Extraordinary visits - both fascinating and profoundly moving. We were also amazed by the depth and breadth of Rod's knowledge and stories!

Did the Somme Full Day Tour on 11 March 2024 led by Jackie. Whole tour very well organised with an excellent itinerary that criss-crossed the front line of 1916 and later campaigns. Visited many of the places I’d only read about in books such as Blunden’s ‘Undertones of War’. Jackie explained the geography, contexts and consequences of the various actions at the places they had occurred, with the aid of anecdotes and online trench maps. Jackie has an incredibly detailed knowledge of the area and the Somme campaign and answered my many questions with patience and good humour. I came away with a much deeper understanding of the conflict at that time and place. If you are less familiar with this period, I’d recommend finding out as much as you can beforehand. The museum at Thiepval is a good explainer but comes later in the day. Finishing with the old trenches at Beaumont-Hamel in the rain was especially moving.

A highly enjoyable day out, which takes in many iconic locations of the actual battle and other events that took place there, like the bringing down of the Red Baron. Our guide was great - all on time and to schedule but flexible enough for personal interests like family related locations to be added to the day if wished for. It must be added to that, that it was entirely possible to take more time in certain places if we so wished - I’m sure we did - and our guide was proactive in letting us know about all that. Highlights of any tour will always be subjective, but mine (no pun intended!) was the Lochnagar Crater - my attendance underlined the point that, no matter how many books you read, or documentaries you watch, you can only fully comprehend the awesome size of the crater, and then vainly attempt to gauge the corresponding explosion (as surely only a first hand witness could) by going there. This is true for all locations visited on this tour. I truly have no negatives; the tour delivered all that was promised, and more - hence the rating. I would certainly recommend it, and will be using another tour very soon.

This was the perfect experience for our first battlefield tour. Rod was extremely knowledgeable, had some funny jokes, and was able to customize the tour to make sure we visited areas that were of particular interest to us. Highly recommended!!

This tour was by some margin the most memorable one of my life. I visited with my wife and teenage boys on 1 June (my big apologies for the delay). Rob's Somme tour was remarkably compelling, thought provoking, bitterly sad and educationally top notch. My sons were (as never before) transfixed for the whole five hours and the profound experience I am sure will remain with them for many years. As one reviewer observed, Rod is a polymath, which is very much spot on. I would very highly recommend this tour to all ages. Regards and many thanks Chris Cronk

The tour was amazing. Rod our guild was so informative and the day was full on. We learnt so much and it was a very moving experience visiting the battlegrounds where so many fought and died. If you are going to do a tour, this one shouldn't be missed. Thank you Rod and Jackie, it was an incredible if somber day

Excellent trip. Rod was so knowledgeable. There were plenty of stops and ample time at each one. We had the calendar of moves from grandpa’s regiment and Rod went out of his way to take us to places he had been

Spent an incredible day with Rod on the Somme battlefield tour. Knowledgeable, patient and always happy to provide a detailed insight into the historical events that caused, unfolded and finally led to the end of WW1. As an ex WO in the grenadier guards, he gave a unique worms eye view of all the strategically significant events on the Somme battlefield. He tempered the facts with both respect and humour which gave us one of the most memorable days of our 5 week tour.

Our tour was led by Jacky and it was brilliant. The depth and breadth of her knowledge was excellent and she was able to bring the awful experiences of the soldiers to life. The monuments and memorials were beautiful and incredibly moving. Overall I would highly recommend this tour to anybody interested in visiting the WW1 battlefields and learning about the War.

Did a half day tour as I wanted to experience WW1 battlefield sites I have been to many historical war sites all over the world but not WW1 Was informative and what I liked was that the guide also discussed the WW11 areas that were fought in the Somme region as well

The two days we spent with Rob discovering the WW1 battlefields, visiting memorials and tracing the final footsteps of my great grandfather were educational, informative,sometimes amusing and ultimately provided answers to a 105 year old family question. Robs military knowledge, extensive knowledge of WW1 history and the Commonwealth War Graves helped us understand the complexity of the battles of WW1 and the continued efforts to locate and identify the missing. Highly recommend.

