Planning a possible trip to Belgium, I am interested in visiting WWI sites. We may be bringing our kids along, so much appreciated would be any out-of-the-ordinary suggestions -- beside the usual cemeteries & museums, which I MAY be able to get the wife to ONCE or TWICE at MOST!

Also, recommendations for Brugge/Brugges & Gand/Ghent. THANKS!

Normandy Dude,

Have you looked at www.abmc.gov? It's the American Battle Monuments Commission and has lots of info regarding the world wars.

Denise

Yo, Denise.

I'm less interested in cemeteries than the trenches.

I'll check out that site more thoroughly to see if there might be an interesting cemetery, but frankly, we live very near lots of WW2 cemeteries -- and excuse me for sounding perhaps slightly disresectful -- I do not believe these are the sorts of sites which my wife and kids would find too interesting.

I may be dreaming. It may be better just to sit and watch "Paths of Glory" or "All Quiet on the Western Front". However, if the Imperial War Museum in London can have such an awesome WW1 display, there must be something in the French-Belgian border region -- the actual site of the trenches, the battles of Ypres, etc. -- with something comparable. Something which a fellow Slowtrav might have visited.

As long as we might be heading in that direction anyway...

Dude if you want trenches than go to where my northern family lives

visit Le Quesnoy and Mauberge in France near the Belgium border; you will have trenches, war path into the hills, and monuments. Also on the province (dept=state) of Luxembourg/Limburg in Belgium try Maastricht/Valkenburg and Ypres/Bastogne area.

Gent is nice but I prefer Brugge on the other side.

Any specific sites to recommend in the Ypres area? I'll see what I can google using Le Quesnoy and Mauberge as key words; it's the first time I've heard of those towns.

This is a pretty touristy tour but I know several people who have liked it. I have not taken it. If you don't want to do the tour, you might want to look at his itinerary and it might give you an idea of some places to go.

Quasimodo Tours

More place names gleaned from that site:
Passchendale, Polygon Wood ,Hill 60, Ypres
Thanks.

sorry for the large photo, try smaller, this is at Le Quesnoy, nice french flemish town.
hope the size works this time

http://www.cheminsdememoire.gouv.fr/page/affichelieu.php?idLang=fr&idLieu=161

this in French will tell you more about Yprés, great place. here is more info on wwI in french
see the tally of dead!
http://www.cheminsdememoire.gouv.fr/page/affichepage.php?idLang=fr&idPage=85

Merci de ta gentillesse, Pedmar.

G'day Normandy Dude,
We were fortunate to be shown around by my brother in law, who is a local and WWI history buff. Try the relatively new "Dugout experience" (opened 2004) Passchendaele near Zonnebecke. Good interpretative re-creation of tunnels and trenches etc (www.zonnebeke.be) Also, "In Flanders Fields Museum" at Ieper (www.inflandersfields.be). There is a good cheese place in Passendale. For the kids, try Bellewaerde Park at Ieper (www.bellewaerdepark.be) and "Plopsaland at De Panne" on the coast (www.plopsa.be). For WWI trenches and bunkers, see "Bayernwald" at Heuvelland Kemmel (www.heuvelland.be). The canal cruise (basically a ferry, no commentary) from or to Brugge - Oostende (www.seastar.be)is a nice break. Raversijde Domain at Oostende appers to have some interesting coastal protection from WWII (Atlantic Wall open air museum) (www.west-vlaanderen.be/raversijde) [I have not been here, or to the kids parks]. Much of the info here has come from a brochure on Belgian tourist attractions (www.attractiontouristique.be)
I hope this is useful,
Cheers, Flynn7331

contrary to pedmar, Brugge is nice, but I prefer Ghent!

Why argue about the respective merits of Brugge and Gent? Both are terrific places and historically they are quite different so why not both? They are only a short distance apart and trains are frequent.

quote:

Gent is nice but I prefer Brugge on the other side.

yes you are correct Davidx, I was just making a choice if only one were to be seen. Of course with time both are worthy.

I know you are asking about WWI sites, but we spent a long weekend in Bastogne and visited the Battle of the Bulge sites. Have you seen this already?

We stayed at this B&B and it was lovely.
Vieux Savy

We had our 3 young children with us, so we had to keep our sight-seeing as child friendly as possible. We did a Willy's Jeep tour in Bastogne and we all really enjoyed it.It's basically a private tour in a Willy's Jeep and you get a great highlight of all of the WWII sites. We made arrangements at the TI in the town.

Great links! Thanks!
Because we live in the heart of D-Day, my wife and kids really aren't too into more WW2 sites. We will probably stay in both Brugge and Ghent, and check out the WW1 sites on the way.
BTW, any recommendations for hotels in Ghent and Brugge? Central locations, nearby parking, 100-euros TOPS per double room, less is preferable (but private facilities are a must).

well for points and business i mostly use the ACCOR French chain hotels, Novotel are good one in both,walking distance to centre ville.

Cycling in and around Flanders Fields is a nice and very original way to discover this region, so touched by World War I.

http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/Ieper-Diksmuide-Ni...Lo-Veurne-Nieuwpoort
http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/Boezinge-Ieper-Langemark-Staden

Both cycle tracks use towpaths, canals, rivers and old railway tracks for a comfortable and safe bicycle ride in the southern part of West-Flanders.

More sites :

Veurne : http://tourism.veurne.be/home/2263/default_tourism.aspx
Ieper : http://www.ieper.be/ieper_en.aspx?SGREF=10587
Diksmuide : http://tourism.diksmuide.be/
Nieuwpoort : http://www.nieuwpoort.be/toerisme/toerismeeng.html
Ijzertoren (Diksmuide) : http://www.ijzertoren.org/

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Gent - Belgium