First Look at our 2027 Signature Small-Group Battlefield Tour Schedule

 

We put the same in-depth historical research, logistics capabilities, local knowledge base and language skills into our Signature Small-Group Battlefield Tours that we do into our Bespoke Tours. Then we add one more ingredient: participants who are history buffs. And we do all of this in an intimate, small-group setting. Most tours are capped at a maximum of 12 participants with two guides. This creates an intimate setting where participants have the chance to engage in great discussions and Q&A sessions that you can’t get on a busload of 30 participants.

Here’s a review from our 2026 28th Infantry Division Tour that summarizes this:

“Randy/Markus, Honestly, we did not know what we were getting into. Kirk and I started this trip as average history fans with a curiosity. We are ending this trip with a much deeper understanding, appreciation and respect. The curiosity is now fueled with a passion. Your model of in-depth battlefield tours is unique and not for the average tour participant. Your model is the best for what we were looking for. Furthermore, the personal connection with Andy to “randomly” learn about my grandfather’s story wasn’t random. I now feel closer to him, his POW story and the experiences he endured. This trip and this group made that connection. And for that, I thank you my friends.” David Fouche

Note: Andy is a retired US Army Officer who lives with his wife in France several months out of the year and who is an active researcher.

 

And a follow-up Email from Andy, dated 7 August 2026:

“We’ve all had a few weeks now to return to our ‘normal’ lives after our fantastic tour with Markus and Randy. I think our group had a great and somewhat unique experience that made our week one of those experiences in life that over-delivers and goes way beyond our original expectations. Markus and Randy were so well prepared and put us right into the wartime events that happened exactly on the ground where we stood…”

 

When you’re ready to get Knee Deep Into History, join one of our Signature Small-Group Tours!

 

 

Here’s our 2027 schedule. Unfortunately, we will not have full brochures available for the tours until late October / early November due to a full tour schedule in September and October 2026. If you’re really interested in a tour, email Randy Gaulke at kneedeepintohistory@gmail.com and we’ll be certain to keep you updated.

 

 

Yankee Division Tour (WW1), 14 – 20 April, 7-days / 6-nights

Explore the WW1 history of this storied New England National Guard division, celebrate the 108-year-old special relationship between the State of Connecticut and the French Commune of Seicheprey and support the “Veterans’ Memory Project” of the Connecticut Veterans’ Foundation.

 

Normandy Tour, 9 – 14 June, 6-days / 5-nights

Get knee deep into history walking and exploring all five beaches used in the Normandy Landings as well as key airborne sites. The tour’s dates have been selected to avoid the crowd at Normandy in early June, as VIP visits and masses of reenactors can make it difficult to access sites.

 

Verdun Tour, 19 – 21 June, 3-days / 2-nights

The Battle of Verdun has become synonymous with the battles of attrition in 1916-17. In addition to exploring the battlefield of Verdun, this tour is timed to coincide with the annual airshow at the Verdun municipal airport, which includes period aircraft and displays.

 

Flanders Fields and the Somme Tour, 29 June – 3 July, 5-days / 4-nights

This exploration of these two horrific battles of attrition is timed so that tour participants can take part in key 1 July ceremonies on the Somme, including the ceremony of remembrance and reconciliation at the Lochnagar Crater.

 

Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, 1 – 6 Sept., 6-days / 5-nights

This unique tour visits sites that were significant in both the rise and the fall of national socialism in Bavaria, Germany and in Austria. It includes sites such as Nuremberg, Landsberg-am-Lech, Dachau and Berchtesgaden. For example, after the failed Beer Hall Putsch Adolf Hitler and other key leaders of the NSDAP were imprisoned in the Bavarian State Prison at Landsberg-am-Lech. It was there that he wrote Mein Kampf; and Hitler’s cell was billed as a Hitler Youth pilgrimage site in the 1930s. In its post-war life, the prison was used as an American prison for the Dachau War Crimes Trials. Scores of prisoners were executed there and buried in an unconsecrated cemetery nearby, which we also visit. Finally, the prison also served as a displaced persons camp.

 

***NEW***Monuments Men and Women Tour, 9 – 16 Sept. 8-days / 7-nights

This 8-day tour will cover 5 countries–France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany and Austria. It begins with a look at Nazi art collection / looting efforts in Paris, France. We then move to view key works of art in Belgium that were successfully returned before moving to visit the graves of the two monuments men killed in action. Finally, we’ll advance through Germany and Austria, visiting key mines, castles and monasteries used to hide the artwork for safekeeping, and a few collecting points used by the Americans to facilitate the return of the artifacts.

 

Meuse-Argonne and St. Mihiel Tour, 23 – 28 Sept., 6-days / 5-nights

The St. Mihiel Offensive in mid-September 1918 was the American Expeditionary Forces’ first offensive as an independent American Army–albeit with significant Allied support. Two weeks later, the Meuse-Argonne Offensive, America’s largest and longest battle of WW1, commenced. Learn about both of these battles and visit lots of physical remains in this in-depth look at the offensives.

 

Ardennes Tour, 7-13 Dec., 7-days / 6-nights

Want to experience the Battle of the Bulge as the GIs experienced it? This December trip will at least give you an impression of the weather faced by the boots on the ground as we explore the battle in-depth. The tour is also timed to coincide with the Nuts Weekend events around Bastogne.