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Nova Scotia the sea bound coast

Welcome to:

Nova Scotia

''Nova Scotia - The Sea Bound Coast''

49 %

Ocean

Sunrise Trail, Celtic Shores, Cabot Trail…

Top Discoveries

Cape Breton, Louisbourg, Halifax…

Days

Our estimated time in Nova Scotia

ova Scotia, also known as the sea bound coast, is one of four Atlantic provinces on the east coast of Canada. It is the most populous of Canada’s three Maritime provinces and four Atlantic provinces. Plus, it’s Canada’s second-most densely populated province and second-smallest province by area

Alexander Graham Bell once said
“I have travelled around the globe. I have seen the Canadian and American Rockies, the Andes, the Alps and the Highlands of Scotland, but for simple beauty, Cape Breton outrivals them all!”

About Nova Scotia

It’s said that nowhere in Nova Scotia is more than 67 km (42 mi) from the ocean. This explains why there are so many coastal driving trails. It also paints a clearer picture as to why it is called the sea bound coast!

Here you’ll find many influences from Scotish, Irish, French and British decent, making for a great mix of history and culture.

Lunenburg, NS – the sea bound coast

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What to do in the Sea Bound Coast ?

Nova Scotia the sea bound coast will continue to amaze you throughout your road trip. Starting with scenic highways like the Sunrise Trail, the 92km Celtic Shore Coastal trail which stretches from Port Hastings to Inverness on the west coast of Cape Breton Island. Then there’s the famous Cabot Trail, where Alexander Graham Bell expressed his strong sentiments.

There are great fortresses to the likes of Louisbourg (which is truly magnificent) and the Halifax Citadel which has been preserved today to remind of the rich colonial and military past.

Additionally, you can make time for small cities and towns such as, Sydney, Halifax, Peggy’s Cove and Lunenburg to name a few.

Read on

1. Coastal Trails in the Sea Bound Coast

Nova Scotia is the second smallest province in Canada, but don’t let that fool you. It can take up to 9 hours to drive from coast to coast and another 5-6 hours to exit from either extremity.

It’s possible to ride along the coast, bouncing from sunrise trail to the Celtic shores coastal trail and later Cabot Trail in Cape Breton.

1.1 Sunrise Trail

With roughly 450km of highway, the Sunrise Trail runs just outside Amherst all the way to the Canso Causeway. It’s said there is much to discover with many resting areas such as bnb’s and cottages along the way.

Alternatively, you can remain on the main highway and select main points to visit, like Cape George for example.

1.2 Celtic Shores Coastal Trail

The sea bound coast offers a 92km Celtic Shore Coastal Trail which stretches from Port Hastings to Inverness on the west coast of Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia. Along this highway, you’ll enjoy magnificent views in Judique, Port Hood and Mabou.

We did just that, as we drove from Port Hastings all the way to Inverness on the Celtic Shores Coastal Trail. Stopping along the way to take pictures when a view struck us.

1.3 The Cabot Trail

After driving through the Celtic Coastal Trail we arrived at the Cape Breton Highlands National Park. We had no clue what to expect in Nova Scotia and were completely taken by surprise with the Sunrise Trail and the Celtic Shores Trail. In hindsight, we recommend to break the drive in two instead of ‘rushing’ from one trail to another.

This way, you can take your time and enjoy each stop rather than feel rushed.

There is an entrance fee to the Cape Breton National Park, estimated to be $ 15.60cad. If you’re travelling around Canada day you’ll enjoy knowing that July 1^stis free of charge to visit the park.

Cheticamp Information Centre

Our Cabot Trail discovery continued as we left the Cheticamp Information Centre, stoping at the big rock and Petit Étang for some quick pics.

The Cabot Trail gives coastal views, all the way until Pleasant Bay. At which point the highway bends to the East for more gorgeous views on the other side.

We recall the highway conditions being optimal, despite the many roller coaster like mountains to climb.

If you are blessed with a sunny sky in Cape Breton, then we recommend that you soak it all in. You’ll enjoy stopping at the various viewpoints to admire the wonderful views. Also, if you’re into hiking you’ll want to take note of the multiple trails.

The Cabot Trail is out in the open, so you won’t get much refuge in case of rainy days. Our second day was overcast, however not raining. We explored Ingonish Beach, Mary Ann Falls on our way to Meat Cove.

1.4 Meat Cove

Before leaving our motel the next morning, we spoke with the main reception in order to get local inside information. The front desk told us about a place called Meat Cove, how it wasn’t part of the Cape Breton park but that it would be worth checking out.

