Sunday, May 30, 2027

Embark in Bordeaux

Arrive at Bordeaux–Mérignac Airport (BOD) and transfer to the port to embark SH Diana.

Enjoy the amenities of the ship and settle into your home for the next eight nights. This evening, enjoy a Captain’s Welcome reception and get to know other tour participants. After dinner, prepare for your cruise along the coast of France with a signature presentation by Michael Neiberg, PhD, on the fall of France and the Anglo American Alliance.

Monday, May 31, 2027

Bordeaux, France

A variety of excursions in and around Bordeaux are offered today. Historians Michael Neiberg, PhD and Jonathan Boff, PhD join select tours.

• OPERATION FRANKTON AND POINTE DU GRAVE
• “WINE AND WAR” BORDEAUX WALKING TOUR
• THE JEWISH EXPERIENCE IN WORLD WAR II WALKING TOUR
• NATIONAL CENTER JEAN MOULIN MUSEUM
• CHÂTEAU FRANC MAYNE TOUR AND WINE TASTING

This evening on SH Diana, sail toward Lorient and take in an after-dinner lecture on the French and wine during the war with Jonathan Boff, PhD.

Tuesday, June 1, 2027

Lorient, France

Choose from a variety of excursions around Lorient today. Historians Jonathan Boff, PhD, and Saul David, PhD, join select tours.

• LORIENT SUBMARINE BASE
• RESISTANCE IN BRITTANY: MAQUIS DE SAINT-MARCEL TOUR
• ANCIENT STONES OF CARNAC AND LUNCH IN THE SEASIDE VILLAGE OF LOCMARIAQUER

This evening on SH Diana, sail toward Brest and take in an after-dinner lecture on British Special Forces and the French Resistance with Saul David, PhD.

Wednesday, June 2, 2027

Brest, France

Customize your day with excursion options in Brest or the surrounding area. Historians Saul David, PhD, and John McManus, PhD, join select tours.

• BATTLE OF BREST FULL-DAY TOUR
• SURRENDER ON THE CROZON PENINSULA HALF-DAY TOUR
• DAOULAS ABBEY AND BOTANICAL GARDENS TOUR

Later, while en route to Saint-Malo on SH Diana, attend an afternoon lecture by John McManus, PhD, on the key battles and sites visited while in Brest and an evening lecture by James Holland on the Battle of Saint-Malo.

Thursday, June 3 and Friday, June 4, 2027

Saint - Malo, France

Enjoy two days of excursions in and around Saint-Malo. Historians John McManus, PhD, and James Holland join select tours.

• AVRANCHES, PONTAUBAULT, AND MORTAIN
• THE BATTLE OF SAINT-MALO AND BRITTANY AMERICAN CEMETERY
• FORTRESS OF THE CITE D’ALETH
• MONT-SAINT-MICHEL

On Thursday, take in an after-dinner lecture by James Holland on Lee Miller and combat photography in France.

On Friday, hear from John McManus, PhD, James Holland, and John Curatola, PhD, at an evening roundtable discussion about D-Day.

Saturday, June 5, Sunday, June 6, and Monday, June 7, 2027

Caen, France

Over three days, choose from a variety of excursions in Caen and the surrounding Normandy region that focus on the D-Day landings, 83 years later. Historian John McManus joins select tours.

• FULL-DAY US AIRBORNE TOUR OF UTAH BEACH, SAINTE-MÈRE-ÉGLISE, LA FIÈRE BRIDGE, SAINTE-MARIE-DU-MONT, BRÉCOURT MANOR, AND ANGOVILLE-AU-PLAIN
• FULL-DAY “AMERICANS ON OMAHA” TOUR (OMAHA BEACH, POINTE DU HOC, AND NORMANDY AMERICAN CEMETERY)
• FULL-DAY FALAISE GAP TOUR
• FULL-DAY ROUEN AND GIVERNY TOUR
• HALF-DAY DOG GREEN SECTOR OMAHA BEACH AND NORMANDY AMERICAN CEMETERY TOUR
• HALF-DAY BRITISH SECTOR TOUR
• HALF-DAY CAEN CASTLE AND WALKING TOUR

Each evening, after-dinner presentations will focus on topics relevant to D-Day, the Battle of Normandy, and the touring offered.

Tuesday, June 8, 2027

Amsterdam, Netherlands

Our voyage concludes as we arrive in Amsterdam. Disembark the SH Diana and bid farewell to your fellow travelers, historians, and staff.

For those departing, transfers to Amsterdam Schiphol Airport (AMS) are included.

