ww2 inspired road trip
 

hello- any help you guys can offer would be greatly appreciated here! my boyfriend and i would love to take a trip through Europe to visit some of the places linked to ww2 (as well as some other touristy stuff ) we only decided this yesterday and after some cursory googling have realised it's not as simple as we thought! for budgetary reasons we figured driving would be best ( our own car or hire?!) and we would try to camp (tent) where possible. this will likely be around summer next year and for around 14 nights ish. plans are
still quite loose at the minute but the musts which we have agreed on are:
Berlin
Amsterdam
auschwitz
war cemetery in France

we are looking for advice on routes, suitable itineraries , places to stay and any other tips you can share would be great

thank you in advance
natalie and paul

ps we are both young fit and able (30yrs old ) and starting out from scotland

Most of the places you list are cities (Auschwitz is outside Krakow). For that reason I suggest either train or cheap flights from city to city. Early booking for such flights makes a difference. Here's one web site for cheap flights: http://www.flylc.com/directall-en.asp#.U8nEuahFPPY

The best known WWII sites (for Americans) in France are the Normandy beaches. The train to Bayeux and then a tour might be the best option.

My suggestion would be to take your own car. Starting from Calais, drive to Normandy with Dieppe along the way. From Normandy drive to Amsterdam (Dunkerque on the way)

The standard touristy thing in the area is Brugges.


From Amsterdam drive to Berlin, see whatever interests you. After Berlin head north to the coast to Peenemunde (V1, V2 rocket sites)

Head east through northern Poland toward Gdynia/Gdansk/Sopot area. The first shots of WW2 were fired in Westerplatte near Gdansk, Gdynia was a major German naval base during WW2. Lots of bunkers, fortifications and even old trenches are still to be found in the area.

The touristy stuff is mostly in Gdansk, being young you would also enjoy Sopot.

Time permitting, you could head further east to Hitler's headquarters (Wolfshanze). After Wolfshanze, you can head down the eastern part of Poland, through Lublin toward Krakow/Oswiecim.

There was a big tank battle near the town of Studzianki Pancerne, (museum).

Touristy stuff in the area, the town of Kazimiesz Dolny, popular with the artsy crowd.

Do or don't do the usual touristy stuff in Krakow.

Krakow back to Calais, a long drive with a chance to visit Bastogne along the way.

There is no need to camp, there are a lot of good and cheap hotels( 30 Euro range)along the way.

Hope this helps.

Mark

My wife and I are doing something similar this September but a little more personal. My wife's father was an American WWII veteran who has passed away. He wrote letters back home to her mother during his military service. We are using his letters and his unit's history books to retrace his route through Europe. We chose this year since it was the 70th anniversary. We are flying into Paris for the touristy stuff, then train out to Normandy, renting a car and following his trail through northern France, Belgium and Germany. We will fly home out of Berlin.

Do a lot of research on what is important to you and how to connect the major sites. A combination of car and train is my best advice.

Do check out the area around Arnhem, that was the scene of Market Garden. You can even sleep in Hotel Dreyeroord, makeshift headquarters of the King's Own Scottish Borderers when they fell back to Oosterbeek to cross the Rhine into Brabant. There's a couple of excellent walks, all starting from the Airborne Museum at Hartenstein. If you drive to Berlin, you could have a stop at Arnhem.

Ardennes is a major battleground as well (Battle of the Bulge). In fact I find the whole late stage deployment of allied forces fascinating.

thank you so much guys for your speedy responses! michael I will have a look at that site and cdnyul your suggested itinerary sounds very achievable - thanks for your insight. d1carter- I wonder if you would get I touch with me once you have done your trip to let me know how you got on? my grandfather was a ww2 army commando (British) and although he was based mainly in the Far East ((Burma,, Delhi, Singapore etc) I've always felt a strong desire to visit some oft the places that so influenced his time in the forces

There is a very good and moving museum in Overloon in the Netherlands which may be of interest. Also three concentration camps in the Netherlands, at Vught, Amersfoort and Westerbork, from where Anne Frank and many more were deported.
I have been to the one in Amersfoort, and whilst there is not much of it left it is a very moving place to visit, and is free. Nearby is a large Russian war cemetery.

I would suggest getting the boat from Newcastle since you are in Scotland. With 14 nights you may want to limit yourselves to sites in the Netherlands, Belgium and France.
You can always get a cheap flight to Krakow another time.

My father spent his war in Burma and India with the RAF.

A link to the Commonwealth War Graves Photographic Project.

http://twgpp.org/cemetery_locations.php

The links open up in Google Earth.

Mark

Last check, if she's a Brit (including Scot), Normandy has many attractions too. Go to Arromanches and the beaches east of Omaha (Gold, Sword). The US forces stormed Omaha and Utah, the Brits hit Gold and Sword, the Canadians attacked Juno.

Ideas here too: http://stephenambrosetours.com/in-th...-normandy-tour