We left Mary Ann Falls in direction for Meat Cove and only got coastal views as we approached our destination. We stopped at the main campground and ‘Chowder Hut’ and decided to enter for some lunch. Here was yet another memorable moment from the sea bound coast.

Offer the gift of Discovering

To our surprise, the Chowder from the Meat Cove Chowder Hut was very delicious! The staff were great and even helped us find our next discovery! They spoke about a trail that led to a spectacular view from a hill/cliff.

Many times during the trail, we thought we were lost because the woods were dense and faintly indicated. Crossing paths with other people secured us that we were on the right way. Alas, we finally arrived at the edge and were so grateful that we spoke with the staff at the Chowder Hut !

It was difficult to select just a few pictures to describe Meat Cove, so we’d like to invite you to visit our ShutterStock catalog.

2. Louisbourg Fortress

Also worthy to visit in the sea bound coast is the Fortress of Louisbourg National Historic Site, which is a construction from 18^th-century. It was partial reconstruction by the Government of Canada and according local information, from 1713 to 1768, the fortified port of Louisbourg was a place of profound significance in the Franco-British struggle for empire.

The GPS might give you two locations for Louisbourg. We found out it’s because there’s the ‘main reception’ area where you need to purchase your tickets then a shuttle bus which takes you to the main Fortress entrance.

You’ll need to ‘clear’ the front gate as the armed guard asks a few questions of where you’re from and the purpose of your visit. This guard did not break character 😉

Many activities are timed throughout the day, all are listed in the pamphlets from the main entrance. Then it’s possible to pick and choose what you would like to see based on your arrival time. Lucky for us, we arrived just in time for the cannon ceremony.

It’s an entire reconstructed village to the likes of ‘Upper Canada Village’ and ‘Green Gables’.

If you enjoy discovering Fortresses, then you’ll enjoy being part of this reenactment and strolling around the various streets. Check out the Parks Canada – Louisbourg Fortress site for a list of activities. From rum tasting to firing canons.

Allow yourself to be surprised or plan in advance, we think you’ll enjoy it just the same.

3. Sydney

Sydney is the largest urban area on Cape Breton and the island’s historical capital according their Official Website visitors website information page.

We just spend an hour there, walking around the waterfront, where we check out the ”Big Fiddle”, which according their website, it’s the world’s largest fiddle, built in recognition of Cape Breton’s musical talent.

The sea bound coast fiddle constantly plays local music, kind of Irish music style and it’s really fun to walk around it.

The harbour & waterfront walking paths are the main attraction, where you can also find cute stores where you can buy some local crafts and souvenirs.

4. Halifax

After discovering the beautiful Cape Breton Island, we headed over to civilization. Halifax is a small yet charming city with lots to discover. Get your legs ready for walking because the city is build on a slant facing the water. It will feel like a stair master as you make your way from the harbour front to the Citadel!

4.1 Alexander Keith's Brewery

Our 1st destination and a must see! Alexander Keith’s Brewery was our first discovery in Halifax.

The Brewery is located on Lower Water street. According to local information, it was founded in 1820 by Alexander Keith who then immigrated from Scotland.

We recall paying roughly $30.00cad per person which we felt expensive at the time. However it came back to us in form of beer and entertainment.

Check the Keiths website for group and family bundle prices.

They offer guided tours which include beer tasting throughout the visit, a guided tour inside a museum with old relics and a nice surprise at the end 😉

4.2 Art Gallery of Nova Scotia

The Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, or Museum of Fine Art it’s a central located building where you will find many expositions of Canadian and World Art.

Although the object of our visit was the Maud Lewis exposition.

There’s an inspiring biography of Maud Lewis with Ethan Hawk as Maud Lewis’ husband. It’s an emotional yet beautiful and inspiring movie. Maud teaches how to transform a poor and sad living space into a happier more colourful place with her simple yet unique art.

We highly recommend watching the movie before you visit the permanent Maud exposition at the Halifax Art Gallery.

Maud and her husband lived near Digby and we were planning a visit to see her house. It was difficult to find exact information online at the time, yet we’re glad that we discovered that her house had been transported to Halifax. This way we added an extra day to explore Halifax and made sure to visit the exposition.

4.3 Harbour Walk

Halifax Harbour Walk offers amazing sea views, great restaurants, gift shops and craft stores plus many others activities going on. It’s a beautiful and vibrant place during the summer, especially on a blessed sunny day !

You can get an online Harbourwalk map to check the many activities around on the following Webpage

It’s possible to walk from one end to the other on the boardwalk, plan a boat tour, rent a bike or even plan a bike tour! This way you can see Halifax Harbour in a beautiful and different perspective. There’s also a Ferry from Halifax to Dartmouth which could be a cool activity on a sunny day. Although we heard Dartmouth is more of a suburb.

