Hello everyone!
We recently returned from the Magic's inaugural cruise to Canada, and we had a wonderful time. Because I received so much great information from everyone here, I thought I'd give you our feedback on our shore excursions.
In Halifax, we did the Lunenburg tour through Disney. It was a long day, but we had a great tour. Our guide, Robert, was very informative and enthusiastic; our driver, Wendy, was excellent as well. The town of Lunenburg is incredibly picturesque and the walking tour was very nice (down hill all the way to the bay). However, because this was a long day, it is probably best for older children. We had a 16, 14, and 6 year old in tow (the 6 year old did not take the walking tour). There is a maritime museum and touch tank for younger children who opt out of the walking tour. We had lunch at Big Red's immediately across the street from the museum (which is where the tour bus parked to meet us after the walking tour). We give this the highest recommendation for lunch. They make homemade bread daily, and we had the best fish and chips and poutine (and if you've never had poutine, then say hello to your new favorite way to adorn a french fry). We also had a fantastic view of the bay while we ate, and the service was excellent. The menu was diverse, and everything was very affordable as well. Our bill for two adults and a teenager, all of whom had sodas and left food on their plates because they were stuffed, was $40 including tip. The building itself is also the old Lunenburg jail. What more could you want for lunch?
On the way home, we stopped in Marone Bay to browse their shops (though I would have preferred more time in Lunenburg), and Robert and Wendy gave us a quick tour of Halifax on our way back to the bus, stopping at the Citadel for a quick picture, which was nice. We got back with a half hour to shop at the port and then we were off to St. John. It was a wonderful day, I hope we can return again with more time.
In St. John, we ventured on our own. We took our 14 year old to zip line through St. John Adventures. They are located only about a 10 minute taxi ride from the port (we paid $11 or 12 US dollars fare). I would recommend the zip line at St. John Adventures as a fun alternative activity for older children and adventurous adults. The staff were very kind and safety conscious. We had a view of the Fundy Bay and the reversing falls (though it is directly across from a big paper mill, so it was not the most picturesque view, but nevertheless it was a good view). We scheduled our zipline for 11 am and it took an hour and a half. After it was over, we taxied over to the City market and had plenty of time to eat lunch and browse the shops before we sailed.
I'm sure future Disney cruisers will enjoy their trip as much as we did. The cool Canadian nights are perfect for hot chocolate and looking out over the water on deck, so hopefully the machine on deck 9 proves more reliable for your cruise than it was for ours. Happy sailing!
Fresh bread at Big Red's. Delectable!
Beautiful Lunenburg from across the bay.
One of the five legs of the zipline at Fundy bay.
