D-Day Landings

The group will assemble outside the Euro Tunnel main building in Folkestone to meet your tour guide and then make your way to the train. A briefing will take place during the 35 minute crossing. Once off the train we head straight to the coast road heading south riding along the White Cliffs with views of the White Cliffs of Dover on a clear day.

Our first coffee stop is in Boulogne-Sur-Mer on our way down the coast to Normandy. We will be lunching in Le Treport followed by a stop off in Dieppe where during 6 hours after the failed beach landing on 19th August 1942, the British and Canadian Army's suffered over 3500 casualties. Following on from here our next coffee stop is harbour side in FECamp and finally down to Le Havre and our city centre hotel.

After a fun night out in Le Havre we start the day riding through the lovely coastal town of Hon Fleur. A really picturesque Harbour. Carrying on along the twisty rural, beautiful coast road surrounded by fantastic scenery we visit the Museum at the Merville Battery. The Pegasus Bridge Museum is next, with one of the 3 original Horsa gliders, followed by Juno Beach. A day packed full of history. Next up is the 360 degree cinema (definitely worth a look) at Arromanches followed by a visit to view Port Mulberry.

We finish the day with a beautiful 30 mile cross country ride to our hotel in the centre of Caen surround by bars and restaurants.

After a great night out in Caen we head out to our first stop of the day to visit the Bayeux Memorial and the Musee de La Bataille de Normandie.

Up to the coast next to visit the American Cemetery at Omaha Beach. The cemetery contains the graves of our 9000 US Combatants who died in the Normandy. The film Saving Private Ryan was based on this area. Signals Monument and Sculpture are also on the list.

From Omaha Beach we head to Pointe du Hoc where the second ranger battalion of around 200 men scaled a 100ft hight cliff under hostile fire and destroyed six enemy gun which could fire on both Omaha and Utah Beaches. Pointe Du Hoc is now a memorial to those men and has remained untouched since D-Day.

Lunch is taken just up the Beach in Grand Camp around the Harbour. After lunch we spend time at the US Airborne Museum in Sainte-Mere-Eglise. Shortly after midnight on 6th June over 18000 men of the US 82nd and 101st Airbourne Division were dropped to secure the exits from Utah Beach. The TV series "Band of Brothers" is based on the real events surrounding these landings. From here we head inland on some fantastic roads across the Battle Fields of Normandy to reach our over night stop in Falaise. The Battle of Falaise Pocket between the 12th and 21st August was the final action which saw the Germans retreat from Normandy.

Refreshed from our stay in Falaise we head East to Saint-Cambert-Sur-Dive where thousands of Germans were attempting to cross 3 small bridges in the village which became a focus point for the Allied attack driving the Germans out of Normandy. The rest of the day is bike riding time on superb French country roads, great views and very little traffic as we make our way up to Amiens for the last night together.

First port of call today is to the Crater Lochnagar just South of La Boisselle in the Somme Department. 19 wings were dug under the German lines on the British Section of the Somme Front, to assist the infantry advance at the start of the battle. The mine was sprung at 7.25am on 1st July 1916 and left a crater 21m deep and 100m wide which was captured and held by the British Troops. From here we head North to Arras and then make our way to Calais for an early afternoon train back to England