Also, don’t forget to check the funny “Drunken Lampposts” during your walk. According to Google, the two displays are described as “nakedly honest portraits of unseemly behaviours that are often playing out on our own streets after dark” kind of concerned? We’re not entirely sure if this is accurate, so if someone has further explanation, please let us know by leaving a comment on this post!

There’s all types of food available. If you’re looking for something healthy you’ll want to head north to the Halifax Seaport Farmer’s Market.

Alternatively, there are food truck, fast food available.

4.4 Citadel

A must see is the Citadel of Halifax which is located at the top of the hill, it was built to defend against a land-based attack. Today’s Citadel was completed in 1856 and is the fourth to occupy the hill overlooking the city.

Since its founding, roughly 1750 until the late 19th century, Halifax was one of four principal overseas naval stations in the British Empire.

There is an entrance fee to pay, however really not expensive as far as attractions go. Seniors get a discount and the Youth enter free. Check the official website for additional details.

We had a great guide walk us through the Citadel step-by-step. He also talked about the Great Naval Explosion of Halifax.

He spoke about the largest man-made explosion prior to the first atomic bomb which happened in the Bedford Basin.

It’s also a great place to return during a beautiful sunset. Since the Citadel is located at the top of Halifax, you’ll get a clear and a somewhat unobstructed view of the sky.

5. Day Trips from Halifax

Halifax is a city in a hub surrounded by nature and coastal waters. There are various places to visit during a day road trip. Here are a couple of highly recommended suggestions to add to your sea bound coast list.

5.1 Explore Polly Cove

Some might say there’s a typo here as they think we’re talking about Peggy’s Cove. However, this is Polly – Peggy’s cousin 😉

There’s a catch though, here you need to put in the effort in order to reap the rewards. There’s a ‘short’ trail that is barely visible from the highway. So we recommend that you program ‘Polly Cove’ in your GPS to find the accurate location.

Based on the time stamp from our pictures, we spent roughly 1 hour from the parking, the hike, taking pictures and back again. The terrain is a bit rough, although there’s usually a trail presence it’s sometimes confusing as you ask yourself ‘are we on the right path’ ?

Just follow the light and the sound of the water, you’ll eventually get there !

When you get there, you’ll be greeted with gorgeous views and peace and quiet from the everyday hustle. Weather dependant, you might also see Polly’s cousin Peggy in the distance !

5.2 Visit the Famous Peggy's Cove

Established in 1868, Peggy’s Cove is a small Village located on the eastern shore of St. Margaret’s Bay.

It was upon finding parking that we realized how popular Peggy’s Cove actually was. There were lots of tourist Buses and lots of people, but that didn’t phase us.

Initially, the community revolved around the community. That’s until it was surpassed by tourism. Despite the crowds of tourists, it’s said that locals still fish for their lobster here.

The small Fishing village is really picturesque and you you will find amazing colors from the houses and boast reflecting in the water, and we were really lucky, since we got a perfectly blue-sky.

This is the main spot for tourists, yet we refrained from getting too close. Partly because we had another destination in mind and we didn’t want to get caught up in the crowd.

5.3 Trip to Lunenburg

Lunenburg came as a complete shock to us, since we never heard of it. We usually ‘research’ our destinations prior to our trip and somehow this one came out on top!

As displayed in the image, the city is really colourful, with traditional and historic English houses. Lunenburg is also filled with lot’s of cute and colourful craft stores and great sea food restaurants.

Book your overnight stay for Lunenburg here –

Although we didn’t have a chance to try each restaurant in Lunenburg, we highly recommend ‘The Half Shell’ for their courtesy, great staff, scrumptious food and amazing view! That’s a perfect 5* which doesn’t come easy.

The sea bound coast offers some of the best seafood we’ve ever had! Serge ordered the 2 piece fish n chips and Eli the fish burger with fries. If it’s not too warm and there’s still space, we recommend to sit on the back patio !

In addition to walking along the boardwalk (which we did), there’s a small museum called “Knaut Rhuland House Moseum”. It’s a late 18th century residence that now is a museum and you can visit for Free.

The 2 1/2 story house has a lot of interesting items, with self read information, it was fun to go back in time.

Since it’s free, consider giving them a small donation to help preserve Lunenburg’s heritage. There’s also a gift shop if your interested in procuring a souvenir.

Here is their Official Website for further information:

We noticed quite a few church towers as we walked the streets of Lunenburg and we particularly drawn to this church.

