Press Release

The National WWII Museum Announces Spring 2019 Educational Travel Program

NEW ORLEANS (December 11, 2018) – The National WWII Museum today announced its list of upcoming WWII educational tours for the spring 2019 season. The newly released lineup, featuring six unique trips to intriguing destinations from Normandy to Berlin to various Pacific islands, will allow guests to journey through the most significant battles that paved the way for Allied victory in World War II.

Led by best-selling authors, historians and expert battlefield guides, each travel tour features rich historical context directly from the Museum’s curators, primary-source materials from the institution’s digital collections and custom experiences found nowhere else.

“Over the past few years, The National WWII Museum has become a leader in providing exceptional journeys into WWII history,” said Stephen J. Watson, President & CEO of the Museum. “World War II was a global conflict that required the American military to fight in very diverse locations around the world, and we’re proud to offer guests the opportunity to retrace their steps. These are once-in-a-lifetime experiences that allow visitors to stand in the very places that changed the course of history for our nation.”

The National WWII Museum’s 2019 International Travel Program includes:

  • East Meets West: The Link-up on the Elbe (April 11 – 19, 2019) Join Alexandra Richie, DPhil, and Peter Caddick-Adams, PhD, on a journey along the river where the most important military link-up of World War II occurred. When Soviet and American forces met near Torgau, it was a clear sign that Germany’s final defeat was near. Along the way, guests will visit Berlin, Dresden, Wittenburg, Torgau and Prague.
  • Victory in the Pacific (March 15 – 25, 2019) This unique trip explores the Pacific island battlefields and landing beaches in the company of expert historians Richard Frank and Jonathan Parshall. Victory in the Pacific journeys from Pearl Harbor—where it all started for the Americans – to the islands of Saipan, Guam, Iwo Jima and Tinian, where the Enola Gay departed to drop the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima.
  • D-Day: The Invasion of Normandy and Liberation of France (April 18 – 24, 2019) This popular tour provides an in-depth itinerary exploring America’s most famous WWII battle. Offering a full week in Normandy at an incredible price, this unforgettable tour features top guides, boutique accommodations, comprehensive dining and exclusive access to sites unseen on other programs.
  • The 75th Anniversary of D-Day (May 29 – June 7, 2019) Aboard the Seabourn Ovation, guests will follow the path of Germany’s conquest of Western Europe and the Allied efforts to wrest control back from the Nazis in a path of liberation. This milestone tour culminates at the French and American ceremony at Normandy American Cemetery, commemorating the Allied landings that took place on June 6, 1944.
  • Easy Company: England to the Eagle’s Nest (May 1 – 13, 2019; June 10 – 22, 2019; June 24 – July 6, 2019) Follow in the footsteps of the famed Easy Company – a group made legendary in the HBO miniseries “Band of Brothers,” which was based on Museum founder Stephen E. Ambrose’s book of the same title. Guests have the unforgettable experience of following the path of the legendary 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 101st Airborne, including tour stops and special guests not offered on any other tour.
  • The Rise and Fall of Hitler’s Germany (May 18 – 29, 2019) Featuring noted historian Alexandra Richie, DPhil, this tour explores Germany and Poland through the lens of the rise and fall of the Third Reich. The tour will visit Berlin’s Olympic Stadium and Reichstag; sites of the Third Reich’s exploits and atrocities across Europe at Auschwitz, Wannsee, Zagan and Warsaw; as well as Gdansk, where the first shots of World War II rang out on September 1, 1939.

For more information on travel schedules and costs, or to book your travel tour, visit www.ww2museumtours.org or call 504-877-813-3329 x 257.

The National WWII Museum tells the story of the American experience in the war that changed the world—why it was fought, how it was won, and what it means today—so that future generations will know the price of freedom and be inspired by what they learn. Dedicated in 2000 as The National D-Day Museum and now designated by Congress as America’s National WWII Museum, it celebrates the American spirit, the teamwork, optimism, courage and sacrifices of the men and women who fought on the battlefront and served on the Home Front. The 2018 TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice Awards ranks the Museum No. 3 in the nation and No. 8 in the world. For more information, call 877-813-3329 or 504-528-1944 or visit nationalww2museum.org.