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6 June 1944 · Normandy, France

The Day of Days…
the day the world had been waiting for.

Private D-Day battlefield tours through Normandy, guided by historian Mike van den Dobbelsteen — walking the ground where 156,000 men changed the course of history.

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The Largest Military Operation in History

6 June 1944.
The Day the World
Held Its Breath.

They were farmers, mechanics, teachers, and college students. Many of them had never been in combat. By 5 June, they boarded ships, climbed into gliders, and strapped on parachutes — heading toward the German fortified coastline in Normandy.

They knew it would be brutal. They knew not everyone would make it back. They crossed the English Channel in darkness anyway. 156,000 American, British, Canadian, and French troops stormed nearly 65 miles of Nazi-held Normandy coastline — beginning the final push to liberate Western Europe from five years of occupation.

But D-Day was not simply a moment of sacrifice. It was one of history's most astonishing feats of planning, deception, and improvised courage. Entire armies moved in shadows. Decoys fooled the German High Command. On one beach, everything that could go wrong did — and men found a way through regardless.

These are the stories Mike has spent nearly 40 years learning to tell properly — standing on the very ground where they happened.

156,000
Allied troops who landed on D-Day across five beaches
~2 Million
Total Allied personnel involved in Operation Overlord
6,900+
Ships and landing craft in the invasion armada
5.0 ★
TripAdvisor rating · 350+ reviews
11,500+
Allied aircraft involved in D-Day operations
Why This Ground Matters

This Isn't History You Read About.
It's Ground You Can Stand On.

The Normandy beaches are still here. The German bunkers are still here. The rows of white crosses at the American Cemetery — 9,387 of them — are still here. You can walk the same sand those men ran across. You can stand at the top of the cliffs at Pointe du Hoc and look down at the ropes the Rangers climbed under fire. You can sit in the pews of the church at Angoville-au-Plain where two American medics saved the lives of wounded soldiers — American and German alike — while the battle raged outside the door.

History this close demands more than a guidebook. It demands someone who knows not just what happened, but why it happened — the decisions that shaped the day, the mistakes that nearly ended it, and the courage that saved it.

"These men deserve to be remembered with more than a museum visit."

The History the Documentaries Don't Have Time For

The History Nobody Tells You

Every visitor to Normandy knows the outline. Mike will show you what most textbooks leave out — the strategy, the deception, the moments of improvised genius, and the brutal fight that continued long after the beachhead was won.

Military Deception

The 1,100 Men Nobody Knew Existed

A few weeks after the first soldiers landed in Normandy, a secret unit of about 1,100 American artists, designers, and sound engineers arrived to go to war — with inflatable tanks, fake radio traffic, and sound trucks blasting recorded engine noise across empty fields. The Ghost Army was inspired by Operation Fortitude, the Allied deception that convinced the German High Command the real invasion would come at Calais, not Normandy, and kept German reserves waiting there for weeks. Once in France, the Ghost Army ran more than twenty deceptions of its own, leading German commanders to misjudge where Allied forces were and what they would do next. Most people have never heard of it.

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Omaha Beach

The Morning Everything Went Wrong

The bombers dropped their loads too far inland — thousands of yards from the German defences they were meant to destroy. Many DD tanks designed to provide fire support sank in heavy seas before reaching shore. The landing craft were pushed over a mile off course. The first men who reached Omaha had almost no cover and faced machine gun fire from cliffs directly above them. By 7am it was a catastrophe. And yet — Brigadier-General Norman 'Dutch' Cota walked the exposed beach under fire, rallied the men pinned down in the surf, and broke the German stranglehold. Stand on that beach. Understand exactly what it took.

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Utah Beach

The Accident That Saved Hundreds of Lives

The current swept the first wave 2,000 yards south of their designated landing zone. Their commander looked at where they'd ended up — lighter wire, fewer mines, less concentrated fire — and made a decision on the spot: they'd take this beach instead. "We'll start the war from here," Brigadier General Theodore Roosevelt Jr. reportedly said. He was right. Utah became the most successful American landing of D-Day, with the fewest casualties of any sector. It was a mistake that changed everything — and a decision that took real nerve to make.

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The Push Inland

The War Nobody Had Planned For

June 6th was only the beginning. The Normandy bocage — centuries-old earthen hedgerows so thick and high they formed near-impenetrable walls — turned the most powerful army in the world into men fighting for individual fields. Tanks struggled. Air support couldn't tell friend from foe. The men of the 29th Infantry Division fought this war for seven brutal weeks, from Omaha Beach to the ruins of Saint-Lô. Mike will take you through the hedgerow countryside and tell you the story of the sergeant who improvised a solution that helped crack the German line — and the men who paid for every yard with their lives.

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Private Tours

Choose Your Experience

All tours are fully private — for groups of 1 to 8. The fee is flat per group, not per person. Pickup and drop-off at your accommodation near Bayeux.

4 Hours€425

Half-Day Tour

A focused introduction to D-Day — ideal for families with young children, those with limited time, or guests who prefer a concentrated experience. Choose from American, British, or Canadian itineraries, morning or afternoon.

★ 1–8 people · Flat fee
Half Day American D-Day ToursHalf Day British D-Day ToursHalf Day Canadian D-Day Tours
9 Hours€680

Full-Day Tour

A complete, immersive day across the Normandy battlefields. Choose the Allied tour or a dedicated American, British, or Canadian sector tour. Includes Pointe du Hoc, war cemeteries, and the full story — including D-Day to Saint-Lô.