St. John’s is recognized as one of North America’s best examples of Carpenter Gothic architecture. Additionally, it’s second oldest church of English origin in Canada, as well as a Canadian National Historic Site.

Despite a major fire in 2001, St. John’s has been fully restored and was re-opened in June of 2005.

Canadian Maritimes eBook

Our motivation is your satisfaction!

Inside our book you’ll find a full index, tips for saving money and hidden gems for New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia. Plus helpful tips to help maximize your time and money.

Did you know you could combine your Hopewell Rocks ticket with a Kayak expedition !?
List of very affordable and authentic seafood restaurants !
Recommendations and time allocation for various attractions.
Interactive hyperlinks for local businesses.
and much more!

Itineraries and Attractions recommendations

The Sunrise trail, Celtic trail and Cabot Trail – we recommend 2-3 days
Meat Cove – 3/4 to a Full day
Louisbourg Fortress – 1/2 to a Full day
Halifax city – 2-3 Full days
Polly Cove and Peggy’s cove – 1 day trip
Lunenburg city and surrounding – 1 full day or more

Where to Stay ?

Cape Breton : We stayed in Baddeck at the Trailsman Motel since we felt it was properly priced and well located to access the Cabot Trail. Feel free to consult our eBook for a list of other locations we recommend.
Halifax: We stayed at the Season’s Inn for budget reasons however highly recommend that you find accommodations in the city centre for proximity!
Lunenburg: We did not spend an overnight in Lunenburg, however we strongly recommend it. There are various BnB’s offering great accommodations.

Our Maritimes Blog

Feel free to read up on our previous blog, where we kicked things off Discovering New Brunswick.
Then follow our Maritimes road trip as we continued on towards Prince Edward Island

Coming soon :
Helpful tools to plan your Trip

Help renting a car

Find affordable lodging with Hotels.com

Plan attractions in advance

Travel insurance

Where to eat

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By booking a service with one of the blog partners, you help Discovering Destinations produce more content to sift through. Discovering Destinations only recommends trusted companies and services.

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Discovering The Maritimes Region, Canada. Summer of 2018 Starting with…

Canadian Maritime road trip Prince Edward Island

Welcome to:

Prince Edward Island

''Million Acre Farm''

49 %

Farm

Red earth beaches, Potato museum and more…

Top Discoveries

Green Gables, Point Prim, Charlottetown…

Days

Our estimated time in Prince Edward Island

rince Edward Island is one of four Atlantic provinces on the east coast of Canada. It is the smallest in land size yet the most densely populated.

In September 1864, Prince Edward Island hosted the Charlottetown Conference, which is why PEI is labeled as the “Birthplace of Confederation“ although PEI did not join the Canada Confederation until six years later (July 1, 1873).

About Prince Edward Island

Prior to 1997, the only way on the island was by Ferry / Boat or Plane. On May 31st 1997, was the official ‘opening’ of the 12.9 kilometre long Confederation Bridge linking New Brunswick to PEI.

Despite the 1.3billion dollar price tag for the bridge, it’s the cheapest way on the island. It’s free to enter the island and you pay when you leave.

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What to do in Prince Edward Island?

Our Maritime discoveries continues with a road trip to Prince Edward Island.

Attractions are scattered across the island, you’ll find things like the Potato Museum and Anne of Green Gables to red earth beaches, historical lighthouses and coastal drives.

Our time in PEI was limited and the rainy weather didn’t help our Discoveries. Despite that, Read on to see what we highly recommend visiting.

1. Visit Green Gables

Green Gables was on our “Must do” list for PEI for a few reasons.

For starters, eleven years prior to the visit, Eli’s friend gave her the Anne of Green Gables book with an inscription inside “one day you will come to PEI to visit me and Green Gables”. At the time, Eli never gave it a second thought.

However when we started planning our road trip to Prince Edward Island in 2018, it became apparent that she would now have the opportunity to visit.

Another reason to visit Green Gables is that it stems from our Canadian Heritage. It was a native from PEI, L.M. Montgomery who wrote a series of books about a fictional character ‘Anne of Green Gables’.

Despite the construction in the front, we could visit the main house and the beautiful forest trail with the legends explained. We totally recommend you to visit with your children as they will fall in love with Anne and the reenactment.

We highly recommend assisting the new TV series of Anne with an E, which is also available on Netflix. The show has done a magnificent job of mimicking the interior decorations, as you’ll see depicted in the images below.

The power of friendship.

After touring the house you can head to the barn for snapshots. It’s fun to dress up in the old school clothes and take various pictures. Eli had the great idea to dress up and take a picture dressed like Anne, along with the book her friend gave her!