For those continuing on a post-tour, your next chapter awaits—whether exploring the Dutch Resistance with Alexandra Richie, DPhil, or following in the footsteps of Easy Company across the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, and Austria with Band of Brothers actor James Madio.

• Nine-night cruise aboard the exclusively charter Swan Hellenic SH Diana
• Daily touring and nightly conversations with featured cruise historians
• Full-time logistical tour managers
• Expert local battlefield guides
• All meals aboard SH Diana
• Beer, wine, spirits, coffee, water, tea, and soft drinks throughout the cruise
• A custom collection of “design your own journey” included shore excursions
• Personal listening devices on all included excursions
• Entrance fees to all sites, museums, and attractions on included excursions
• Video oral history presentations from the Museum’s collection
• Private, air-conditioned motor coach transportation on all shore excursions
• Roundtrip airport transfers (when arriving and departing on scheduled group tour dates)
• Gratuities to shipboard crew, guides, drivers, and porters
• Informative specially curated keepsake guide book including useful battlefield maps and archival images to be used throughout your journey
• Personalized luggage tags and customized name badge 

*Airport transfers are included with additional hotel nights if booked through the Educational Travel Program.

Pre-Tour: Limoges – The French Resistance

• Michael Neiberg – When France Fell: The Vichy Crisis and the Fate of the Anglo-American Alliance
  A brilliant analysis of the fall of France in 1940 and the global consequences of Vichy collaboration.
• Halik Kochanski – Resistance: The Underground War Against, 1939-1945
  A comprehensive account of resistance to Nazi tyranny throughout Europe.
• Matthew Cobb – The Resistance: The French Fight Against the Nazis
  Explores the layered, decentralized nature of the French Resistance, including operations in Limoges and surrounding areas.
• Sarah Farmer – Martyred Village: Commemorating Oradour-sur-Glane
  A moving and scholarly examination of the massacre and how Oradour-sur-Glane became a symbol of civilian suffering and memory.
• Kate Quinn – The Alice Network
  A gripping historical novel that follows a female spy network in World War I and its echoes in the aftermath of World War II.

Bordeaux

• Donald and Petie Kladstrup – Wine and War: The French, the Nazis, and the Battle for France’s Greatest Treasure
  Essential reading for understanding the central theme of the Bordeaux excursions—the defense of wine culture amid occupation and resistance.
• Michael Neiberg – The Blood of Free Men: The Liberation of Paris, 1944
  A gripping account of the civilian resistance and political maneuvering behind the liberation of Paris. Though Paris-focused, it provides rich context on the Maquis and the inner workings of the French Resistance.
• Saul David – SBS: Silent Warriors
  A fast-paced narrative of Britain’s elite Special Boat Service goes into Operation Frankton a daring raid on the German occupied Bordeaux Harbor.

Lorient

• Jonathan Dimbleby – The Battle of the Atlantic: How the Allies Won the War
  A definitive modern history of the Battle of the Atlantic, central to Lorient’s role as a German U-boat base.
• Karl Doenitz – Memoirs: Ten Years and Twenty Days
  The man who led the U-Boat success and suffered both professionally and personally in their demise in the Battle of the Atlantic. Admiral Doenitz’s personal account of the war whose headquarters and home for much of the war was Lorient.
• C.S. Forester – The Good Shepherd
  A fictionalized account of an American destroyer on escort duty facing the perils of the German U-Boat threat in the Atlantic while protecting convoys from wolfpacks.

Brest

• Robert W. Black – Rangers in World War II
  An expansive history of US Army Ranger actions in World War II in both Europe and the Pacific. The chapter on Brest is one of the best accounts of a small unit action in a relatively unknown battle.
• Tony Geraghty – March or Die: France and the Foreign Legion
  Includes vignettes on the Legion’s role in Brittany and Brest during and after the war.
• Joseph Balkoski – From Beachhead to Brittany: The 29^th Infantry Division at Brest, August-September 1944
  A focus on one American Infantry Division’s role in the siege and battle for this strategically important port.

Saint-Malo

• James Holland – Normandy ‘44: D-Day and the Epic 77-Day Battle for France
  Holland brings Saint-Malo and the Brittany fighting into focus as part of the broader Allied campaign post-invasion.
• Lee Miller – Lee Miller’s War: Photographer and Correspondent with the Allies in Europe, 1944–45
  A primary source collection of Miller’s war reporting and photography—her visit to Saint-Malo features prominently.
• Antone Penrose – The Lives of Lee Miller
  Penned by her son, an intimate account of her life and wartime deeds sheds light on this incredibly talented woman and the turbulent times in which she lived.
• Anthony Doerr – All the Light We Cannot See: A Novel
  Set in Saint-Malo, this Pulitzer Prize winning novel offers a compelling narrative and brings a human touch to those who had to navigate the devastation of war.

