arrive in the city of light. After transferring to our centrally located hotel, meet with your hosts for a welcome drink
Day 2. Paris
Enjoy a walking tour with your host through the heart of Paris. Enter and tour the newly opened Notre Dame, restored after the devastating fire of 2019. Next, enjoy a guided tour of the Louvre and see some of arts greatest treasures including Leonardo Davinci's Mona Lisa. Enjoy an afternoon of free time. Perhaps travel up the Eiffel Tower, visit the Hotel des Invalides or trek into the Catacombs.
Day 3 Loire Valley
This morning, we journey by private coach to the Loire Valley. Visit the expansive, 16th century, former royal palace, Chateau de Chambord. Continuing on, we visit a fantastic winery in the Loire Valley for a tour and wine tasting. After, sit down for included lunch in the wineries spectacular restaurant. Next, travel to the romantic and enchanting Chateau de Chenonceau. Tour the chateau before riding the coach back to Paris.
Day 4. Paris
After breakfast, travel with your hosts to the exquisite palace of Versailles. Built by the Sun King Louis XIV. After a guided tour of the palace, explore the playground of kings and its expansive gardens and grounds. See the Petite Trianon, Grand Trianon and Marie Antoinette's play farm, the queens hamlet. Journey by train back to Paris, before meeting with the rest of the tour group for a specular dinner on the Seine
PRICING INCLUDES:
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All taxes and Fees
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All centrally located accommodations including air conditioning with private washroom facilities.
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All travel by coach
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Breakfast is included everyday, 4 dinners and 2 lunches as noted in the itinerary
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All museum/monument entrances, experiences, and tickets as per the itinerary
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All hotel service charges, local taxes, and gratuities.
PRICING EXCLUDES:
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Airfare
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Transfers
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Pre-tour and/or post-tour accommodations -
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Travel/Medical Insurance
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Meals other then noted above
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Any optional excursion not part of the tour
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ETIAS Travel authorization
IMPORTANT NOTES:
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This tour requires a minimum of 20 guests to operate. Your host will inform you when this is met
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Refundable deposit of $500 per person due upon booking, refundable until Jan 15,2025 See Terms and Conditions below
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Balance of payment due on or before the booking deadline: Jan 15,2025