Be sure to read the Special Notes further down this page for important requirements and restriction.

For those interested in military history as well as medieval architecture, this all-day excursion offers both. Your tour begins as you board your motorcoach for a scenic drive to Ypres. This ancient town, once raided by the Romans in the 1st century A.D., was one of the most important cloth-producing and cloth-trading cities in Flanders during the Middle Ages. A hundred years ago the area was reduced to rubble during World War I.

Your first destination in Ypres is the Tyne Cot Cemetery, the largest British and Commonwealth war cemetery in the world. Placed here are 11,953 headstones of soldiers who were killed, or who died of wounds, between 1914 and 1918. Many died during the months of that epic struggle known as the 'Flanders Offensive' (Third Battle of Ypres or Battle of Passchendaele) of 1917 when the British and French tried to roll back the German positions along the low–lying ridges and break through towards the Channel coast. At the back of the cemetery stands a wall with the 33,783 names of the soldiers reported missing from August 16, 1917 until the end of the war.

Next, you'll drive into the heart of Ypres for a photo stop at the Menin Gate Memorial, which bears the names of the 54,389 soldiers from the United Kingdom and Commonwealth Forces who fell before August 16, 1917 and who have no known grave.
The road leading from the Menin Gate leads to the market square and a self-guided tour of Flanders Field Museum. Devoted to the study of World War I, the museum is housed on the second floor in what was, at one time, the largest commercial building of the Middle Ages. After its total destruction during WWI, the building was reconstructed.

After your tour, you're free to shop, sightsee or have lunch before leaving for charming Bruges. Cobbled streets, centuries-old buildings and canals are hallmarks of this medieval city, which was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2000. Your guided walk takes you past the marketplace with its Guild Halls, the Belfry, the Town Hall and the Gothic Chapel of the Holy Blood (exterior views only).

At the end of the day, you'll return to port with a deeper understanding of Belgium and its long, rich history.