We were really impressed with the knowledge and information that Jackie shared with us. We have four children with us under 15 years of age and Jackie went to a lot of trouble to make sure that they were fully engaged. Her background in the military me at that we had clear and interesting explanations of the intricacies of the war in 1916 and the two days we spent with her were well worth it. I would highly recommend this tour.

Rod picked us up from Arras Train Station and delivered a fantastic full day tour of the Somme region, and focused on the New Zealand and Australian involvement in the war. His knowledge is outstanding and his commentary was extremely interesting and informative. Rod took us to different areas and pointed out where the ANZACs and British forces were place on the battlefield in certain places.The tour was far more than we expected, and we would thoroughly recommend this company to anyone.

Rod was a wealth of information about the Somme and the area, and the military in general. He was also funny and easy going, My wife and I -- both public school history teachers -- learned a lot. A great way to spend a day!

We arranged the tour prior to our arrival in Arras and were promptly picked up by Rod at the station. We found we were the only couple on that day's tour and Rod went out of his way to personalise the day by taking us to where my grandfather may have fought in the Black Watch. In addition he showed us the citadel in Arras and the underground mining carried out by New Zealand miners in the lead up to the Battle of Arras. We visited many beautifully tended WW1 cemeteries and it was most emotive to stand in one but yet be able to see three others within a short distance. The day was a tremendous experience and Rod's knowledge and enthusiasm to convey the information was exemplary. For those considering taking one of these tours we would certainly recommend it.

Excellent tour and great service. Rod and Jacqui were so knowledgeable about WW1. We learnt so much and enjoyed the tour.

I had a wonderful day guided by Rod through the intricacies of the battle of Arras from the perspective of the NZ, French, Canadian and Australian contributions. I had provided details of my grandfather who served in these areas and Rod helped fill out some of my understanding of his service locations. We visited the site of the Australian activity and Bullecourt and this was then related to field and trench maps along with significant sights and features along the way. This strongly put into perspective nature of the battle and the ground fought over where so many selfless diggers gave their life. When I did my post tour reading and research it was amazing how all the pieces foir together for me. We visited several cemeteries and memorials, not just the large ones, but small more personal memeorials and Rod was always able to provide and strong and interesting insight. And.. the poppies were in bloom.

This tour was everything we expected plus more! The tour operator Jackie picked us up as planned from the front of the Arras railway station in a very comfortable mini van for 8. We spent the whole day exploring the WW1 Somme Battlefields, and war cemeteries with an Australian & Commonwealth focus for this particular tour. Jackie's historic knowledge on these battles are outstanding. Having had a military background, her explanation on the intricacies of individual battles was exemplary. As we weren't in a rush to get back to Arras for connecting transport, she went overtime by giving us a little bit more. We'd thoroughly recommend this tour to anyone that's interested in a detailed account of WW1 Somme Battlefields.

Had a great Somme day tour with Jackie. Punctual pick up and drop off. Jackie's knowledge definitely enhanced the enjoyment of the tour despite the wet and windy weather on the day. Would recommend without any hesitation. Rod.

We booked this tour because, as Australians, we wanted to see the Sir John Monash Centre and the School museum at Villers-Bretonneux. I also knew that John Monash had a great reputation in Australia. These three things were interesting on the tour, but it was all the other features of the tour that made it superb. It was the information that Jackie gave us that made this tour exceptional. She summarised the causes of WW1 as soon as we were in the van with the other 6 guests. Jackie explained the geography, the climate, showed us trenches and explained their design. She explained the design of barbed wire and the differences with the German design. we learnt about the first use of tanks in warfare. She taught us about tunnel building and how it differed with types of soil. She showed us the crater from a bomb exploded under the enemy from the tunnel. We learnt about the German experience and what they were thinking. We learnt about the effect on the local French people and how they coped after they fled from the battle scene. She showed us where a Roman road was still visible in 1916 and used as a land mark. There was a lot more. The day was jam packed with information, which is what I like. I particularly liked the way Jackie could assess us as Australians who did not want a false glamorous picture of how heroic our country was compared to everyone else. Jackie had the confidence to give a much more realistic explanation of our countries role which was one of many. Thank you Jackie