ANZAC Day & Western Front Explorer

Take this unique opportunity to pay tribute to our proud heritage, the courage of our ancestors and the ANZAC spirit itself on the Western Front Explorer with ANZAC Dawn Service - a moving 15-day tour with Phil Hoffmann Travel and APT in 2018. 

The battlefields of the Western Front punctuate the tranquil countryside of France and Belgium. Memorials stand sentinel like the brave soldiers that once were. Lest we forget their proud legacy as we trace the footsteps of our heroes on the 100th anniversary of the ANZAC victory at the Second Battle of Villers-Bretonneux.

Departing from Amsterdam on April 14, you’ll board an APT luxury river ship – your home for the next 15 days, on this once-in-a-lifetime trip, fully escorted from Adelaide by Grant Heading. Onboard you’ll be joined by Maritime and Military Historian, Captain Peter Martin who specialises in military events from both World War I and II. Captain Martin is a respected lecturer with extensive experience in defence studies and strategic trade issues.

This memorable trip will take you along the picturesque waterways of the Netherlands and Belgium, with access to the French battlefields from your port in Ghent. Highlights include a Michelin-starred lunch at Château Neercanne – The Netherlands only terraced castle which commands stunning panoramic vistas across the Jeker Valley, and a private tour of Amsterdam’s incredible Van Gough Museum.   

You’ll have the opportunity to pay your respects at Jonkerbos War Cemetery where more than 1,500 Commonwealth World War II soldiers are buried and take a full-day excursion of the Battlefields of Belgium near the town of Ypres. Join Captain Martin for an excursion to the World War I battlefields of Flanders and Fromelles before you attending a touching ANZAC Day Dawn Service. The ceremony will commemorate the 100^th anniversary of the Victory of the Second Battle of Villiers-Bretonneux.