Her friend no longer lived in PEI at the time of our visit, so Eli emailed her friend the picture.

The Balsam Hallow Trail.

The Balsam Hollow trail takes approximately 30 minutes to complete. The trail begins as L.M. Montgomery’s own Lover’s Lane its self guided with a series of interpretive signs which also help explain the inspiration Montgomery drew from the natural world in Cavendish.

Hidden articles

While walking in the trail, pay attention to details and try to find the Xplorers’s Canada Milk Bottle sign! And read the quote that explains why school children, like Anne Shirley, placed their milk bottles in streams as its exposed here!

2. Quick stop at Hannah's Bottle Village

Truly Inspiring !

You’ll get to know Discovering Destinations, and you’ll see that we enjoy scratching beneath the surface to find hidden gems all around. Well, Hannah’s Bottle Village is one of those ‘hidden gems‘ !

Continuing our road trip to Prince Edward Island with Hannah’s Bottle Village!

When you visit PEI, you’ll hopefully get the same feeling we shared, that of a peaceful and beautiful Island surrounded by nature. On your way over to the Point Prim Lighthouse and delicious Chowder House, we invite you to visit Hannah’s Bottle Village to check the cool and inspiring work from a Garfield Gilles.

His project began, a small Bottle Village in the backyard of his home. Today, it’s a hidden Treasure in Point Prim – PEI.

Visiting Hannah’s Bottle Village is free. Instead of charging an admission fee, Garfield Gillis began collecting donations from visitors online. He donates the money to the IWK Children’s Hospital and so far has raised $20,742.00!

Gar’s donations have helped to purchase equipment and fund lifesaving research.

3. Point Prim Lighthouse

Next on the map for our road trip to Prince Edward Island was Point Prim Lighthouse. The lighthouse is located at the end of Point Prim Road and although you’re free to roam around the grounds, it looks like visits are only open during Summer. That’s from May to October to be precise.

It’s free to walk around the Lighthouse and visit the gift shop, yet there’s a $5.00cad fee (per person) to visit inside the Lighthouse.

It’s inexpensive for the experience, you’ll get background information on the lighthouse and a great view up top.

On your way up to the top, you’ll notice a Museum-like object collection from the old Lighthouse keepers. (old dressers, wood stove, a bed,…)

Inside the lighthouse, they also talk about land erosion and how the Lighthouse needed to be ‘moved’ so that it didn’t fall into the ocean. Still to this day, countless amounts of land is lost to erosion.

What are the chances ?

As Serge was taking a picture of this lobster trap, he recognized one of his Volkswagen clients. Sure enough it was and they took a few minutes to catch up and exchange road trip discoveries. As it turns out, Serge’s client was referred to this very spot because there was an amazing seafood restaurant next door.

4. Seafood at the Chowderhouse PEI

Part of the experience is enjoying the food, so be sure to add the Chowderhouse PEI to your road trip to Prince Edward Island!

Located a few hundred feet from the Lighthouse is a place called Chowderhouse PEI. We met a couple that drove all the way from Gaspé to discover the seafood and oysters platters. Sure enough, they said it was worth travelling all that way!

That story captivated us and we too decided to have Seafood chowder and fishcakes so that we could continue our road trip to Charlottetown on a full stomach. The Seafood Chowder was one of the best ones we had during our Maritime road trip.

5. Road Trip to Charlottetown

Charlottetown, the capital of PEI, is a small and really charming city. It boasts many old style British buildings with a modern twist.

It has a very European feel

We spent all afternoon walking and found many cute stores. Our legs led us to the waterfront walking in the shore where they display a huge 2018 sign with the city name on it. It kind of had an Amsterdam feel to it, so we flipped our tourist switch to on, and took pictures of Charlottetown’s waterfront boardwalk!

We noticed the tall spires from a distance and they drew us to enter St. Dunstan’s Basilica. A beautiful church which was built in 17^th century which displays ornate stained-glass windows & other Gothic Revival features

We regrettably admit that we did not expect this kind of architecture in Charlottetown and were glad that we accepted a friend’s recommendations to visit the city.

Based on our experience, we would recommend a stroll to the waterfront and on a nice sunny day pay a little visit to Cows for some ice cream. We read something about a factory tour, should you be looking for something else to do while in PEI.

6. Borden Carleton

You might be surprised to hear that it’s free to cross the Confederation Bridge, heading toward Prince Edward Island. However it’s on the way out of the island that you’ll need to pay.

The 12.9 kilometre bridge is quite impressive and never ceased to amaze us, both on the way on and off the island. It’s very well organized, even the payment is both quick and easy.

