Canadian National Vimy Memorial

Canadian National Vimy Memorial

Canadian National Vimy Memorial
5
11:59 PM - 12:00 AM
Monday
11:59 PM - 12:00 AM
Tuesday
11:59 PM - 12:00 AM
Wednesday
11:59 PM - 12:00 AM
Thursday
11:59 PM - 12:00 AM
Friday
11:59 PM - 12:00 AM
Saturday
11:59 PM - 12:00 AM
Sunday
11:59 PM - 12:00 AM
About
Canada's most impressive tribute overseas to those Canadians who fought and gave their lives in the First World War is the majestic and inspiring Canadian National Vimy Memorial which overlooks the Douai Plain from the highest point of Vimy Ridge, about ten kilometers north of Arras. The Memorial does more than mark the site of the engagement that Canadians were to remember with more pride than any other operation of the First World War.
Duration: 1-2 hours
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  • Emilie B
    56 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Top welcome and majestic memorial
    Magnificent memorial, so imposing and majestic It is better to start the visit with the museum part. The welcome given by Canadian students is warm. The visit to the trenches and underground is also carried out by Canadian students. (Tickets to be reserved in the museum section) Note that everything is free: parking, memorial, activity book for children, museum, guided tour of the trenches. This is so rare that it should be noted! Don't forget to visit the cemeteries: so poignant to see all these lives given for the freedom of France
    Visited April 2024
    Traveled with family
    Written April 25, 2024
  • Sue Wiggins
    Rugby, United Kingdom487 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Magnificent memorial
    We visited with our history group whilst staying in Arras to visit the SOMME memorials and cemeteries. This is a magnificent monument erected to the memory of those brave young Canadians who died on the SOMME. I personally found it very moving. The architecture is amazing and so fitting as a memorial.
    Visited May 2024
    Traveled with friends
    Written May 10, 2024
  • Laurel M
    Calgary, Canada855 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Stop at the Visitor Centre first and take a free guided tour of the grounds.
    There is no charge to visit here and we were given timed tickets to take a guided tour. Katie was our guide and showed us the hills where the communication trenches were and how they led to the front line. Only with a guide can you go into the ‘subway’. All very interesting. As we approached No Mans Land she pointed out the huge crater made by artillery. It’s now a peaceful grazing place full of sheep! Just beyond that is the German trench. The information panels inside the museum are very well done. There is also information on the building of the Vimy Memorial. You can walk to the Memorial or it’s a short 3 minute drive. Stunning to see. This is such an important place for Canadians as it was after the taking of Vimy Ridge that Canada was recognized on the world stage as separate from Great Britain. What a shame our current government removed the image from our passports.
    Visited May 2024
    Traveled as a couple
    Written May 18, 2024
  • Beanie D
    Shrewsbury, United Kingdom98 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Well worth visiting.
    We stopped by the Vimy Memorial as we were passing through and I’m so glad we did. The the visitor centre is really well set out with interactive information points and we were met with such a warm welcome from the friendly staff. We took the opportunity to join a free guided tour of the tunnel with Sophie, who was a fount of knowledge and made a real effort to engage with the group. The memorial itself is truly beautiful, and is a stark reminder of the loss of life during the war, which makes visiting the trenches and preserved battleground particularly impactful. If you are in the area, or even if not, it is well worth visiting.
    Visited July 2024
    Traveled as a couple
    Written July 4, 2024
  • enilec59
    Cambrai, France138 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Superb site
    Very nice site: The trenches, the tunnel, the craters, the memorial, the sheep, a beautiful walk rich in emotion, ... and especially a great Canadian welcome. 🇨🇦 Thanks to Charlotte for the visit, my boys loved it. 🥰 I was amazed that no one left a tip (which unfortunately was my case, not one piece on me 😅)
    Visited July 2024
    Traveled with family
    Written July 26, 2024
  • Janice S
    Prince Edward County, Canada41 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Honouring 6600 young Canadian men killed in the WW1 in France.
    Awe inspiring monument that makes one proud to be Canadian. The names of over 6500 Canadiana war dead from WW1 in France are chiseled onto the base of the monument which is meant to represent the friendship between Canada and France. Built on the actual Vimy Ridge, it is quite impressive to look out over the French Country side and see the battlefields. Loved the Beavers at the base of the flag pole.
    Visited January 2025
    Traveled with family
    Written January 25, 2025
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.

