Maritimes Itinerary

MARITIME PROVINCES OF NOVA SCOTIA AND PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND – 2019

If you are considering a trip to Halifax and the Canadian Maritimes, this itinerary worked well for me.

I was planning a road trip to Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island, leaving from Portland Maine to Yarmouth, that ferry was discontinued so I got tickets for the Bar Harbor ferry, the ferry was still not up and running so those tickets were refunded. I took the St. John NB ferry to Digby, NS.  Other than that, the August trip went smoothly.

This is my 24-day itinerary for Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island.

Day 1

Ferry from St. John, New Brunswick (NB) to Digby, Nova Scotia (NS).

(Digby is famous for its scallops.)

Overnight in Digby

Day 2

Kejimkujik National Park (NP)

Canoe trip

Overnight camping at NP

Day 3

Returned from Kejimkujik National Park to Digby

Overnight in Digby

from lighthouse to ice cream shop at Neil’s Harbor (Cape Breton, NS)

Day 4

Whale Watch from Westport on Brier Island at Digby Neck

Quick trail stop to see Balancing Rock.

Back in Digby:  Maud Lewis Replica House

Overnight in Digby

Day 5

Admiral Digby Museum

Driving south, see Baie Visitor Centre on campus of Université St. Anne in Church Point and then in Yarmouth, see Yarmouth County Museum (including summer home of the Fuller Brush Man)

Overnight in Barrington (famous for its lobster)

Lobster trap visual, St. Peters NS

Day 6

Drive to Cape Sable Island – bird watching, tallest light house in NS

Drive West Pubnico, Visit the Acadian Village

Drive to Yarmouth to see Art Gallery of Nova Scotia and Cape Forchu Lighthouse

In Annapolis Royal, see an evening show at King’s Theater

Overnight in Annapolis Royal

Day 7

In Annapolis Royal:

Port Royal and Fort Anne National Historic Sites, Melanson Settlement

Historic Gardens

Tidal Generator Station at Visitor Center

Overnight in Wolfville

Gardens that make you mellow (in Annapolis Royal, NS)

Day 8

See University Art Gallery and see Randall House

Nearby, see Tangled Garden.

Visit a local winery

Overnight in Wolfville

Day 9

Victoria Park – waterfall walk in Truro

En route to Grand Pré, See Joy Laking’s art gallery and Walk about That Dutchman’s Cheese Store’s farm trail

Grand Pré Nat’l Historic Site (Interpretive center on Acadian deportation)

In Parrsboro, see Ottawa House Museum and adjoining beach

Overnight in Parrsboro

Day 10

Joggins Fossil Cliffs tour

Fundy Geological Museum

Chip’s Company Theater show

Overnight in Parrsboro

Relaxation in Parrsboro, NS

Day 11

See Fundy Ocean Research Center For Energy, Parrsboro

Drive over Confederation Bridge to Prince Edward Island (PEI)

In Cavendish, walk the Ocean View Trail

(PEI is famous for its oysters and scallops and its potatoes.)

Overnight in Cavendish

Day 12

See Green Gables Heritage Place in Cavendish

In Charlottetown, see 1pm show, Anne of Green Gables

Confederation Center of the Arts, see art gallery

Cows’ Creamery factory tour

Overnight in Charlottetown

Seeing Anne of Green Gables – wherever you look

Day 13

Drive to Greenwich PEI NP site and walk the trails; on return, stop at St. Peters for Richards Fish & Chips

In Summerside, musical history presentation – “Highland Storm” at College of Piping and Celtic Performing Arts

Overnight Summerside

Red sands of PEI

Day 14

Drive to North Cape, see Wind Energy Interpretive Center and walk Black Moss Nature Trail.

In Tignish, see St. Simon & St. Jude Roman Catholic Church

En route back to Summerside, see Potato Museum in O’Leary

Overnight in Summerside

Common sight on the roads of PEI

Day 15

Take Ferry at Wood Islands, PEI to Caribou NS

Overnight in Whycocomagh

Day 16

Drive to Cheticamp; see Les Trois Pignion Musée

On Cabot Trail, hike the Acadian Trail

Overnight in Pleasant Bay

Day 17

Skyline Trail, lunch at Neil’s Harbor, Coastal Trail

Black Brook Beach – swim

Overnight in Pleasant Bay

View from Skyline Trail, Cape Breton

Day 18

Walk Bog Boardwalk; walk Benjie Lake Trail.

Drive to Baddeck, see Alexander Graham Bell House;

Theater Baddeck show at 8pm

Overnight in Baddeck

Day 19 

In Iona, see Highland Village

Eskasoni Cultural Journeys (Need advance reservation)

Baddeck Lobster Supper $50.00

Ceilidh (folk music) at church hall, 7:30

Overnight in Baddeck

Day 20

Drive to Louisbourg; see Hist Fort and hike the Lighthouse trail

Overnight in Port Hawkesbury

View from the Lighthouse Trail in Louisbourg NS

Day 21 

Drive to Halifax

Halifax Citadel National Historic Site; Public Gardens; waterfront boardwalk; small NS Museum of Natural History

Overnight in Halifax

Day 22 

Halifax: Discovery Centre; Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21;  Maritime Museum of the Atlantic; Rum Distillery Tour; Art Gallery of NS

Overnight in Halifax

Day 23

Drive to Lunenburg

Visit the Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic

Walk about the town and see St. John’s Anglican Church

Overnight in Annapolis Royal

Lunenburg, NS

Day 24

Take ferry at Digby NS to St John NB.

St. John, NB

My highlights: the whale watch from Brier Island, the Balancing Rock, the Historic Gardens in Annapolis Royal, the Grand Pré National Historic Site, the Ocean Trail in Cavendish, the PEI NP trails in Greenwich, the Skyline Trail on Cape Breton, the Highland Storm performance in Summerside, the Highland Village in Iona, the Eskasoni Cultural Journey, and Lunenburg’s Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic.

I had tried to keep my driving to 3.5 hours per day, but Days 14 and 20 were long travel days. Purchasing the Canadian National Parks Pass proved a savings. Prior to this trip, I read:  The Shipping News by Annie Proulx and No Great Mischief by Alistar MacLeod.

TATTOO—Journeys on My Mind by Tina Marie L. Lamb is available at Amazon and BarnesandNoble and iBooks and Audible.

Buy it. Read it. (Or listen to it.) Let me know what you think. –TMLL