Caen & Normandy

• Stephen Ambrose – D-Day: June 6, 1944: The Climactic Battle of World War II
  The definitive single-volume account of D-Day and the Normandy campaign, providing context for nearly every excursion here.
• Stephen Ambrose – Band of Brothers
  Ideal pre-reading for guests on the cruise or the BOB post-tour, blending personal narrative and military history.
• John McManus – The Dead and Those About to Die: D-Day – The Big Red One at Omaha Beach
  Though D-Day focused, it introduces key units also involved in the brutal fight for Brest and offers McManus's trademark narrative energy.
• John Curatola – Armies Afloat: How the Development of Amphibious Operations in Europe Helped win World War II
  Before the US Army could launch the Normandy landings it had to learn how to conduct amphibious operations against a contested shore.

Post-Tour 1: Amsterdam – Occupation & Resistance

• Alexandra Richie – Warsaw 1944: Hitler, Himmler, and the Warsaw Uprising
  Not Netherlands-based, but a deeply researched study of the brutality of Nazi occupation and the consequences of resistance – resonant with themes in Amsterdam and Haarlem.
• Ben Braber – This Cannot Happen Here: Integration and Jewish Resistance in the Netherlands, 1940-1945
  A deeply researched academic work on how Jews resisted —often invisibly—within Dutch society.
• David Barnouw – The Phenomenon of Anne Frank
  Short, but impactful book on how Anne Frank’s life and legacy grew in reach and significance over the 80 years since her life its tragic ending at the hands of Nazi ideology.
• Corrie Ten Boom – The Hiding Place
  A powerful memoir recounting how the Ten Boom family sheltered Jews in Nazi-occupied Holland and endured imprisonment for their faith and courage.

Post-Tour 2: Easy Company – Operation Market-Garden to Berchtesgaden

• Stephen Ambrose – Band of Brothers
  Revisit or finish the book after the cruise and before beginning the deep-dive post-tour.
• Mark Bando – 101st Airborne: The Screaming Eagles at Normandy
  A vivid, photo-rich account that complements Ambrose’s work with additional detail and firsthand stories.
• George Koskimaki – D-Day with the Screaming Eagles
  Written by General Maxwell Taylor’s radio operator and filled with firsthand accounts from Easy Company’s comrades.
• John McManus – September Hope: The American Side of a Bridge Too Far
  Conveys the American perspective of Operation Market Garden through a vast array of primary sources and personal accounts of those who were there.
• David Kenyon Webster – Parachute Infantry: An American Paratrooper’s Memoir of D-Day and the Fall of the Third Reich
  An unflinching and literary memoir by a member of Easy Company, 506th PIR, 101st Airborne Division—made famous by Band of Brothers. Webster’s vivid, unsentimental prose offers a unique firsthand account of the Normandy landings, Operation Market Garden, and the final push into Germany. His perspective as a thoughtful observer rather than a gung-ho warrior sets this memoir apart

Films

Film: Army of Shadows (1969, dir. Jean-Pierre Melville)
A grim, realistic portrayal of the French Resistance. Widely considered a masterpiece, it captures the moral complexity and danger faced by those fighting the Nazi occupation in France.

Film: Lucie Aubrac (1997)
Based on the true story of a Resistance heroine in Lyon. Offers insight into the sacrifices and courage of resistance members, especially women, in Nazi-occupied France.

Film: Wine and War (Documentary, 2020)
Based on the Kladstrups’ book. Tells the story of how French winemakers protected their vineyards—and their values—under German occupation.

Film: The Cockleshell Heroes (1955)
This 1955 Jose’ Ferrer directed film stars Trevor Howard and Christopher Lee, who are part of the famous raid via kayaks to attack the German ships and shipyard in Bordeaux. Imagine a British version of “The Dirty Dozen” in canoes!

Film: Carve Her Name with Pride (1958)
Tells the true story of British SOE agent Violette Szabo, who operated in occupied France and supported resistance cells near Bordeaux.

Film: Das Boot (1981, dir. Wolfgang Petersen)
One of the most realistic depictions of German U-boat crews and the harrowing tension of undersea warfare during the Battle of the Atlantic.

Film: Greyhound (2020, dir. Aaron Schneider, starring Tom Hanks)
A tense, fast-paced depiction of an American destroyer escorting Allied convoys across the North Atlantic while battling relentless U-boat wolf packs. Based on C.S. Forester’s novel The Good Shepherd, the film captures the stress and tactical complexity of naval warfare, tying in directly with the Lorient U-boat base story.

