The Maritimes – Canada’s Hidden Gem

Days 1 - 2: Halifax

Arrive in Halifax and transfer to your hotel where you can spend the rest of the day relaxing or exploring this Atlantic Ocean Port. Halifax is dominated by the hilltop Citadel, a star-shaped fort that was completed in the 1950s and also has a beautiful harbour front. 

Halifax is a wonderful destination for shopping, dining, theatre, music, and galleries. It has a dense downtown, making it easy to walk the historic streets on foot. Why not stroll along the waterfront boardwalk or try the fabled donair (the official food of Halifax), and make sure to check out Pier 21 where more than one million immigrants gained entry to Canada. You could also visit Halifax Citadel National Historic Site, which stands above the city’s downtown.

Day 3: Peggy’s Cove

Distance: 60km / 37 miles

You’ll picking up your motorhome on the morning of day three and leaving the city behind for the openness of Canada’s great outdoors. Follow the Lighthouse Route to Peggy’s Cove where the famous lighthouse sits firmly on a granite bluff - make sure to bring your camera as this is one of the most photographed spots in Canada.

Days 4 - 5: Lunenburg

Distance: 130km / 81 miles

Today you'll be continuing along the Lighthouse Route which takes you past sandy beaches, rugged coastlines, beautiful island-studded bays and authentic fishing villages. Mahone Bay is particularly beautiful with its vibrantly painted Victorian homes and shops, colourful heritage gardens, and its famous three churches.

Soon you'll come to the Old Town of Lunenburg, a designated UNESCO World Heritage site with a long, proud seafaring history that you can see along its picturesque waterfront. The harbour-side streets are lined with shops and restaurants that blend with the well-preserved and colourfully painted historic homes, much of it like a living museum from the 18th century.

Day 6 - 7: Granville Ferry 

Distance: 130km / 81 miles

Day 8: Grand Pré

Distance: 145km / 90 miles

Today you will travel via Hall’s Harbour, one of the best natural harbours on the upper Bay of Fundy where you can experience some of the highest tides anywhere in the world. Settled in 1680 by Acadians, Grand Pré has a history as rich as its dyke land soil. Today Grand Pré is a National Historic Site and a UNESCO World Heritage Site where you can learn about the Acadian people and the deportation.

Day 9: Five Islands

Distance: 195km / 59 miles

Your journey today takes you around the Minas Basin on the Bay of Fundy to Five Island Provincial Park. This is one of Nova Scotia’s premiere outdoor destinations and is named after five small islands located just off the coast. The park features 90 metre (300 ft.) sea cliffs overlooking the world’s highest tides, a spectacular setting for your overnight.

Days 10 - 11: Fundy National Park

Distance: 255km / 158 miles

Continue via Parrsboro and Joggins Fossil Cliffs, another UNESCO World Heritage Site where you can meet some of the ancient creatures that lived here millions of years ago, including the world’s first reptiles, early dinosaurs and giant dragonflies.

Fundy National Park straddles the Bay of Fundy and has 28 hiking trails, including many along the coast and through the forests; several of them lead to beautiful, secluded waterfalls. The park is along the Atlantic migration route for birds, and over 260 species have been identified in the area.

Days 12 - 13: Prince Edward Island

Distance: 250km / 155 miles

Make sure you visit the Hopewell Rocks’ majestic ‘flowerpot rocks’ and have your picture taken with the world’s largest lobster in Shediac before crossing the eight-mile long Confederation Bridge and entering Canada’s smallest and least populous province, Prince Edward Island.

The size of the island makes it easy to explore by RV as there are only three main driving routes to take. Make sure to visit Charlottetown, the quaint provincial capital with its pretty tree-lined streets, colourful houses and waterside boardwalks. You should also head to the Anne at Green Gables Heritage Place, the site for the inspiration for L. M Montgomery’s classic novel Anne of Green Gables.

Day 14: Pictou

Distance: 115km / 71 miles

You have the morning to explore Prince Edward Island a bit more before taking the ferry to Pictou, Nova Scotia in the afternoon. In Pictou you can ake a stroll along the historic waterfront, experience the historic Scottish architecture, beaches, trails, museums, restaurants, shops and friendly people.

Day 15: Chéticamp 

Distance: 265km / 165 miles

Your road book will guide you over the Ceilidh Trail, a scenic trail approximately 62 miles long which provides stunning views across the Gulf of St. Lawrence on the west side of Cape Breton Island. This trail ends in Margaree Harbour where it meets the Cabot Trail. Chéticamp, a traditional Acadian fishing village, is your first stop along the picturesque Cabot Trail. Here you can book a whale watching tour or, if you'd prefer to stay on dry land, visit St. Peter’s Church, and make sure to stop at Les Trois Pignons; a cultural centre and hooked-rug museum. 

Days 16 - 17: Ingonish

Distance: 115km / 71 miles

This section of the Cabot Trail climbs and descends through the Cape Breton Highlands National Park and is truly dramatic. Cliff-side roads, windswept plateaus, quaint villages and moose sightings form the main appeal of this well-travelled route. There are over 25 hiking trails to choose from, but a must for all travellers is the Sky Line Trail. A dramatic headland cliff overlooks the rugged coast from the end of this level trail.

One of the most developed spots along the Cabot Trail is Ingonish which has something for everyone: warm sand at refreshing beaches, a world class 18-hole golf course, fantastic walking trails, great sea food and friendly people. If you didn't go whale watching at Chéticamp, you could pick up a tour here and potentially see blue, fin, minke, humpback, pilot or sei whales.

Day 18: Baddeck 

Distance: 105km / 65 miles

Today your time in the Cape Breton Highlands National Park is coming to an end, but the Cabot Trail just keeps going; perhaps take a day trip by ferry to Bird Islands where you can see puffins, seals and bald eagles.

Baddeck is a vibrant, bustling town with a picturesque harbour on Bras d’Or Lake, as well as historical attractions, like Alexander Graham Bell National Historic Site, where you can enjoy a glimpse into the life and work of the man who brought us the telephone. Explore the Bras d’Or Lake, this large inland sea is part fresh and part saltwater, allowing it to sustain diverse ecosystems and wildlife, including many bald eagles.