in the footsteps battlefield tours

We were so happy with our tour last in July 2014 that we decided to make a return trip in February 2015 with relatives that hadn't been before. We requested Jon Haslock, who brought us on the tour last year, as our guide and once again we were delighted with the tour. We only had one day but Jon made sure he included some new places for us to visit. We went to different areas where our ancestor had been during WW1 and some towns where he was billeted and of course his grave. We also went to Vimy Ridge, The Lochnagar Crater, Thiepval Monument and Beaumont Hamel. We fitted a lot into the day but at no time felt rushed. Jon is a magnificent guide and the whole experience with "In the Footsteps Battlefield Tours" was excellent. I wholeheartedly recommend both Jon and In The Footsteps if you are looking for a personal, well thought out and memorable tour. You will not be disappointed.

In the Footsteps Battlefield Tours assigned Soren Hawkes to take me on a day of touring to help answer questions about my Grandfather's war experience as well as looking at another puzzling issue. Before I arrived I sent information about the places I wanted to visit and why they were historically important to me. Soren Hawkes was meticulous in researching to the point of going to the locations the day before my tour. His thoughtfulness allowed us to walk the journey of my grandfather through various places and to trace the various events he was engaged in the Belgium section of the Western Front. Soren's deep commitment to his clients was obvious. He is also a thoughtful artist representing aspects of war memories which draw inspiration from William Orpen - a W.W.1 artist I have also come to appreciate.

In June 2014, my husband David and I took our 3 young children for a battlefield tour in Europe. Flying all the way from Singapore, we wanted to see as much of the battlefields as we could in 8 days. Jo did a fantastic job of planning our itinerary and organizing the 3 excellent guides that would take us around. She also took great care in selecting our accommodation, all extremely comfortable and child-friendly.With the bespoke tour, David indulged in his particular areas of interest for military history, while our children (aged 9, 6 and 3) enjoyed a very unique history lesson. It was an unforgettable holiday! Thank you - from Singapore!! -- I-Ruh

My wife and I are experienced Western European battlefield tourists and are very selective and demanding of our guides. We booked Footsteps based on the recommendation of a previous guide and were so glad we did. We did one day in the Arnhem area and a second day in the Hurtgenwald (Kall Trail, Schmidt, Vosseneck areas). Each of these battlefields deserve several days each but unfortunately time was a factor. Our guide for each area was WYBO BOERSMA. His knowledge of each battle was outstanding, Arnhem especially! Wybo is a former curator of the Hartenstein Airborne Museum, which provides him with a wealth of knowledge gleaned from personal interviews with veterans, close relatives of veterans and key participants in the Battle of Arnhem. His insights on the museum displays were also most interesting. My wife and I toured the museum without Wybo but the tour the prior day with him gave us a better context of the exhibits. Wybo is a native of the area and is a fount of knowledge on the local wartime conditions and how the battle effected the population. I would not hesitate to utilize Footsteps for my future tour guide needs.

Thank you Jane for the lovely comments. John is looking forward to seeing you again for another tour in March next year. Happy New Year

Great to hear from you Jan. As I recall you followed in the footsteps of your father and it was a very successful tour. We hope you are all well over there in the states and if you are ever over here again and want another tour, please get in touch. Happy New Year to you all.

We went on a tour of the Somme Battlefields with In The Footsteps in September 2014. We are 4 brothers, from Ireland, and were particularly interested in seeing the places where the various Irish regiments had played a part. We worked with the tour company to create a customised itinerary that included some of the major sites and also the ones of further interest to us. Our tour guide (Jon Haslock) was outstanding - his knowledge was deep and wide, and we learned so much. The people we dealt with at In The Footsteps were extremely polite, friendly and willing to make the itinerary personal. Thank you for making it a special day to remember.

What a wonderful tour! We spent the day with Adrian Ridley-Jones, and, in addition to the well-known sites, he gave us a fantastic overall understanding of the battlefield, and took us to important sites that are often overlooked. I can't recommend him enough!

An excellent and informative trip. John Anderson was a great guide and made the whole trip come alive and have real meaning.Overwhelming at times especially standing in the field where the Accrington Pals were wiped out in 30 mins.We also managed to find a possible location for my grandfathers gun battery just outside of Passendale. I Cannot begin to describe the emotions that went along with walking over that ground.

We spent the day with Jon in the Ypres (Iper) area and his knowledge of the area and the battles fought in the region really brought the whole experience alive for us. We considered doing this on our own but are very pleased we didn't as Jon's input provided us with so much additional information that would have taken us a significant period to research. Gavin T

We are so pleased you all enjoyed your tour with Willem and hope that you all had a safe journey back home. Thank you for touring with him and hopefully he will hear from you again when your family members or friends want a similar tour.

Thank you for your review Barbara and we look forward to your next tour to the Waterloo battlefields for the 200th anniversary.

This was an excellent day out. Our guide Jon really made history come alive. We were following the last days of a distant relative who died in 1918. Jon was very knowledgeable about the battle in which he died.

We were a party of 3 wishing to learn more about the circumstances of 2 South African relatives killed in the Battle of the Somme. Our extremely knowledgeable guide, Iain, had done a lot of excellent homework and also did further analysis during the 3 days we spent with him. Before this trip none of us had appreciated the immense scale of the fantastic work carried out by the Imperial War Graves Commission and other bodies associated with the preservation of the heroes of WW1 in France and Belgium: we also had the privilege of attending the daily Menen Gate ceremony organised by The Last Post Association. This was a humbling experience, overflowing with contrasting emotions, ranging from immense pride to bewildering frustration.

Great review, thank you very much and we are so pleased you had such a good tour. We have remained at doing private tours only as, like you suggested, they are the only way to see the battlefields at their best. Curious who you are though as being a 2009 tour Ian has done many tours since then. Jo (Ian's wife)