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The arrival
Groups usually arrive on the thursday before the festival, in the afternoon.
The buses arrive near the station of Tournai, the groups who travel by plane are taken in the airport (generally Brussels), and brought back by bus to Tournai.
Two tournaisian responsibles are affected to each group, their task is to make everything easy during the stay, to explain the daily program, to solve small problems...
Groupes lodged in families meet their hosts and spend the evening with them. The other groups install in their premises.
Accomodation
Families proposed to accomodate two persons in Tournai (les Infants du Catiau and their friends), Hollain (10 km from Tournai, the organizers of the handicrafts fair), or in Quevaucamps and Péruwelz (25 km from Tournai, the towns of the folk-dancing groups "les Pas d'la Yau" and "les Claque-Sabots"). Groups lodged in Hollain, or in Quevaucamps and Péruwelz must have their own bus.
Families are volunteers (like everybody in the Festival) and welcome their guests very warmly.
Some groups are lodged in a community : in the Youth Hostel of Tournai (group coming by plane), or in Don Bosco Hostel in Blandain (5 km from Tournai, group with a bus). They must bring their towels.
The Youth Hostel has rooms for 6 persons with washbasins, and bathrooms on each floor. The breakfast is served in the dining-room, the group can use the dish-washer. The other meals are served in a school before the Festival, in the Hall of Drapers with the other groups during the Festival. Washing clothes and cooking in the rooms is not allowed.
In Blandain, bedrooms are single, meals can be brought by the caterer. Groups may wash their clothes (by hand), but must wash their dishes (by hand too).
Decentralizations
The groups take part to two or three shows in other belgian towns (Gand, Ciney, Sambreville, Leuze for example).
They are shows of 2 x 45 minutes.
Travelling and visiting
Each group can visit another part of Belgium : Brussels, Brugge and the North Sea, Ardennes and the caves in Han (generally together with the show in Ciney).
Of course, they will also visit Tournai.
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