To cut to the chase we give both tours 10/10. This is interesting in that our two tour guides Jon and Robin have different personalities and styles.

The common feature is that both guides are true historians and extremely professional. More important though is that they were able to judge our level of understanding and interest and adjust their itineraries and presentations accordingly. We definitely felt that each day was “ customized” for us. They obviously had more knowledge than we did but only took it as far as  we wanted at a particular cemetery, monument or battlefield. When we wanted more in depth information they gave it to us. They let us wander through cemeteries reading headstones and we never felt there was a schedule we had to keep.

We thoroughly enjoyed our three days with Jon Haslock. He was excellent in showing us how the battles were fought. We stood on the grounds at Passchendaele, Vimy and Beaumont-Hamel and he explained the movements of the trenches, the attacks and the positions so we got a real sense of what it must have been like. We also talked about the impact on the civilians-farmers, shopkeepers whose homes and lands were in the occupied zones and what it must have been like to return or not to their village. The impact on civilians is not something that gets proper appreciation. A nice touch was one day when we stopped for lunch and met Jon’s wife and mother in law. Little personal things like this make the relationship special. We would highly, highly recommend Jon as a tour guide. We would be thrilled to come back and tour with Jon.

We thoroughly enjoyed our 3 days with Robin Burrows-Ellis. Robin focused on lesser known facts and the true stories such as the Maisy battery and Pointe du Hoc. Robin has done extensive research on individuals, whether a grave marker or a battle leader. By drilling down to the personal side of a conflict he created a closer connection to the individual and turned names into persons. Juno beach was very special we walked in the beach and had our picture taken where wounded Canadians huddled against the sea wall for protection. The 1944 picture of where we stood was chilling. On the last day, Robin brought his partner along and her stories of her village were an appreciated special touch.

We wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Robin to anyone interested in WW2. We would hire Robin again in an instant.

Canadian Battlefield Tours exceeded our expectations – which were high. Over our three days at WW1 and three days at WW2 battlefields we had two professional historians who were able to judge our level of interest and go as shallow or deep as we wanted at a cemetery, monument or battlefield. We were particularly impressed with their expertise on Canadian subject matter.

Both tour guides were personable and passionate. The administrative side was seamless with Gary handling all the details. We have already told many of our friends about CBT and how we highly recommend them. We could tell from some friends who had taken tours with other operators that CBT clearly surpassed their experience.

Thank you for creating these special days in our lives.