The LRE Foundation is pleased to announce a new collaboration with Kuoni Tumlare, a leading international Destination Management company. In a new and exciting venture, the Foundation has teamed up with Kuoni Tumlare to create a selection of engaging trip itineraries for US and Canadian travellers who are looking to discover the history of Europe in the final years of WWII and the stories behind its liberation.
Kuoni Tumlare is a leading Destination Management company providing travel partners services throughout Europe since 1906. Kuoni Tumlare’s strength is the nineteen (19) local European offices that allow the company to provide personalised group services and customised itineraries, which offer travellers memorable, exciting, and educative experiences.
Thanks to this cooperation, American and Canadian travellers and history enthusiasts will be able to enjoy four expertly-designed packages focused around sites in Normandy, Belgium, Netherlands, Italy and Norway, through which they will be able to explore the important places and learn the incredible stories of Europe’s liberators along the Liberation Route Europe. “Kuoni Tumlare is honoured to partner with the LRE Foundation to provide these important World War II remembrance tours, especially for the generations of Americans and Canadians to come”, says David Shield, Sales Manager at Kuoni Tumlare.
The tours created through this collaboration will enable the Foundation to spotlight many of its members, including museums, cemeteries and memorials related to WWII history and remembrance, and make the Liberation Route Europe network even more accessible and internationally known. The four packages available are:
-
Normandy, France: a 9-day itinerary encompassing the principal battlefields of WWII in the Normandy region of Northern France. Sites include Omaha and Utah beaches, the Contentin Peninsula, Saint-Lô and finally Falaise before returning to Paris.
- Benelux: a 10-day trip focusing on key sites in Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg area. This excursion focuses on Operation Market Garden and the Battle of the Bulge. From Eindhoven to Arnhem, Bastogne, the Ardennes, to Malmedy and ending in Brussels, some highlights include visits to important battle sites, museums, and the notable Hells Highway.
-
Italy: An 8-day itinerary starting in Rome and ending in Florence, taking in a tour of the Eternal City, including Mussolini’s “new city”, and the Ghetto. Discover story of the Ardreatine Caves, and the Abbey and military cemeteries of Cassino, before heading to Lucca and Florence to explore their WWII history.
- Norway: an 11-day excursion taking in some of the immense wartime fortresses and fascinating museums the country has to offer, as well as a trip on the impressive Flambaan railway and a Nærøyfjord cruise. The route starts in Hirtshals/Bergen, onto Stalheim, Geilo and Rjukan area before ending in Oslo.
“We are beyond happy to be collaborating with Kuoni. The combination of Kuoni’s expertise in tourism and travel and the Foundation’s network and remembrance knowledge resulted in four exciting tours touching many of the most important sites linked to our common history. We went into this venture with special attention to our members and partners, intending to bring their stories to many tour operators and US and Canadian travellers, and we are pleased to see this becoming a reality.”
