Rating
4.6/5 (based on Google user reviews)
User Reviews
Swarnajit Chatterjee (6 months ago)
Fort Douaumont is a prominent historical site located near Verdun, France, and is renowned for its role during World War I, particularly in the Battle of Verdun. As the largest of the forts in the Verdun defensive system, it was completed in 1885 and became a key stronghold. The fort's capture by German forces in 1916 marked a critical moment in the battle, leading to heavy fighting in the surrounding areas. Visitors can explore the fort’s impressive architecture, which features thick walls and a network of tunnels that once housed troops and artillery. The site includes various exhibits that display original artifacts, photographs, and information about the battle, providing context for its historical significance. Guided tours are available, offering detailed insights into the fort’s history and its impact on the war. The surrounding landscape offers stunning views of the battlefield, making it a poignant location for reflection on the immense sacrifices made by soldiers during the conflict. Fort Douaumont is a must-visit for anyone interested in military history, as it serves as a powerful reminder of the past and the importance of remembering those who served.
Fort Douaumont is a prominent historical site located near Verdun, France, and is renowned for its role during World War I, particularly in the Battle of Verdun. As the largest of the forts in the Verdun defensive system, it was completed in 1885 and became a key stronghold. The fort's capture by German forces in 1916 marked a critical moment in the battle, leading to heavy fighting in the surrounding areas. Visitors can explore the fort’s impressive architecture, which features thick walls and a network of tunnels that once housed troops and artillery. The site includes various exhibits that display original artifacts, photographs, and information about the battle, providing context for its historical significance. Guided tours are available, offering detailed insights into the fort’s history and its impact on the war. The surrounding landscape offers stunning views of the battlefield, making it a poignant location for reflection on the immense sacrifices made by soldiers during the conflict. Fort Douaumont is a must-visit for anyone interested in military history, as it serves as a powerful reminder of the past and the importance of remembering those who served.
Radames Pera (9 months ago)
Extraordinarily immersive experience, recommend the audio headphones, provided intense context to an already stunning page. P.S. War sucks!
Extraordinarily immersive experience, recommend the audio headphones, provided intense context to an already stunning page. P.S. War sucks!
Simon Abercrombie (2 years ago)
Fort Douaumont is a spectacular site to visit. The outside of the fort, with its cratered landscape and the remnants of its fortified artillery and machine gun emplacements is free to visit. For a very reasonable admission fee, you can also explore the interior of the fort at your own pace with a very informative and interesting audio guide.
Fort Douaumont is a spectacular site to visit. The outside of the fort, with its cratered landscape and the remnants of its fortified artillery and machine gun emplacements is free to visit. For a very reasonable admission fee, you can also explore the interior of the fort at your own pace with a very informative and interesting audio guide.
Jnib (2 years ago)
We arrived here with clear blue sky, sunshine and no wind. Beautiful and peaceful with only the sound of birds. We walked over and around the fort before going inside. From the outside the fort is a series of huge grass mounds in a very bumpy and broken landscape with stonework, doorways and the rusted metal domes of gun emplacements to hint at what lies underground. Arriving early morning on a late September day, there were very few other visitors and we bought our tickets and went straight inside. The stone corridors, chambers, cobbled street and dormitories form a huge underground labyrinth. Constructed from stone and then covered and reinforced with concrete and soil, the inside of the fort is almost like an underground castle, with stairs to a lower level where there is a 40m deep well and the remains of the hospital. The fort is also a war grave, holding the remains of soldiers who died in accidents (munitions and other explosions) inside the fort. Nature is slowly reclaiming the stonework and turning the fort into a cave with stalactites and stalagmites forming throughout. We also saw bats flying in one area. The mineral deposits cover the ceilings and floors and the washing troughs in the laundry and the mechanisms to move shells and ordnance all have stalactites and stalagmites forming on them. The lighting is very much as it would have been when the fort was occupied during WWI and the changes that have been made to allow visitors today are very minimal. The building tells its own story. The gift shop/ticket office has some nice black and white postcards and a lot of books in many languages. The signs throughout the fort are in French and German and there are laminated handouts in other languages that you can borrow. These guide you through the fort explaining what you see and the route you take. We explored everything thoroughly and took time to understand what we were seeing and we spent just on an hour and a half visiting with an hour of that actually inside. The €5 entry fee was very good value and the staff in the ticket office were very helpful. It is possible to rent audio guides, but we chose not to. For those interested in WWI, the national importance of Verdun for the French or military history in general this place is well worth visiting.
We arrived here with clear blue sky, sunshine and no wind. Beautiful and peaceful with only the sound of birds. We walked over and around the fort before going inside. From the outside the fort is a series of huge grass mounds in a very bumpy and broken landscape with stonework, doorways and the rusted metal domes of gun emplacements to hint at what lies underground. Arriving early morning on a late September day, there were very few other visitors and we bought our tickets and went straight inside. The stone corridors, chambers, cobbled street and dormitories form a huge underground labyrinth. Constructed from stone and then covered and reinforced with concrete and soil, the inside of the fort is almost like an underground castle, with stairs to a lower level where there is a 40m deep well and the remains of the hospital. The fort is also a war grave, holding the remains of soldiers who died in accidents (munitions and other explosions) inside the fort. Nature is slowly reclaiming the stonework and turning the fort into a cave with stalactites and stalagmites forming throughout. We also saw bats flying in one area. The mineral deposits cover the ceilings and floors and the washing troughs in the laundry and the mechanisms to move shells and ordnance all have stalactites and stalagmites forming on them. The lighting is very much as it would have been when the fort was occupied during WWI and the changes that have been made to allow visitors today are very minimal. The building tells its own story. The gift shop/ticket office has some nice black and white postcards and a lot of books in many languages. The signs throughout the fort are in French and German and there are laminated handouts in other languages that you can borrow. These guide you through the fort explaining what you see and the route you take. We explored everything thoroughly and took time to understand what we were seeing and we spent just on an hour and a half visiting with an hour of that actually inside. The €5 entry fee was very good value and the staff in the ticket office were very helpful. It is possible to rent audio guides, but we chose not to. For those interested in WWI, the national importance of Verdun for the French or military history in general this place is well worth visiting.
Sonic Vamp (2 years ago)
Such a humbling site. It was so interesting to learn about this fort and the inhumane conditions the soldiers endured during WWI in this fort. It is worth the visit. Just to better understand what soldiers went through during this very long battle and also how it shaped the world we live in.
Such a humbling site. It was so interesting to learn about this fort and the inhumane conditions the soldiers endured during WWI in this fort. It is worth the visit. Just to better understand what soldiers went through during this very long battle and also how it shaped the world we live in.