Whether you’re heading to PEI for a day trip or an extended period of time, we recommend stoping at the Borden Carleton Visitor Centre. You’ll find everything from an information centre, restaurants, chocolate and liquor stores, washrooms and even a Lighthouse!

It’s possible to stop as you enter PEI or before you head off the island. We recommend a quick visit, if anything for last minute souvenirs.

Canadian Maritimes eBook

Our motivation is your satisfaction!

Inside our book you’ll find a full index, tips for saving money and hidden gems for New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia. Plus helpful tips to help maximize your time and money.

Did you know you could combine your Hopewell Rocks ticket with a Kayak expedition !?
List of very affordable and authentic seafood restaurants !
Recommendations and time allocation for various attractions.
Interactive hyperlinks for local businesses.
and much more!

Itineraries and Attractions recommendations

Green Gables + Cavendish beach – a Full day
Hannah’s bottle village, Point Prim Lighthouse + Chowderhouse – 1/2 day
Charlottetown city – 1/2 to a Full day
Greenwich beach + Richard’s seafood restaurant – 1/2 to a Full day
Souris + surrounding beaches and outdoor activities – a Full day

Where to Stay ?

It takes roughly 3 – 3.5 hours to cross PEI from coast to coast. As mentioned earlier in the blog, the attractions are scattered across the island. Depending on the amount of time you plan to stay on the island, you might want to stay in a strategic location.

For instance, choose to stay in Charlottetown for the small city feel and central location.

Then again, there are many attractions in and around Souris.

Our Maritimes Blog

Feel free to read up on our previous blog, Discovering New Brunswick.
Follow our Maritimes road trip as we continue on towards Prince Edward Island

And stay tuned for our Nova Scotia treats!

Coming soon :
Helpful tools to plan your Trip

Help renting a car

Find affordable lodging

Plan attractions in advance

Travel insurance

Where to eat

Images with the ShutterStock icon are available to purchase on the official site

By booking a service with one of the blog partners, you help Discovering Destinations produce more content to sift through. Discovering Destinations only recommends trusted companies and services.

Canadian Maritimes road trip New Brunswick

Welcome to:

New Brunswick

''The Picture Province''

49 %

Nature

Start with Fundy National Park

Top Discoveries

Moncton, Fundy, Shediac, Fredericton…

Days

Our estimated time in New Brunswick

ew Brunswick is one of four Atlantic provinces on the east coast of Canada. According to the Constitution of Canada, New Brunswick is the only bilingual province. About two-thirds of the population declare themselves anglophones, and one third francophones.

This blog is based on our Canadian Maritimes New Brunswick road trip. If visiting for the first time, we recommend a minimum of 5 days to visit a few cities in the Province. However it would be possible to spend 10+ days in this magnificent province!

About New Brunswick

Although Fredericton is New Brunswick’s capital, Moncton is the largest city.

Since New Brunswick is a coastal province, we recommend to plan your New Brunswick road trip during the summer time. The climate is cooler than Ontario and Quebec provinces yet more humid.

New Brunswick is also known for beautiful nature places as the Hopewell Rocks and Fundy national park. Read on

View of Fundy Bay

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What to do in New Brunswick?

We’ve prepared this blog based on our Road Trip experience. Feel free to consult our content below. Additionally, if you want to extend your Road Trip, here is the official New Brunswick website for trip planning.

We visited Moncton, drove along the Fundy Coastal Route, hiked a few trails in the Fundy National Park and found a few hidden gems like Cape Enrage.

1. Hopewell Rocks

What are the Hopewell Rocks? Well, many refer to these as the Flowerpots Rocks or simply The Rocks. They are rock formations caused by tidal erosion in The Hopewell Rocks Ocean and they stand 40–70 feet tall

Ideally, we recommend that you visit Hopewell Rocks during both high tide and low tide. The schedule is posted inside the main interpretation centre as well as online.

Here is the link to the Official Hopewell Rocks Website for their schedule and rates. There’s also an option to purchase tickets online.

Canoe expedition

We’re paying it forward here, because we really wish we would have known about Baymount’s Kayak adventure in advance! We missed our chance to kayak around the rocks, but hopefully this means you’re better prepared and can plan in advance.

It’s possible to visit the Official website for Baymount Adventures. They offer a few kayak expeditions, this way you can see which you prefer.

Demoiselle Beach

Everyone seemed to gravitate towards the Flowerpots Rock, which is only part of the attraction. We suggest that you visit not only the rocks, but also around the park because they have an amazing beach. Perhaps you’ll be lucky and have it all to yourselves while everyone admire the Rocks. It’s also a great spot if you’re one to meditate a little!

