In the morning, we will come and pick you up at your hotel, accommodation or train station in Bayeux or surrounding area. Meet your English speaking tour guide who will be with you throughout the day on this full day Canadian sector landing beaches and sights tour.
8.50 am - Meeting point at your accommodation in or near Bayeux
9.00am - Depart from Bayeux
- Stop at Juno Beach
- Visit Juno Beach Centre
- Pay hommage at Canadian War Cemetery in Bény sur Mer
- Stop at Abbey d'Ardenne
- Stop at Hill 67 Memorial
5.00pm -Return to Bayeux
Meet your English Speaking Driver/Guide who is a local Expert on WWII and the Normandy landings
Once you have met your guide, he/she will go over the program and itinerary of the day with you. Then, board your premium, air conditioned Mercedes minivan and begin to make your way to visit Juno beach.
All our tour company vehicles are equipped with an on board P/A system which means that everyone will hear the guide's commentary during driving time, even if you are seated in the back of the van! Also, we have bottled water at your disposal and you can use our free wifi as you travel from one destination to another.
Juno Beach Sector visit, including Museum dedicated to Canadian WWII history
Did you know Canadian troops had the second highest number of casualties after the Americans during the D-Day landings and the Battle of Normandy? The French certainly owe them a lot, and they played a crucial part in the liberation of Caen.
As an introduction to this D-Day landing tour, you will reach Juno Beach, where the Canadian Armed Forces of the 3rd infantry division and 9th brigade landed on the morning of June 6, 1944. Even though German troops were not very present in this sector, the Canadian Army was welcomed with landmines and obstacles which killed close to half of the men.
However, after that, the Allied troops did not lose hope and made the furthest advancement by the end of the day, about 16 km inland. Unfortunately, the next day the Germans were ready to fight to push the Allies back to the sea. From the Normandy battlefield sites, our guide will tell you all the details and how the Allied forces finally managed to keep gaining ground.
Located between St Aubin sur Mer and Courseulles sur mer, Juno Beach has become one of the most popular Normandy tourist sites and boasts a beautiful museum: the Juno Beach centre museum dedicated to Canadian involvement in the D-Day landing and World War II. To honor the Canadian army, it was built in the shape of a modern maple leaf. Stop at Juno Beach and guided tour of the museum with your expert guide and chart the history of the Canadians on this full day tour.
Visit of the major Canadian War Cemetery in Bény sur Mer
Our Canadian D-Day Normandy private tour carries on to Bény sur Mer Canadian War Cemetery. Many of those buried in Beny-sur-Mer Canadian War Cemetery were men of the 3rd Canadian Division who died either on 6 June or during the early days of the advance towards Caen, when the Division engaged a German battle group formed from the 716th Division and the 21st Panzer Division.
The cemetery, designed by P.D. Hepworth, contains 2,048 Second World War burials, the majority Canadian, and 19 of them unidentified. The war memorial is now taken care of by the Commonwealth War Graves Commissions and is kept beautifully landscaped and immaculate.
Hear about the tragic massacre that took place at Ardenne Abbey
Hear the story of the Abbey d'Ardenne, where twenty Canadian soldiers, members of the North Nova Scotia Highlanders and 27th Armoured Regiment (part of the Sherbrooke Fusilier Regiment), were captured and executed by Waffen SS forces in a monastery near Caen, France.
The Abbaye d'Ardenne was liberated by the Regina Rifles shortly before midnight on July 8. Their members discovered the body of Lt. Williams (who is buried in the Beny-sur-Mer Canadian War Cemetery), however no trace of LCpl. Pollard was ever found. The Bayeux Memorial (near the Bayeux War Cemetery) lists him as missing. Your comprehensive tour continues towards the Verrières Ridge.
Final stop at Hill 67 of the Verrières Ridge
Your final stop of the day will be at Verrières Ridge where Point or Hill 67 is located. The area was of great importance to the Allies after the fall of Caen. The Germans defended the western part of the Ridge and were supported by other troops that were holding the west side of the River Orne. The first assault of the Ridge took place on July 19th and for the first - and last - time, the pipers were allowed to play the troops forward.
For more than 5 days Canadian and British forces made numerous attempts to take the Ridge from the Germans who fiercly defended the area and counter attacked causing a great number of casualties. One of the most contreversial attack in Canadian Military History made by the Royal Highland regiment - known as The Black Watch - took place here on July 25th. Out of 325 soldiers, 315 were either killed, wounded or captured making it the costliest battle for Canadians since Dieppe.
After the stop at the Hill 67 memorial, it will be time to return to Bayeux.