★ 1–8 people · Flat fee
Allied D-Day TourAmerican D-Day TourBritish D-Day TourCanadian D-Day TourD-Day to Saint Lô
9 HoursFrom €750

Tailor-Made Tour

Design your own tour. Follow in the footsteps of a specific family member. Trace every Band of Brothers location. Mike will research, plan, and guide a tour built entirely around your story.

★ 1–8 people · Flat fee
Design Your Tour
6 Hours€520

Day Trip from Paris

Take the 9am train from Paris Gare St-Lazare and arrive in Bayeux by 11:15am, where Mike meets you for a focused afternoon at Sainte-Mère-Église, Pointe du Hoc, Omaha Beach, and the American Cemetery. Available Monday–Friday.

★ 1–8 people · Flat fee
View Details
9 Hours€890

From Cherbourg Cruise Port

Arriving by cruise ship at Cherbourg? Mike picks you up from the terminal for a full day covering Utah Beach, Sainte-Mère-Église, Pointe du Hoc, Omaha Beach, and the American Cemetery — and returns you to your ship in time for boarding.

★ 1–8 people · Flat fee
View Details
Half or Full DayFrom €350

On-Board Guide

Travelling in your own vehicle or coach? Mike joins your group on board and guides you through the battlefields with the same depth of expertise — at your own pace. Ideal for larger groups or coaches seeking a dedicated private historian.

★ Your vehicle · Flexible group size
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All prices are a flat fee for the entire group of 1–8 people. The tour price does not change based on group size.

Was an extra on "Fury" (2013)

Your Guide

Forty Years of Learning
to Tell Their Story Properly

Born in the Netherlands, Mike grew up in the shadow of what the Allied powers had done for his country and his continent. That debt has always been personal. It shaped his entire life.

After five years of service in the Dutch Army and fifteen as a graphic designer, Mike became a bilingual guide at Leeds Castle, England — and in 2015, moved to Normandy to do the thing he'd spent his career preparing for: stand on the ground where it happened and tell the full story.

For nearly 40 years he has collected wartime memorabilia, participated in WW2 re-enactments, published military-historical articles, delivered presentations in schools, and served as historical advisor for film and TV productions. In 2019, he presented a documentary on the battles for the bridges across the river Elle. He was also an extra in the movie "Fury" (2013).

His tours are not narrated audioguides. They are conversations with someone who knows this history the way a doctor knows medicine — not from a book alone, but from decades of dedicated scholarship, from the ground he walks every day, and from a genuine sense of duty to the men whose story he carries.

Member, International Guild of Battlefield Guides
Member, Normandy Battlefield Tour Guides Association
Member, 29th Division Association
10+ years professional guiding experience in Normandy
Historical advisor, WW2 film and television productions
★★★★★
5.0
350+ reviews on TripAdvisor
— Mike van den Dobbelsteen

Mike Featured On

Proudly presenting the WW2TV documentary “29th Division – Crossing the river Elle”.

From Those Who Walked Alongside Mike

What Guests Say

★★★★★

"Our day unfolded at a relaxed pace with Mike providing detailed explanations of the sites, their significance and the logistics involved in trying to achieve a victory. Mike was very patient and knowledgeable and he answered all of our questions."

September 2026
★★★★★

"Mike was an excellent choice for our private group of 6. We wanted to see the beaches and follow the US and British airborne. Mike built the tour around the sites we wanted to see. We really appreciated his flexibility and his knowledge."

August 2026
★★★★★

"Mike was the perfect guide for our visit of Normandy. My son is really interested in WW2 and tanks. Mike tailored the questions and discussions to accommodate this. I can't recommend him enough. Everything was easy and well planned."

July 2026
★★★★★

"My Dad landed on Omaha Beach June 6, 1944. I shared with Mike my Dad's name, regiment and company. Mike researched the location of my Dad's three Purple Hearts and tailored the tour to follow his footsteps from D-Day all the way to St. Lo."

May 2026
★★★★★

"From the moment I contacted Mike and provided him with the limited information I had on my uncle's service in Normandy, he was always prompt, accommodating, and helpful… Mike was able to take us in my uncle's footsteps from Omaha Beach all the way to the hill outside of St Lo where my uncle earned his Bronze Star."

March 2026
★★★★★

"…I walked away from 2 days with Mike having a fully new understanding of the events that transpired. He told stories of bravery. He explained complex operations… He was timely, friendly, & an incredible teacher."

March 2026

Read all 350+ five-star reviews on TripAdvisor →

Walk the Ground.
Hear the Names.
Know What They Gave.

These men deserve to be remembered with more than a museum visit. Stand on the actual beaches, see the cliffs the Rangers climbed, and let Mike tell you what really happened — and why it still matters.

Private Tour Booking Form

Before you use the form below to inquire after a private guided tour, please understand that there is an important reason behind my company name. It is the coalition of many nations, united and allied, who fought against fascism, for democracy, for freedom of speech and to set the people of Europe free from the nazi regime. If you support that kind of regime, or wannabe-regime, then please do NOT get in touch. Trumpers and MAGAts are not welcome on my tours.

No MAGA

Tour Availability

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