Booking Codes J105

Exploring Flanders – A Classical Getaway!

5 Days departing Wednesday 3rd August 2022

£945 Single Supplement £135

Join Backwaters for a fascinating exploration of the River along a 100km cruise range between the Northern capital city of and the historic city of Gent in Belgian Flanders. This will be a very special getaway for classical music lovers as we enjoy the delightful entertainment of Floriane Peycelon and her Radnor Ensemble who accompany us throughout our cruise, and we play some of the great orchestral pieces on our state-of-the-art sound system whilst cruising.

We stay throughout in the fine 4* Mercure Hotel on the outskirts of , handily situated close to the midpoint of our cruise, and our cruising is complemented by some free time to sightsee in Gent and Bruges, and by a free evening in Ypres where there is opportunity to attend the Last Post Ceremony at Gate. Day 1 – Outward Travel

Booking Codes J105

For our outward journey we will provide pick-ups across Kent leading to a Eurotunnel crossing into Calais at about 13:30 local time. From Calais it is a straightforward journey for the coach, along the autoroute as far as Veurne and then on main road via Diksmuide to Roeselare where we stay in the modern and quietly situated 4* Mercure Hotel on the edge of town. After check-in the coach will offer a shuttle into Roeselare for any guests who would value the chance to see the centre, highlighted by the fine 18th Century city hall on the market square. The towering belfry here is one of the historic belfries of Flanders collectively World-Heritage accredited by UNESCO.

This evening dinner will be in-hotel with musical introduction by the Radnor Ensemble.

Day 2 – Cruise Gent to

For our opening cruise leg our coach will take us to the boat moored in the heart of Gent, and here we will allow a couple of hours for private sightseeing in the historic centre before our cruise gets under way just before lunchtime. For those preferring to just relax and savour the waterside views, the boat will be available with tea and coffee on request.

Our cruise through to Lille over the next three days will follow the River Lys upstream towards its source in the Pas de Calais around 200km away. It is here in Gent that the Lys feeds into the River , which will go on to meet the sea at Antwerp, so we begin our cruise close to the river’s end.

Setting out from the centre of Gent, we follow the River Lys westwards out of the conurbation and across its junction with the Gent Ringvaart (as its name implies, the city’s ring navigation) before we break out into often wooded countryside. The river now follows a wandering course through a mix of farming pasture and woodland, flanking the sizeable town of Sint-Martens-Latem, concluding our afternoon in the town of Deinze where the Lys is joined by the Afleidingskanaal, connecting with the Canal Gent-Oostende a little further north.

For our cruise today we will play an orchestral programme featuring:

Johann Brahms Symphony No 4 Ludwig van Beethoven Piano Concerto No 5 (Emperor)

In the evening the Radnor Ensemble will play for us ahead of our dinner in-hotel.

Day 3 – Cruise Deinze to Menen

This morning we depart the hotel after breakfast to return to Deinze to follow the mainly canalised sections of the river through to our next mooring in Menen. Canalisation of the Lys was first undertaken from 1670 to eliminate its more extravagant meanders, and down the years many catastrophic flooding events have driven further improvements such that the waterway is now artificially channelled almost all the way through to Deûlement.

Down the years the Lys had been badly polluted by industrial waste, but has staged a healthy recovery as heavy industry across the region has declined or been better controlled. On leaving Deinze we will initially cruise through open country and then between the conurbations of and Wielsbeke. We will pass the junction with a branch canal leading into Roeselare before continuing through Harelbeke, and . We then cruise between and Lauwe before we moor for the day in Menen, at which point the river becomes the boundary between and France. Although much of today’s cruising is through an urban setting, much has been done to improve the waterway corridor as a recreational and wildlife haven, and we will find that a lot of our cruising has a parkland flavour to it.

Booking Codes J105

For today’s cruise we will pause in Kortrijk at lunchtime to admire the spectacular 14th Century Broel Towers and giving a chance for the Radnor Ensemble to entertain us. Then in the afternoon there will be another informal onboard “concert” of these great classics:

Antonín Dvořák Symphony No 9 (The new World) Richard Wagner Overture to Tannhäuser Franz Lehár Das Land Des Lächel (Placido Domingo) Edward Elgar Serenade for Strings

This evening the coach will take us from the hotel the short way into Ypres, where the evening will be free for guests to dine with side of the Last Post Ceremony at Menen Gate at 8pm. Subject to local approvals the Radnor Ensemble will be asked to play during wreath laying at the Last Post Ceremony.

Day 4 – Cruise Menen to Lille

Continuing out of Menen next morning, the river tracks the border between France and Belgium as it winds its way past a number of small towns to its junction with the River Deûle at Deûlemont. The Deûle was only a minor tributary of the River Lys, but it became an important part of French waterways history having been “canalised” by the great engineer Vauban and opened to boat traffic in 1693, making it one of the earliest navigable canals in the country.

We will now follow the Deûle as it turns us south-eastwards towards Lille, passing Quesnoy-sur-Deûle and Wambrechies as we continue into the Lille suburbs, where we pass the junction with the Canal de . This is a great story of urban conservation as the Canal de Roubaix had fallen into disuse by 1985 and it was scheduled to be used as the route of a new urban expressway for road traffic. But there was a change of heart and following substantial restoration works the canal was reopened in 2011. For all that it passes through the industrial hinterland of Northern Lille and past the old textile factories of Roubaix and Tourcoing, this is a fascinating and scenic cruise, but one for another day. Our cruise continues to follow the Deûle into the centre of Lille and here we conclude our voyage.