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Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

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5.0
5.0 of 5 bubbles1,428 reviews
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Evelyn M
Amersham, UK113 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2023 • Family
Really interesting museum as it gives you the candian perspective of ww1. the memorial was very impressive, towering above the surrounding areas. the memorial is a short walk from the museum and car park. the museum details how the canadians helped to keep the germans away from the strategic point which is the hill the memorial is built on. theres also the opportunity to take a guided tour around the underground tunnel system and the above ground trench system. i really recommend that people do this as the guides have some awesome facts that you cant find in the museum.
all in all a morning well spent!
Written April 10, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

irawine
Benicia, CA635 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
May 2023
I found Vimy Ridge Memorial Park to be moving and informative. The grounds are peppered with shell holes from World War 1 it is an amazing site. There is a small museum, restored trenches, and an opportunity to explore the underground tunnels with a guide. The guides here are university students from Canada, who, quite simply are great ambassadors for Canada. They are extremely personable, friendly, and knowledgeable. I strongly recommend a visit to Vimy Ridge.
Written June 7, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Louise d
Den Bosch, The Netherlands63 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2023 • Couples
Very interesting and impressive. We first visited the visitor center, which is decorated as a small museum and where students from Canada work. It is striking that the visit is free, including a tour of the underground tunnels and an explanation of the tranches above ground. You can then walk across the grounds, where you can still clearly recognize all the shell impacts and old tranches, to the monument and cemetery. Once you reach the monument you will understand why this hill was so important.
Google
Written December 11, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

David
Oxford, UK1,919 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2023 • Business
The memorial is very impressive. The museum currently has an exhibit showing some of the other options that were considered - it's clear why this very striking and inspirational design was selected.

I was fortunate to be able to visit some of the subterranean areas of the site with some friends. Very interesting.

All round, a good trip. You are looked after by guides who are all student volunteers doing a semester away from their university back home in Canada.
Written March 10, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Hearthstone1
Toronto, Canada148 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2022
A moving and surreal experience for these proud Canadians. We arrived by private transfer at 10am and were amongst the first visitors. A bus of school children had arrived and were learning about the site at the Visitors Ctr. so we decided to walk to the monument first. The starkness of the grounds is breathtaking and beautiful and very emotional. The French are a grateful nation for the sacrifices made by so many Canadians during WW1. To witness the memorial in person is to begin to understand that sacrifice.
Written October 18, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Alec P
3 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2022 • Family
Friendly and attentive staff/guides who are young Canadian students.

The tour offered in English was excellent (and free). It conveyed both the sacrifce and the success of the Vimy Ridge battle without any sense of triumphalism. Seeing the trenches and tunnels gave an insight into how it might have been.

Highly recommended.
Written August 13, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

msmeganchristinab
Langley37 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2023
My family travelled from British Columbia, Canada, to Arras because we wanted to see the Vimy memorial. We flew to Paris and took the train to Arras. We thought we would be able to get a taxi to Vimy Ridge from Arras but the local taxis refused to take us there. We tried calling and flagging cabs down but everybody said no, they could not take us. What a terrible disappointment for my family after traveling from so far away. We were absolutely crushed.
Written April 2, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Chris D
New Westminster, Canada3,366 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2022
The history and background of this memorial is well-known, and I need not repeat it here. However, to read about it is one thing, to actually walk where all those young Canadians lived their last breath is something else again. Similar to Juno Beach, one gets that feeling that many souls remain here, with their work unfinished. May I suggest you do as I did: walk amongst them, then go back to Canada and do your best to ensure that another generation of young men need not join them.
And, do see the info center a short distance away. The tunnels are especially eerie.
Written September 5, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Tigertribal
Craigavon, UK1,054 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2023
Wartime tunnels, trenches, craters & unexploded ordnance still litter the grounds of the site, which remains largely closed off for reasons of safety.

Hill 145 was the highest point in the whole area. The strategic value of Vimy Ridge made it a prize possession & from the Allies point of view the German occupation of the Ridge was a major threat to any advance in the Somme region in 1917. Therefore, the decision was to give the task to the Canadians.

Pyramids visable from the memorial are coal slags.

University students arrive for 3 months from Canada to act as guides.

Commemorates 11,169 soldiers.
Written July 21, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Dilbertfan
Surrey, UK446 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2021
The site comprises a museum staffed by young and helpful Canadians doing a 2-month stint, and a remarkable memorial about 1km away, which you can just glimpse if you drive along the A26 (the "motorway of the English"!). The staff will happily chat to you and share their knowledge in either French or English.
A section of the museum is dedicated to the memory of the four Canadian regiments who successfully re-took the Vimy ridge near Verdun, the history of the (beautiful) memorial, and the colouring of old black and white photos and film taken at the time.
The whole area is impeccably kept, and includes outside reproduction trenches among very real shell craters which have grassed over.
The entrance is free, as is the plentiful parking.
Written November 4, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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Canadian National Vimy Memorial, Givenchy-en-Gohelle

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