The way there was just beautiful and we were lucky to enjoy the park with few people around. If you’re up for hiking, you’ll find viewpoints and great trails like this one below.

Your admission ticket will be good for 2 consecutive days with multiple entries. This means you can return at any time during that period in order to see both the high and low tides.

With that in mind, be sure to return at night!

2. Cape Enrage

Cape Enrage came to us as a surprise. During our New Brunswick road trip, we saw a lighthouse sign while driving along the Fundy Coastal highway and decided to visit. It was totally worth exploring because we found yet another great Destination or hidden gem as we like to call them.

Two entrance tickets cost us $12.00cad which barely made a dent in our piggy bank (Nilo the Elephant in our case 😉 )

Once at Cape Enrage, you can visit the lighthouse, beautiful coastal views and walk along the ocean floor. There are additional and paid activities are available onsite such as Zip lining, repelling and rock climbing.

Cape Enrage Interpretive Centre has many spots offering amazing views. First, from the Lighthouse, which lucky for us was a gorgeous sunny day. Despite the sunny day and the calm looking pictures, there were violent winds. For this reason, we recommend that you bring extra clothing perhaps a windbreaker or sweater.

The lighthouse is working since 1838 and the current tower is over 140 years old.

The next amazing viewpoint is down at the shore. For this you will need to go down a flight of stairs… but it’s soo worth it ! Once on the ocean floor, we recommend that you walk along the coast and around the bend. As you make your way around, you’ll notice the jagged shoreline for miles (shown in the right picture below).

3. Alma Village

The village is located at the Fundy National Park entrance.

This is a New Brunswick road trip must for you seafood lovers! There are many seafood restaurant options along the main strip. Regrettably, we didn’t choose the correct opportunity since we were on a tight budget during this particular trip.

Alternatively, there’s a nice boardwalk and beach to visit.

Perfectly located in Alma Village

The beach was deserted, which was great to relax after lunch. We found the same chocolate colour water as the Hopewell Rocks. That’s because of the strong water flow which agitates the earth below.

4. Fundy Park

We left the Hopewell Rocks around mid-day, ate a quick sandwich in the car and then headed to the Fundy National Park. The drive took roughly 35 minutes (from Hopewell Rocks national park).

The National Park is located on the Bay of Fundy, at the edge of Alma village. A quick tip, make sure to plan one full day here. This is a must visit for your New Brunswick road trip. We feel it’s also important to plan for a minimum of 1 full day to visit the park.

It’s easy to forget your park pass, so we recommend that you leave it on the dash at all times to avoid receiving a fine.

According to Wikipedia, the Fundy National park was officially opened on 29 July 1950. The Park showcases a rugged coastline which rises up to the Canadian Highlands, with the highest tides in the world and more than 25 waterfalls. It’s a rather large natural setting, since the Park covers an area of 207 km2 (80 sq mi) along Goose Bay, the northwestern branch of the Bay of Fundy. When one looks across the Bay, one can see the northern Nova Scotia coast.

4.1 Dickson Falls

The first place we visited inside the Fundy National Park was the Dickson Falls. We highly recommend it because it’s a fairly easy walking trail with spectacular views along the way.

You will feel as though you are in an “Enchanted Forest” from a magic and legendary fairy tale!

It’s a small to medium size trail with a beautiful creek along the way to the main falls. As depicted in the image, there are steps to climb which might not make it stroller/wheelchair friendly. Besides that, we think children would enjoy spending some time in this gorgeous nature setting.

4.2 Point Wolfe

After discovering the beautiful Dickson Falls, we drove to the “Point Wolfe” located beyond this woody Point Wolfe covered bridge (built in 1992). There’s a parking area nearby where you can leave the car and roam the area freely.

From there we took a beautiful trail to the shore, in time for low tide allowing us access to walk on the Point Wolfe Beach.

This hike was a unique experience for us because it led to a deserted low tide ocean floor.

According local information, the Point Wolfe River, was once the centre of a blooming lumber industry in New Brunswick. Mills sprung up on most rivers along to the Bay of Fundy. The Point Wolfe mill was opened in 1826 and continued, off and on, for almost 100 years.

5. Moncton

Today, Moncton is the largest city in the province of New Brunswick with roughly 145,000 habitants.

Although we spend the majority of our time visiting National Parks, we did take a little time to visit the charming city centre. Read on to find out more activities just outside the city centre.

We had dinner at the Pump House BrewPub, however there were many restaurants going up and down Main St. Consider looking into the Fox & Hound Neighbourhood Pub.

