World War I trenches

If there is anything that captures the imagination of the very unfortunate situation soldiers faced during World War I, it is surely the "trenches," also sometimes called "trenches" in Flemish (which, at least according to the VRT language advice website, would actually be "bad" Dutch ) or "trenches" as the English put it. Miles and miles of narrow trenches dug into the landscape with which they could protect themselves from the enemy and move from one dugout to another. Many of these trenches contained water, rats and certain diseases could run rampant.

In several places in an arc around Ypres (very appropriately called the "Ypres Arch") you can still see authentic trenches as they were constructed at the time. There are of course also some on display in certain museums (reconstructions of dugouts, among others), but the real ones have just that little bit more. They also offer you plenty of opportunities photographically.

We are not going to list here all the places where you can go to see one of those "real" World War I trenches. However, we will list some of the most important ones:

• Yorkshire Trench and Dugout (Ypres) - read more about it below
• German Trenches: Bayernwald (Wijtschate, Ypres - Google Maps).
• Hill 62 trenches and museum (Ypres - Google Maps).
• One of dé reference our region are the trenches on the Ijzer: the Death Trench (Diksmuide).
• If you want to drive a little further you can also visit the beautifully restored trenches of Vimy (near Lens, France).
  
  
  In Bayernwald you can see German trenches. This is unique.
  
  
  Bayernwald receives some 40,000 visitors per year (2019).
  

Need more information ?
Info on "trench" / "trench" in Wikipedia: Dutch-language - French-language - English-language
Info about "dugout" in Wikipedia: Dutch-language - English-language
Trenches to visit on website Tourism Westhoek

The Yorkshire Trench & Dug-Out is located in the industrial zone of Ypres. Although the infrastructure to accommodate tourists is in need of a thorough refresh, it does allow you to visit trenches close to Ypres, free and freely accessible all year round. These few dozen meters of trenches with accompanying air-raid shelters, the dugouts, are well worth seeing. It gives you a first idea of what it all looked like. Information panels give some explanation of what was found there.

Location in Google Maps.