Highlights of Bruges and Ypres

Spend the whole day exploring the beautiful town of Bruges, a perfectly preserved medieval town known as the ‘Venice of the North’. Explore the Market Square and the Burg and then climb to the top of the Belfrey for beautiful views across the town.

In the afternoon you can enjoy a relaxing canal cruise before visiting some of the many shops. Take a tour of the chocolate museum and discover why Belgium has some of Europe’s finest Chocolate.

Today you can spend the morning at leisure in Ypres or choose to visit Lille.

Later you will travel to Calais for your return crossing to Dover.

Edventure Travel also visit the In Flanders Field’s museum in Ypres which is devoted to the study of World War 1. Activities include a walking itinerary and workshops where your students can learn more about the futility of this war. This museum is situated on the market square in the city centre and is a must visit, as it does not set out to glorify war but shows your students the senselessness of war.

Students will discover that Tyne Cot Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery and memorial to the missing is the largest WW1 commonwealth war grave in the world. The Battle of Passchendaele, which was one of the major battles of WW1, happened in this precise region. More than 11,900 servicemen who died on the Passchendaele battlefields are buried here. This cemetery is named after the Tyne Cot or Tyne Cottage barn which stood near the level crossing on the road from Passchendaele to Broodseinde.

This is a must see museum  as students will  learn about the history of WW1 by exploring a reconstruction of a British trench; study artefacts, including weapons, uniforms and shells; and see original pictures of this horrific war. This private museum is one of the few places on the Ypres Salient battlefields where your group can experience an original trench layout which will give your students some insight into what it might have looked like. It is an ideal opportunity for your group to discuss the need for the preservation of battlefield areas.

Your school group will enjoy discovering the famous canals, cobbled streets and medieval buildings of this beautiful capital of West Flanders, in northwest Belgium.  Bruges is often referred to as the Venice of the North because of its beauty. Students can ascend the 13th-century belfry, in the Market square, with a 47-bell carillon and 83m tower and enjoy the panoramic views of the city. They can also view the ornate carved ceiling of the 14th-century Stadhuis (City Hall) in the city centre’s Burg square.

At this German cemetery there are more than 44,000 soldiers buried. Students will see the complete contrast to the Tyne Cot cemetery as the authorities would not allow any standing headstones. More than half are buried in one mass grave and their names are engraved on plaques all along the site.

This memorial museum is devoted to the 1917 battle of Passchendaele and is situated in the centre of Zonnebeke. Your students will learn that in just 100 days, almost 500,000 men were killed in one of the bloodiest battles of WW1. Edventure Travel recommends that this is an ideal place to study the battlefields of Passchendaele.

Schools like to visit the Essex Farm Cemetery as it was here that the poet, Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae of the Canadian Army Medical Corps, wrote the famous poem, In Flanders Fields, in May 1915. Situated near a village called Boezinge, students will discover that more than 1,000 soldiers of WW1 are buried or commemorated here. Over 100 of these are unidentified but special memorials have been erected to commemorate 19 casualties known to be buried here.

Edventure Travel recommends this museum for your school as it goes back over the soldiers’ life in the trenches during the offensive of 1 July 1916. It is situated in a 230 metre-long underground that was used as an air-raid shelter during World War2 and has about 15 alcoves and display cases that your students can explore. Your group will experience the daily life experienced by these soldiers with sound effects, images and lights. Students will also discover this town of Albert, which is a symbol of WW1.

This educational tourist attraction is a science museum located in Transinne (Libin), near Redu in Belgium. Your school will discover that the Euro Space Center  is devoted to space science and astronautics and includes simulators of space flight and micro-gravity. It is the only place in Europe to offer the chance to train like an astronaut and holds the only full-scale mock-up of a U.S. Space Shuttle existing in Europe, named Amicitia. This space themed park, will delight your students who dream of galaxies and adventures and wish to see the earth from a different angle.

Ypres is a city with a haunting past and which your school will discover the important role it played in WW1 when it saw the loss of a generation of soldiers during its battles. It has plenty of war museums, memorials, military cemeteries and battlefields for your group to tour, learn about and explore. Prepare your students to be moved when visiting the many sombre places but also discover and appreciate the charm of the city too with its medieval architecture. The city’s top attractions include the In Flanders Fields museum and the Menin Gate.