If you’re interested in great tasting seafood, we’ll have to recommend Alma village!

After dinner, we took a nice walk to explore downtown.

During our stroll near the riverfront, we discovered a place called ‘Promenade Terry Fox’. The tidal bore is quite spectacular and a great place to witness the tide’s strength.

Moncton also has great attractions just outside the city centre. Be sure to check out Magnetic Hill, the Zoo, winery, Magic Mountain and more!

Close to the action in Magnetic Hill

6. Shediac

Shediac is a short 20 minutes drive from Moncton.

We associate Shediac with 2 things, 1. the world’s largest lobster and 2. eating lobster! Before crossing the Confederation bridge, we decided to stop in Shediac for some sights and lobster. Be sure to inquire about their lobster season in order to get the best experience.

Shediac is known as the “Lobster Capital of the World” and it’s not hard to miss the 90 tonne “Giant” Lobster sculpture next to the Tourist Information Centre. We chatted with a friendly chap at the tourist centre and he was interesting to speak with and gave us great local tips!

There are many restaurants to choose from yet we chose Lobster Deck Eat in & take-out to try their Lobster.

The restaurant is more a Take-out style, but there’s also an option to eat in.

7. Fredericton

Continuing our New Brunswick road trip, we recommend visiting Fredericton city, which is also New Brunswick’s capital.

For perspective, it’s roughly 2 hours from Moncton and 4 1/2 hours driving distance from Halifax.

Split your drive in Fredericton

We enjoyed our walk next to St John River for nice views and the lighthouse.

The city is small enough that it’s possible to walk everywhere.

Besides the usual restaurants and stores, what really struck us were the amount of historical houses. It’s possible to spend hours discovering them through the city. What’s even cooler were the signs in front of each house, depicting the year the house was built and its origin.

As we mentioned, Fredericton is all about historical houses. A perfect example of that was the B&B where we spent the night. Canada Select, Carriage House Inn

Where to stay in Fredericton?

8. Hartland

We stopped in Hartland during the last stretch of our New Brunswick road trip. On the way back to Montreal we pegged a few last minute discoveries, the first one was located in Hartland. Home of the longest covered bridge, standing at 1232 feet long.

For your information, Hartland is located 1h20 minutes driving distance from Fredericton.

The Bridge is both interesting and unique! There’s a gorgeous nature display with the Saint John’s River flowing underneath.

You’ll find a small gift shop on the western side of the crossing. We recommend that you visit and see their beautiful covered Bridge painting and local nature art decorations.

9. Grand Falls

One of our last discoveries during our New Brunswick road trip was Grand-Sault. This is a formidable place to stop for lunch or a picnic right next to the falls. Thanks to the local Farmer’s Market, you’ll be able to load up on some great grub.

According to Wikipedia, the town derives its name from a waterfall created by a series of rock ledges. Some of which drops 23 metres (75 ft). However that day the water was low and we couldn’t see the full effect.

Lastly, just next to the fall you will find an information centre, there’s a washroom, a café and you can do zip line if you are looking for some excitement.

Canadian Maritimes eBook

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Inside our book you’ll find a full index, tips for saving money and hidden gems for New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia. Plus helpful tips to help maximize your time and money.

Did you know you could combine your Hopewell Rocks ticket with a Kayak expedition !?
List of very affordable and authentic seafood restaurants !
Recommendations and time allocation for various attractions.
Interactive hyperlinks for local businesses.
and much more!

Itineraries and Attractions recommendations

The Hopewell Rocks, Flowerpots rocks, trail + beach – we recommend 1/2 to a Full day
Cape Enrage, lighthouse, zipline adventures and ocean floor beach – 1/2 to a Full day
Magnetic Hill’s Zoo and attractions – 1/2 to a Full day
The Fundy National Park (Dickson Falls, Point Wolfe) + Alma village – 1 Full day and more
Shediac’s 90 tonne lobster, tourist welcome centre + seafood lunch – 1/4 to a 1/2 day
Fredericton’s historical feel – 1/2 to a Full day

Where to Stay ?

Moncton : We stayed in the city of Moncton and travelled to the Fundy Bay each day. Alternatively you can look for lodging in Magnetic Hill to be closer to attractions.
Alma Village: Stay in the centre of the action with Alma’s various BnB’s.
Fundy National Park: Stay at the Fundy Highlands Motel & Chalets or reserve a campground and sleep under the stars.
Fredericton: Consider the ‘Carriage House Inn’, a short 15 minute walk from downtown Fredericton.

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''The Picture Province''

About New Brunswick

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1. Hopewell Rocks

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