Travel

Participants make their own way to Lo, West Flanders to arrive in the afternoon of the first day.  Possibilities for getting there include:

• Train – Eurostar (from London Waterloo) to Lille, thence by local (hourly) service to Ieper/Ypres, from where you can be picked up and taken to the hotel by car – it will be necessary to liaise with the hotel for this service.
• Own vehicle –  (best option, as it will be easier to transport your purchases home!):

o        taking a car ferry to Ostend, Calais, or Dunkirk

o        or Le Shuttle (Eurotunnel) to Calais

From any of those terminals it takes under an hour to drive to Lo.  We normally go Eurotunnel which costs £78-98 return for a standard car depending on the time you travel.

We suggest that, if possible, you time your journey to arrive in Lo while it is still light to make it easier to find the hotel.  Arrive by 3pm local time if you want an opportunity to look at the town.  Remember that Belgian time is one hour ahead of the UK.

From 1st January 2006, UK residents travelling in Europe will require a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC).  This allows you to benefit from free or reduced-cost medical care (although it is not a substitute for full travel insurance).  The EHIC replaces the E111 and is free of charge.  For further information on the introduction of the EHIC and on how to apply for an EHIC, go to any main post office or visit www.dh.gov.uk/travellers

Accommodation, meals at other venues, drinks etc

We shall stay at De Oude Abdij (Old Abbey) Hotel, Lo  The hotel cost is £105 per person for 3 nights half board.  This will cover room (single or twin/double as required) for Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights, dinner (set meal) on those evenings, and breakfast on Saturday, Sunday and Monday.  If you advise us well in advance of any special needs such as dietary restrictions we will pass this information to the hotel, who will do their best to meet your requirements. 

The hotel cost does not include drinks in the bar or with meals and you are responsible for the cost of any such extras you order.  During the weekend the hotel bar will stock an extended range of beers.  A special beer-list with tasting notes will be given to all participants.

Rather than including set lunches for the Saturday and Sunday, we shall arrive at suitable hostelries at lunch time, so that you can buy what you want for lunch.  The restaurants for each day have a decent beer list and good food.  Each afternoon we will be at a location where you can get tea or coffee if required, but beer will always be available.

Apart from the cost of the hotel and coach (see below) and the cost of own travel to Lo, the only extras will be lunches, drinks, tips (at your discretion) and entrance fees -  there is a small entry fee for the Van Eecke brewery (€3) and for de Snoek brewery-museum (about €5) but both include a beer.  The 'entry fee' for St Bernardus brewery is € 7.5 but actually buys you a souvenir 75cl bottle of beer and presentation glass.  Shops and restaurants who take credit cards (normally VISA) will be indicated in the information packs, but many establishments (including the beer warehouse and supermarket we will visit) still do not accept cards, so please ensure you have enough Euros for your personal spending.

Programme in Belgium

The outline programme is below.  Route instructions to Lo will be provided when you book and you will receive a much more detailed information pack on arrival at the hotel.

Numbers permitting, we intend to get a coach to transport the group around Flanders, which means no one has to be the abstaining driver, and there will be plenty of room for any purchases you make on the way.  The exact cost of this will depend on the size of the group.  With a group of 12 the total cost of a coach for two days will be £45 per head, but this could be reduced if the group is much larger.

Please note that this tour is not suitable for those below legal drinking age, as most activities will involve beer tasting in some form.  It is also unsuitable for persons with disabilities, as many of the locations to be visited have uneven surfaces and lack disabled access.

Interested?

If you would like to go on the trip, please use the link below to send us an email as soon as possible including your full name, address with postcode, contact telephone number (state day or evening) and email address 

Click to email us
A booking form will be sent to you, which must be returned with a deposit of £30 to secure your place.  Please note that participants are responsible for their own travel to and from Lo, and should make bookings in plenty of time to ensure a place on ferries or trains.  You should also ensure that you have valid travel insurance which includes cancellation cover. 
Alternatively click on this link to download a Word document of the information booking form.

The small print

Please note this is a ‘not for profit’ venture and the organisers will be paying the same rates as everyone else, so although we don’t like small print we have to cover ourselves by clarifying the conditions.  Your booking confirms your agreement to these conditions.

1. The information about the trip has been compiled as accurately as possible at the time of going to press but individual events in the programme may have to be altered for reasons beyond our control.  The hotel charge includes half board as described but not drinks in the bar or with meals.  You are responsible for travel to and from Lo, lunches, drinks, and other personal expenses, as well as for arranging suitable holiday insurance cover for yourself and others on your booking

2. If you find it necessary to cancel before the final balance is due you should inform us immediately and we will then endeavour to re-allocate your place.  If we can do so, then all deposit monies paid will be returned less a handling charge of £5.  If we are unable to find someone to take your place, unfortunately, all the deposit monies paid are forfeited; but you may be covered for this loss by your holiday insurance. 

3. If you find it necessary to cancel after the final balance becomes due, whether or not the final balance has been paid, then unless your place can be re-allocated you will be liable for the full cost.  You may, of course, be covered for this loss by your holiday insurance.  If your place has been re-allocated  all monies paid will be returned less a handling charge of £25.

4. We are acting entirely as a booking agent on your behalf.  Once the confirmation of booking has been issued, the contract for accommodation is between you and the owner of the hotel.  We will do everything possible to give you a successful and enjoyable trip but sometimes things can go wrong.  Please try to obtain satisfaction from the owner of the hotel in the first instance, but if that fails then please report the matter to us and we will investigate any complaints.  It is regretted that no correspondence can be entered into in the case of complaints made upon departure or after you return home, when it will surely be appreciated that it is quite impossible for the problems to be effectively investigated or corrected.

5. If the Euro exchange rate varies significantly between January 2005 and the commencement of the trip, then there may be a slight change in the prices for hotel or coach but solely in accordance with such variation.

6. Payment of the balance of the cost of the hotel is due by 31 January 2006, and the cost of a coach (if viable) by 16th February.

7. Your data will be held on a computer, solely for the purposes of organisation of this trip, and will only be released to persons necessarily involved e.g. hotel and coach company.  Your address will be added to our e-mail list to advise you of other beer-related activities unless you indicate to the contrary on the booking form.