Today’s onboard compositions will be:

Ludwig van Beethoven Overture, Egmont Franz Liszt Hungarian Rhapsody No 2 Carl Maria von Weber Invitation to the Dance Johann Strauss II Casanove – Nun’s Chorus (Joan Sutherland) Giacomo Puccini Arias from La Bohème

Day 5 - Homebound

For our travel-home day, time is on our side and we have a free morning to explore historic Bruges. After allowing time for lunch in the city centre, the coach will depart at around 15:00 to fit with a schedule which brings us back into Kent around 6pm our time. A Longer Cruise?

Please note that this cruise is followed by a further 4-day departure with the Radnor Ensemble cruising between Lille and St-Omer. For this cruise we will stay full-board at the new 4* Mercure Hotel in St-Omer and the price to book is £795 with a £115 single room supplement.

Booking Codes J105

If guests would like to book both cruises for an 8-day holiday, the combined price is discounted to £1,595 with a single room supplement of £250. The pick-up and return routes for both cruises are the same. Backwaters will arrange to transfer guests between the respective hotels.

The Programme:

Wednesday 3rd August departure cruising between Gent and Lille Day Coach pick-ups for planned Eurotunnel Crossing at 11:50 to arrive Calais 13:30 local time. Hotel check in at 1 15:00 followed by free time in Roeselare Centre. Dinner in hotel with Radnor Ensemble Embark Disembark Km/Locks Lunch Other Detail Hotel ETD/ETA Day Gent 12:30 Deinze 17:00 28/1 On Board Free Morning in Gent. 09:00/18:00 2 On board classical programme. Dinner in Hotel with Radnor Ensemble Day Deinze 09:30 Menen 17:00 38/2 On Board Lunchtime pause in 09:00/21:30 3 Kortrijk. Radnor Ensemble will play on board and at Menen Gate to support the Last Post Ceremony. Dinner not included this evening Day Menen 09:30 Lille 16:00 33/4 On Board All day cruise with 09:00/16:30 4 classical music programme. Dinner in hotel with Radnor Ensemble Day Free morning in Bruges from 10:30 departing 15:00 for return crossing at 18:20. Radnor Hotel ETD 5 Ensemble will continue separately to hotel in St-Omer for ensuing cruise 09:30

Booking Codes J105

The Broel Towers in Kortrijk – picture © Tourism Kortrijk

Booking Codes J105

What’s Included:

• Executive Coach Travel • Eurotunnel crossings • Three days of cruising between Lille and Gent • Four nights at the 4* Mercure Hotel in Roeselare • Musical Entertainment by the Radnor Trio • All meals except lunches on the two travel days and evening meal when visiting Ypres • Complimentary bar whilst cruising, and drinks package with evening meals • Free time in Ypres, Lille and Bruges

Guests Should Please Budget separately for:

• Travel to or from their chosen coach pick-up point • Any overnight accommodation required in UK preceding or following our coach transfer • Lunch on outward and return travel days • Dinner on the evening we are free in Ypres • Travel and Health Insurance

The Radnor Ensemble

French-born Floriane Peycelon completed her violin studies in the Lyon National Conservatoire of Music and Drama. Flo is now enjoying a full-time career as a professional freelance violinist and violin teacher. She is the Violin Tutor at the University of Kent and the musical director of the University Sinfonia and runs string workshops for amateur players. She has been the leader of the Folkestone Symphony Orchestra since 2000.

As an orchestral and chamber player, Flo regularly performs around the UK and abroad. Her solo performances have included the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto, the Beethoven Violin Concerto and Vaughan-Williams' Lark Ascending. She leads the Radnor Ensemble, co-founded with her cellist friend Sarah Boxall. Together they perform as the Radnor Ensemble, as a duo, trio or quartet

Coach Pick-ups

The planned pick-up sequence for this departure is:

North Greenwich Jubilee Line Station (O2 Arena) 06:30 Medway Services 07:20 Faversham (A2 Preston Park Bus Stop) 08:00 Canterbury Bus Station 08:30 Hawkinge (LIDL Store bus stop) 09:15 Folkestone West Station 09:40 Tunnel Crossing at or close to 11:50

Guests will be asked to signal their preferred pick-up point on booking and this will be confirmed and subject to detailed instructions when tickets are issued. It may be possible to arrange additional pick-up points for guests travelling as a group of 10 or more. Please raise this on booking for further consideration.

Booking Codes J105

Coach Transfer – Connection for Guests Travelling from Distance

Our coach will call at Folkestone West Station to meet guests travelling on the day via local trains or the fast service from London St Pancras. Guests living further away are advised to book a stopover hotel close to their selected pick-up point.

Travelling Direct

Guests wishing to join the tour in Roeselare by either driving direct or connecting via Eurostar through Lille will be welcome to do so. There are no changes to the tour price in this event.

Our Hotel and Meal Plan:

The 4* Mercure in Roeselare is a modern hotel situated in a business park on the edge of town and enjoys an excellent reputation for its standards of hospitality and catering. Evening dining, with drinks package, is included in our programme except for one evening when guests will be asked to choose their own restaurants to allow them to dine either side of the 8pm Menen Gate Ceremony.

Scenic, Intimate, Silent, Slow, Comfortable, Relaxing….cruising the Backwaters way!