Nouvelle-Aquitaine Memorial Tourism in the US Press !

20 November 2020

The Nouvelle-Aquitaine Tourism Board and partners Haute-Vienne Tourisme and the Bordeaux Tourist Office greeted Barbara Noe Kennedy, an independent American journalist, from November 12 to 17, 2019. Barbara is based in Washington DC and writes for the Washington Post, BBC Travel, Fodor’s Travel, Lonely Planet…

The main theme of her visit was the martyred village and Memorial Centre of Oradour-sur-Glane, Haute-Vienne, for World War II magazine; 2019 marking the 75th anniversary of D-Day.  Furthermore, Barbara was invited to discover important Limousin War Resistance sites such as Mount Gargan and Limoges’s Resistance Museum.

Barbara also got to meet René ARNAUD, the last living Mount Gargan Resistance fighter. The battle of Mount Gargan was one of the most violent battles fought by the Limousin Resistance army. It slowed down the German troops and enabled the Liberation of Limoges.  

The second part of Barbara’s press trip took place in Bordeaux, where she toured the city, visited the Submarine base and la Cité du Vin. She had spent a year studying in Bordeaux and wanted to take the opportunity to see how the city had changed and to discover new sights.  

A wonderful media coverage

On October 13, 2020 a splendid article by Barbara was published on the prestigious Fodor’s Travel website (4,3 million unique monthly viewers) : www.fodors.com

Barbara Kennedy was also selected to read her story about Oradour during a Story Circle that was aired both on Zoom and Facebook live. The topic was the upcoming Election, which she tied in with the themes of hate and evil that were unleashed at Oradour. www.facebook.com

A second article should be published in the next few weeks in World War II Magazine ( www.historynet.com ).

“I just wanted to say that I'm back from France, and it was amazing. The local partners, especially in Limoges pulled out all stops for me. Not only did we spend some good time at Oradour, but they also introduced me to the Resistance history in the region--including introducing me to the last surviving Resistance fighter, a spry 94-year-old farmer. I'm very excited about the stories I'm going to be able to write about this and I can't thank you all enough for helping to coordinate this trip.

And Bordeaux was fabulous as well. The Tourism Office provided a most in-depth city tour, sharing all kinds of interesting tidbits that I hope to work into stories. And on a personal level, having lived there in the eighties, it was so interesting to return and see all that had changed. I even had the chance to go by my old house.

So all in all it was a trip that far surmounted my expectations. I will keep you posted on everything that comes out of it.”

Céline Boute

Area Manager North America & Asia Pacific

Email : celine.boute@na-tourisme.com

Sarah Lafaye

Market Manager North America - Asia-Pacific

Email : sarah.lafaye@na-tourisme.com