Top Things to do in Somme
What to do and see in Somme, Hauts-de-France: The Best Museums
Discover the best top things to do in Somme, France including Delville Wood War Memorial, Sir John Monash Centre, Vignacourt 14-18, Maison de Jules Verne, Le P'tit Train de la Haute Somme, Musee Somme 1916, Galerie Maznel, Franco-Australian Museum, Musee des Hortillonnages, Musee Boucher-De-Perthes.
Restaurants in Somme
1. Delville Wood War Memorial
2. Sir John Monash Centre
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 159 reviews
COVID-19: In accordance with French government directives concerning the COVID-19, the Sir John Monash Centre is closed until further notice. Thank you for your understanding. The Sir John Monash Centre tells Australia’s story of the Western Front in the words of those who served. Set on the grounds of the Villers-Bretonneux Military Cemetery in northern France, and adjacent to the Australian National Memorial, the Sir John Monash Centre is the hub of the Australian Remembrance Trail along the Western Front. Annual Closure from 25 december 2020 to 1st January 2021 inclusive and from 10 February to 1 March inclusive.
Reviewed By B4468SEpaulc - Perth, Australia
We had attended the Anzac Service the previous day and had tickets to the Monash Centre. There were loads of people around and it seemed like it was not the best idea to attend the day after Anzac Day. However we had tickets and a time so pushed on. The Centre is brilliant and can accommodate the crowds there and staff kept the numbers in to a manageable level. The exhibits are stunning in the way they are presented and we spent 3+ hours there just checking it all out. The interactive and static displays, along with the real items and reproductions added to the story. I was stunned when using the search facility to find my grandfather's details and service record easily. Everyone in our party came away touched by the level of detail and care involved. Many thanks to the staff there and the fact that I now know where my Grandfather fought, enlisted and so much more. Pity not everyone can get there and then also look over the land fought on.
3. Vignacourt 14-18
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 8 reviews
During the Great War, Vignacourt was used for French and Allied logistics. Louis and Antoinette Thuillier began taking photographs of the soldiers of different nationalities. 4000 photographic plates were discovered. Vignacourt 14-18 welcomes you to the Thuillier's renovated farmhouse which is devoted to their photograph collection. This exhibition tells the story behind the lines.
Reviewed By sommetraveller
Staying locally and looking to visit WW1 sites. Found this "new" museum by accident.. We were the only visitors a the time and the curator, gave us her time telling about the couple who took the photographs of the soldiers on display, and how the collection remained undiscovered for decades. Turned out she was directly related to the family. The displays of photographs are magnificent, and they have managed to trace some of the soldiers in the photographs giving you that sense of connection with the past. The interactive displays are brillant. If you are in the area, go and visit, you will find it truely moving.
4. Maison de Jules Verne
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 763 reviews
Welcome in Jules Verne's Home... Come and visit the house where the famous writer lived for 18 years in Amiens and where he wrote most part of his work. You will discover a luxurious private mansion of the XIXth century that will make you discover Jules Verne, his life and his "Extraordinary Voyages". From 15th April to 14th October, opened every day. From15th October to14th April, closed on Tuesday.
Reviewed By Tubapete
Great opportunity to visit a rich mans house and see it as it may have been aoo years ago. Add to that an excellent insight into the life of Jules Verne and it is a must see in Amiens. Staff were helpful lending an English guide book to the house and exhibits.
5. Le P'tit Train de la Haute Somme
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 52 reviews
Please note that we're open only from May to September for individuals and from April to October for groups. Built in 1916 for the Battle of the Somme during WW1, our line was saved in 70's by railway enthusiasts as it was still used by a local sugar factory. Steam and Diesel locomotives, some being listed as Historic Monuments, run on this historic line, the last surviving from WW1. Our museum present a part of the society's collection ; about 35 locomotives and more than 100 wagons built from end of 19th century to 80's. Starting in the Somme valley along the river, after a tunnel and a Zig-Zag system in a wood, you'll discover a view on several kilometers on the Plateau du Santerre.
6. Musee Somme 1916
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 859 reviews
Situated at the Heart of the Battle of the Somme (1914/1918), the Somme 1916 Museum of ALBERT traces the lives of soldiers in the trenches during the Franco-British offensive in 1916. At 10 meters below ground and 250 meters in length, you will discover realistic and grasping scenes of the daily lives of our soldiers. Mannequins are brought to life through twelve realistic scenes transporting you to the past. Time passes but the memory remains. The museum is translated into 4 languages using panels (French-English-Dutch–German), and can also be guided by one of our guides in any of these languages.
Reviewed By hazelrandall - Hemel Hempstead, United Kingdom
Very informative and thought provoking exhibits helpful staff and a great place to learn more about the battles and life as it was at the time
7. Galerie Maznel
8. Franco-Australian Museum
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 91 reviews
Located on the first floor of the Victoria school (rebuilt after the Great War thanks to donations by the schools in the state of Victoria, Australia). Your visit will take you through four sections of memory (A place of memory and commemoration, Memories of War, A National Memory and Town Memories) helping you to fully comprehend the tight bond Villers-Bretonneux has with Australia since WW1.
Reviewed By 750dimitrisl - Sydney, Australia
A visit to the Franco-Australian Museum is a very moving experience, as we discovered. First, the sign outside the Victoria School, where the museum is located, is a powerful reminder of the bond between the locals and France in general, and the Australians who participated in the battle to hold off the Germans in WWI, defending the village of Villers-Bretonneux, in 1918. The sign says Do Not Forget Australia. The Victoria School was established in 1927, as a gift from the schoolchildren of the Australian state of Victoria. The Museum has some amazing exhibits recovered from the battlefields nearby and donated to it by individuals and others. It is a very small museum but its significance is huge, especially if the visitor is Australian.
9. Musee des Hortillonnages
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 23 reviews
Ecomuseum implanted at the heart of marshes used for vegetable farming, in the East of the municipal territory; it is totally dedicated to "hortillons", these vegetable farmers who transformed, from the Middle Ages, these swamps of the average valley of the Somme into fertile lands. Also, you can rent a small boat with electrical motor to visit the surroundings. Open from April, the 1st to end of October from 2pm to 7pm, - on fridays, saturdays and sundays - every day (except tuesdays) from july, the 14th to august, the 15th We open for groups at any time, every day (except tuesdays) but only booking first.
10. Musee Boucher-De-Perthes
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 30 reviews
Installe depuis 1954 dans le beffroi du XIIIe siecle classe par l'Unesco au patrimoine mondial, dans la tresorerie du XVe siecle et des batiments de la seconde reconstruction, le musee Boucher de Perthes presente des collections riches et variees. La section archeologique temoigne du passe de la region. Le fonds d’histoire naturelle rassemble une importante collection d'oiseaux. Enfin, un ensemble de premier plan illustre l’evolution des beaux-arts, avec comme points forts de precieuses sculptures et peintures des XVe et XVIe siecles, d'importants tableaux des XVIIe et XVIIIe siecles et des œuvres modernes de Camille Claudel et d'Alfred Manessier.
