Bastogne - Battle of the Bulge
4-Day Battle of the Bulge and the Siege of Bastogne Staff Ride
On Day 1, starts with BSL personnel meeting the group at the airport (Amsterdam, Luxembourg, or Frankfurt - depending on the group) with an overall briefing on the situation leading up to German attacks and the initial responses by the 82nd and 101st as they were refitting. The museum visit can be coordinated with smaller groups to allow multiple small group discussions around the perimeter map as the first stop in the museum.
On Day 2, the group will eat breakfast at the hotel and then meet the buses that will depart on or about 9am for Bastogne War Museum. This stop allows for a good overview of German, US, and civilian actions leading up to, during, and after the battle. From there, the group can conduct a group photo at the Memorial, then proceed to the Bois Jacques fighting positions (E/506th) and overlook the town of Foy/Noville. From there, the tour will follow the perimeter in a counterclockwise fashion and include stops at the 502nd, the 326th Airborne Medical Memorial, the 327th perimeter, the link-up point of the 4th Armored and 326 Airborne Engineers, the 327th position in Marvie, and finally the 501st Memorial which looks back at the Bastogne War Museum. At the conclusion of the perimeter tour, the group will move to the Bastogne Barracks and complete the tour with the “NUTS!” Museum, the location of the 101st Airborne Division HQ during the siege. The group will conclude the day with a group dinner.
Day 3, the group will visit portions of the southern shoulder of the Battle of the Bulge pocket, the Patton Museum, and then visit the Luxembourg American Cemetery in Luxembourg City. Following that, the group will have lunch and time to visit Luxembourg City before returning to the lodging.
On Day 4, the group will have breakfast, check out of lodging and then depart for visits along the northern shoulder enroute to the departure airport area, check-in to lodging and conclude with one final group dinner to talk about the major lessons learned over the course of the staff ride