Film: A Call to Spy (2019, Netflix)
After France falls to the Nazis, two women seek to support the war effort by spying for a secret agency under Churchill. Based on a true story.

TV: SAS Rogue Heroes (2022, BBC/Amazon Prime)
A dramatized but stylish and informative take on the formation of the British SAS, highlighting the type of operations that occurred near Lorient.

TV: All the Light We Cannot See (2023, Netflix)
Based on the Pulitzer Prize–winning novel, this mini-series is set in wartime Saint-Malo and explores themes of resistance, blind resilience, and wartime suffering through intertwined French and German perspectives.

TV Miniseries: Band of Brothers (2001, HBO)
A must-watch. Follows Easy Company from jump training to D-Day, Market Garden, the Battle of the Bulge, and Berchtesgaden. Several filming locations parallel the actual sites visited on the tour.

Film: Saving Private Ryan (1998, dir. Steven Spielberg)
Famous for its brutal opening sequence on Omaha Beach. Though fictional, it offers a powerful depiction of the Normandy invasion.

Film: The Longest Day (1962)
A classic that covers D-Day from American, British, and German perspectives, filmed on location with many veterans as consultants.

Film: The Diary of Anne Frank (1959 or 1980s version)
Anne’s story is central to understanding life under Nazi occupation in the Netherlands.

Film: Black Book (2006, dir. Paul Verhoeven)
A Dutch resistance thriller based on real events. Follows a Jewish woman working as a spy inside the German command in the Netherlands.

Film: The Hiding Place (1975)
Based on Corrie ten Boom’s memoir. Chronicles her family’s effort to hide Jews in Haarlem and their eventual capture and deportation.

Film: A Bridge Too Far (1977)
An all-star retelling of Operation Market Garden. Though occasionally flawed in pacing, it captures the scale, ambition, and failure of the operation.

Documentary: He Has Seen War (2011)
A follow-up to Band of Brothers, focusing on the postwar experiences of Easy Company veterans. Produced by Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman.

TV: Un Village Français (French television series)
An acclaimed drama depicting life in a small French town under German occupation, exploring collaboration, resistance, and survival.

Digital Content Resources

The National WWII Museum’s 80^th Anniversary of D-Day Video Productions
To commemorate the 80^th Anniversary of D-Day, the Museum hosted multiple programs, both in New Orleans and abroad. These programs highlighted certain themes, decision points and actions of Operation Overlord, its build-up, and beyond. The Museum produced other video productions for its online audiences around the world to learn from and enjoy.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLfTt9Iv9fryVSEPYTdAFWMx_u6JqiWwFm

20^th Anniversary of Band of Brothers Symposium
In August 2022, the Museum hosted a symposium that went “behind the scenes” to shed light on the making of this seminal mini-series, commemorating the 20^th anniversary of its release on HBO. It also served as a reunion for the cast and crew who made it to New Orleans for what was a wonderful weekend. Sessions included: “Boot Camp Basics” with technical advisor Captain Dale Dye; “We Stand Alone Together” reminiscences from all the actors who were present for the program; and “A Company of Heroes” which featured family members of those WWII veterans who were portrayed in the series.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLfTt9Iv9fryWiQhEOcGo9MESMDn1zgVS2

2022 International Conference on World War II, “Resistance” Symposium Sessions
The theme for the pre-conference symposium, we selected “Resistance.” Three sessions from the program are appropriate for this tour.

The first featured Dr. Sarah Farmer, author of Martyred Village presented on life under German occupation in France (Farmer begins at 3:25 mark).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qscyCNaTSCY&list=PLfTt9Iv9fryWAx5P2g6UBRnF9R_HlTAnu&index=8

The next session featured best-selling author Lynne Olson. Olson’s talk was on her most recent publication Empress of the Nile, and discusses the WWII experiences of Christiane Desroches-Noblecourt, in occupied France. (Olson begins at 18:20 mark)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xJuiavDlVEQ&list=PLfTt9Iv9fryWAx5P2g6UBRnF9R_HlTAnu&index=15

The Final Session featured WWII French Resistance Member, Nicole Spangenberg. Nicole shared her own personal and harrowing experiences as a teenager working with the Resistance, before enlightening the audience to stories of other heroic women who fought against German oppression throughout Europe.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xJuiavDlVEQ&list=PLfTt9Iv9fryWAx5P2g6UBRnF9R_HlTAnu&index=15

