OT- Travel to NS & PEI

[Mrs. M. Mouse]

We are hoping to take a trip down to NS and PEI summer 2009. I am hoping some of you on here have some good tips on places to stay, Things to see and also some travel tips web links for us to do some research on.

Any and all tips appriciated. thanks.

Mrs. M Mouse

 

[drag n' fly]

Definitely drive the Cabot Trail and see Cape Breton island.

In PEI it is a must to see the Anne of Green Gables house and of course the beautiful beaches.

 

[alotachips]

If you have children......going and staying in Cavendish is a must with the kids. I'm from PEI and we still go once or twice during the summer to Cavendish. Our kids love it

 

[highland3]

Halifax Harbour (historic properties, maratime museum of the Atlantic, boats!)

Citadel Hill

Peggy's Cove

The Ovens (seaside caves)

Whale watching cruise

 

[dennise]

Cavendish PEI, we go every year with our son and his family, we stay at the Kindred Spirits cottages. Very nice cottages, pool, hot tub, playground, can walk to Green Gables and many other shops, and sandspit play part. In off the main run so it is very quiet. Owners are very nice as well.

 

[MikeyNS]

Cavendish is a great spot to go. My advice would be book sooner rather than later. Things can get very busy and I'm sure the popular places would already be booked solid for next summer.

 

[Mrs. M. Mouse]

Thank you so far for all the tips. yes anne of green gables house is on our list. I will make a note about cavendish. it will all depend on flight prices from calgary!

 

[DisneyFreak06]

Thank you so far for all the tips. yes anne of green gables house is on our list. I will make a note about cavendish. it will all depend on flight prices from calgary!

The Anne of Green Gables house is in Cavendish, so you will be there if you see the house. There is a lot of touristy stuff in Cavendish, and it does get very busy there. There are many beaches to see, and tons of things that are free of charge. For example there is a great show behind the Confederation Center (outside) put on by young people from across Canada, usually, it's held most days and it's free. Many beaches are free, but the National Parks ones charge to get in. Take one of the scenic drives and see the real Island. You can stay in Charlottetown and travel to Cavendish in about a 1/2 hour or so.

Good luck!

 

[McKiggan]

Cavendish in PEI is great, you can drive 15 minutes in any direction and find something to do, especially with kids. But the motels are very overpriced during the summer. You can save a few bucks by staying nearby in Stanhope or Brackley (5 minutes from cavendish).

If you camp, Twin Shores campground is fantastic.

Cape Breton: Ingonish beach is a must. Lantern, Hill and Hollow Cottages are BEAUTIFUL (again expensive but worth it).

Fortress Louisburg. An entire historical town re-enacted.

 

[Mrs. M. Mouse]

The Anne of Green Gables house is in Cavendish, so you will be there if you see the house. There is a lot of touristy stuff in Cavendish, and it does get very busy there. There are many beaches to see, and tons of things that are free of charge. For example there is a great show behind the Confederation Center (outside) put on by young people from across Canada, usually, it's held most days and it's free. Many beaches are free, but the National Parks ones charge to get in. Take one of the scenic drives and see the real Island. You can stay in Charlottetown and travel to Cavendish in about a 1/2 hour or so.

Good luck!

lol what can I say I haven't been to PEI since I was 3!

 

[Mrs. M. Mouse]

Cavendish in PEI is great, you can drive 15 minutes in any direction and find something to do, especially with kids. But the motels are very overpriced during the summer. You can save a few bucks by staying nearby in Stanhope or Brackley (5 minutes from cavendish).

If you camp, Twin Shores campground is fantastic.

Cape Breton: Ingonish beach is a must. Lantern, Hill and Hollow Cottages are BEAUTIFUL (again expensive but worth it).

Fortress Louisburg. An entire historical town re-enacted.

thank you for the input. is it hard to get to cape breton from pei?

 

[McKiggan]

Hard to get from PEI to CB? No.
A little awkward? Yes.

Easiest way is to take the ferry from Wood Islands PEI to Caribou NS (75 minute ferry ride) then drive from Caribou to C.B. (2 1/2 to 3 1/2 hours -depending on where in CB you plan to stop).

 

[Mrs. M. Mouse]

oh okay so it would make more sense to head there before pei if we're on that end of NS....

 

[caisland]

If you are a big Anne Fan the musical in Charlottetown should be high on your list.

 

[slg]

I second Kindred Spirits in PEI. It is absolutely wonderful! Both the cottages and the Inn. If you have kids, they will love it. We have stayed there twice and it is paradise!

My DH is from CB and we have gone there 5 times in the last 10 years, and PEI 3 times.

What other questions might you have? What type of traveller are you? Ages of kids etc.

I love to answer questions, so be specific, go ahead and ask.

 

[Mrs. M. Mouse]

we have 2 girls who will be 8 and 5 at the time of this trip. We're going to be taking a plane as it's much too far to drive. we plan to be able to go for 2-3 weeks but not sure the total length yet.

dh's dad lives in amherst so we're going to spend about a week in and around that area. we plan to spend some time in halifax and also out on PEI. dh wants to show us all around where he grew up so we're going to be travelling alot.

I need to know the best places to rent cars from, stay at and visit, special events going during the summer months and best times for travel. As you can see we're just at the beginning stages of planning and are not yet sure if this trip will be feasable price wise as the last time I priced it out the flights alone from calgary were the same price as our whole WDW stay hotel flights tickets and meals included!

any tips?

 

[slg]

Do you have a CAA card? I just got one recently and am kicking myself I didn't have on earlier. Hertz gives a fantastic deal and I paid the best price ever this last summer with my CAA. They also give you a free booster seat, which you will need to have for your 5 year old (and maybe your 8).

I found my CAA card useful in booking hotels, even Kindred Spirits in Cavendish will give you a 5% discount.

The best month to go is July. Maritime weather is pretty variable, but July is usually the best. We go either late July to early August.

The maritimes cost about what it costs anywhere else, but don't forget the tax that Albertans don't have. Going out to eat has a 12% tax on your bill! Ouch!

My kids are 13,9,7, but we have been travelling every two years so we've been there at all ages. There are a lot of fun places to go to, but be wary of the driving...there is a lot of it to get anywhere. Make sure you have a lot of interesting things to do in the car for them.

I love PEI! The weather is always better than anywhere else and certainly its very relaxing. Its not a run around, hectic place like WDW or DL, but there is a lot to do and you will enjoy it

Order the dreamers and doers guide from NS and call the tourism bureau from PEI. They have great accomodation guides that will help you pick places within your budget.

 

[Mrs. M. Mouse]

Do you have the links where I can order those?

I am so excited to go back I am just hoping we can pull it off. I have dh thinking there is no way possible cause i want to kind of surprise him in having most of the planning stuff done for him (he's more of a spur of a moment kind of guy)

He thinks I don't want to go to NS and would rather go to disney (well I do want to do that too but we want to go to ns too!) so we want to kind of surprise him if we can pull it off.

 

[slg]

I don't have the links, but just google Nova Scotia tourism and PEI and they'll have some forms for you to fill out so they can mail them out. You can also call if you don't want to post your address on-line.

Hmm. You can't compare it to Disney, but you can still have fun.