Your school will discover that a visit to Bruges isn’t complete without a boat trip on its canals. Students can take a half-hour trip that allows them to appreciate the most outstanding delights of the city from a completely different angle. They will discover secret gardens, picturesque bridges and wonderfully beautiful views. Although it sounds far-fetched, Bruges’ loveliest places are even more charming when you view them from the canal boat.

Christmas is a special time in Bruges when your students will discover how the city is transformed into a beautiful Christmas-decorated area with festively decorated stalls selling everything from jewellery to roasted chestnuts. They can also discover an open-air skating rink which is built around the main square. You will find the main Christmas market in the centre of the city, on the Market Square, but you will also find smaller markets in almost every direction from the centre. The whole of Bruges is full of interesting and exclusive little markets that unite this city into one big celebration. Your groups can enjoy many different treats including warm waffles and a hot chocolate to get into the Christmas spirit!

Mini Europe, which is situated next to the Atomium, is perfect for all ages of students and is the only park where your school can visit the whole of Europe in a couple of hours!  It is a miniature park in the outskirts of Brussels where your students can discover over 350 miniatures at a scale of 1:25 that represent the most important landmarks from approximately 80 cities from countries in the European Union, e.g.  an Eiffel Tower 13 meters high and the four meters tall Big Ben. Your students will see the exceptionally intricate Town Hall of Brussels, which has almost 300 statues which were sculpted by hand. Your group will be impressed with the moving windmills, lorries, trains and boats and even an erupting Mount Vesuvius!

Your school group will enjoy this fascinating international tourist attraction created by the architect André Waterkeyn on the occasion of the World Fair of Brussels in 1958. The Atomium’s  original structure symbolizes an iron crystal enlarged 165 billion times. Five balls of the Atomium are open to the public today, some of which hold temporary exhibitions and multimedia installations. A whole sphere is reserved for children, with workshops and a place for sleeping for groups. Your group could visit the highest ball, which is a restaurant, to discover the great views of Brussels.

Visit the  Art & Design Atomium Museum, which  is dedicated to hundreds of items in plastic (1960-2000), with its exhibition of objects, design and art as well as temporary exhibitions on art and design from the 20th century until today.

This monument commemorates Belgian soldiers, killed on the battlefields in WW1. The first tower was destroyed during WW2 but was rebuilt and is the highest monument in Europe. Your school group will discover the message of peace in this exhibition. It symbolizes the people’s demand for Nooit meer Oorlog (No more War), which is written on the tower in the four languages of the fighting forces in the area during WW1 (Dutch, French, English and German). At the top of this tower your students will be able to compare the ‘Flanders Fields’ landscape, as it is now and how it looked during the conflict, using the panoramic photos displayed around the perimeter of the tower.

At the Newfoundland Memorial Park, near Beaumont Hamel, your students will clearly see shell-holes and the trenches of both sides. The ground here has been undisturbed since the end of the First World War and is one of the largest areas on the Western Front where your group can still clearly see where the trenches were entered and walked along.

This trip offers students the opportunity to develop their independence and self-confidence by putting themselves into a new environment.

School trips can offer the opportunity for students to develop their relationships and interactions with others.

This trip can help develop a student’s motivation for the subject and inspire them when back in the classroom due to personal experience.

Personal experience and close interactions with these locations can help students understand the subject and put it into perspective.

A trip can make a students engage with a subject and become more positive about a subject.

Students will work together in an unfamiliar environment and rely on each other for help.

Educating through a school trip can create a better understanding of a subject with hands-on learning. Students are engaged, enthusiastic and observant.

This trip can be a reward trip for students that have studied hard over the course of the year and can give them a well-deserved break with their friends.

This tour is great for history students, giving them an insight into the events that took place and a sense of what it was like during this period in history.

This tour focuses on World War 1 events and goes to key historical sights.

Explore the impact of World War 2 and how events shaped the landscape.

Students can practise their language skills when exploring this fascinating country.

This tour provides and insight into the religious beliefs of the country and explores their values and principles.

Take an in-depth look at the Art of this fantastic destination where students can get up close and be inspired by world famous displays.

Inspire students with interactive science attractions on this tour.