World War II On Topic Podcast – “The Phenomenon of Anne Frank” featuring David Barnouw
Renowned Dutch scholar David Barnouw, author of The Phenomenon of Anne Frank, was interviewed about his book, which follows Anne’s emergence as a global icon, the ways in which her life and fate have been represented, interpreted, and exploited, and what it means for her legacy as a symbol of the Holocaust.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J63i_FqxYtw&list=PLfTt9Iv9fryX95XpuQcGHUMEBpaGrOeBN&index=3

80^th Anniversary of The Battle of the Bulge Symposium – Opening Keynote Address
The opening session of our 2024 International Conference pre-conference symposium was titled "The Battle of the Bulge" revisits the German perspective on the Ardennes Offensive in its 80th anniversary. Featuring renowned British author and military historian Anthony Tucker-Jones, the session delves into Adolf Hitler’s overambitious strategy, the logistical challenges of Germany's military in late 1944, and the eventual collapse of the offensive, offering a critical reassessment of one of World War II's most iconic battles.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-W3mat9sLh8&list=PLfTt9Iv9fryX8Cwn_Lbe3lRkkQoGIhobq

WW2 Pod: We have Ways of Making you Talk with James Holland and Al Murray
In December 1942, Herbert 'Blondie' Hasler's men were aiming for the occupied port of Bordeaux - with just canoes, mines and grenades. Operation FRANKTON was certainly daring and it did achieve its aims but only two out of ten ever made it back.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pG6eh_KsLwo

MAY 28, 2027
Fly into Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG) and transfer to Limoges / Lunch on own / Guided tour at Chateau Chambord / Welcome Reception and Dinner 
Accommodations: Hotel Mercure Limousin (R, D) 

MAY 29, 2027
Resistance Museum / Limoges guided walking tour / Lunch at Le Bouillon Limousin / Oradour-sur-Glane / Evening at leisure 
Accommodations: Hotel Mercure Limousin (B, L) 

MAY 30, 2027
Transfer to Bordeaux / Lunch on own in Cognac en route / Embark SH Diana 
(B)

JUNE 8, 2027
Disembark SH Diana in Amsterdam / Transfer to Haarlem / Lunch on own / Haarlem guided walking tour / Corrie ten Boom House / Reception and Lecture by Alexandra Richie 
Accommodations: InterContinental Amstel (R) 

JUNE 9, 2027
Westerbork Transit Camp / Group lunch / Evening at leisure 
Accommodations: InterContinental Amstel (B, L) 

JUNE 10, 2027
Dutch Resistance Museum / Amsterdam guided walking tour / Farewell Dinner 
Accommodations: InterContinental Amstel (B, D) 

JUNE 11, 2027
Transfer to Amsterdam Schiphol Airport (AMS) for your independently scheduled flights home.
(B)

JUNE 8, 2027
Disembark SH Diana in Amsterdam / Transfer to Eindhoven / Eindhoven and 101st Airborne guided walking tour 
Accommodations: Hotel Pullman Eindhoven Cocagne (D) 

JUNE 9, 2027
Tour American areas of Operation Market Garden / Tour of Arnhem and the “Bridge Too Far” 
Accommodations: Hotel Pullman Eindhoven Cocagne (B, L) 
CALL US AT 1-877-813-3329 x 257 | 33 

JUNE 10, 2027
Margraten American Cemetery / Drive to Clervaux / Bastogne War Museum 
Accommodations: Chateau d’Urspelt (B, D) 

JUNE 11, 2027
Memorial to Renée Lemaire / Tour of Easy Company foxholes in the Bois Jacques /101st Airborne Museum / Bastogne War Museum 
Accommodations: Chateau d’Urspelt (B) 

JUNE 12, 2027
Luxembourg American Cemetery and Memorial / Haguenau / Overnight in Stuttgart 
Accommodations: Maritim Hotel Stuttgart (B, L) 

JUNE 13, 2027
Dachau Concentration Camp / Transfer to the Bavarian Alps 
Accommodations: Grand Hotel Zell am See (B) 

JUNE 14, 2027
Obersalzburg driving tour / Former Berghof site / Lunch on your own in Berchtesgaden / Guided tour of underground bunkers and documentation center 
Accommodations: Grand Hotel Zell am See (B) 

JUNE 15, 2027
Hitler’s Eagle’s Nest / Bavarian lunch at Obersalzburg Golf Course / Afternoon free in Zell am See / Farewell Dinner 
Accommodations: Grand Hotel Zell am See (B, L, D) 

JUNE 16, 2027 Transfer to the Munich International Airport (MUC) for your independently scheduled flights home 
(B)