Road trip to Maritime Provinces

Old Aug 18th, 2016, 11:42 AM
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Road trip to Maritime Provinces

My DH and I are planning a road trip to the Maritime Provinces. We are leaving the day after Labor Day and need to be home by Sept 27. We leave from MI and have done the US trip many times to Massachusetts so we are familiar with that part of the journey. Any suggestions, tips, cautions, recommendations for must-see stops would be greatly appreciated! Also custom tips etc. I did hear that the gas stations require a chip card for paying at the pump. That was good to know! TIA!
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Old Aug 18th, 2016, 05:36 PM
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Hi, retire04!

Do you have a rough idea of a plan? I was just in Newfoundland, but I suspect you aren't going that far.
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Old Aug 18th, 2016, 05:42 PM
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Of course, as soon as I posted, I realized you did select 3 provinces! Of the 3, I've only been to NS, and it was years ago. It was great, though--especially Cape Breton and Brier Island, at the other end, on the Bay of Fundy.
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Old Aug 19th, 2016, 04:24 AM
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Yes, we have sort of a plan
AAA triptik, maps and tour books and I got the PEI tourism packet yesterday in the mail.
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Old Aug 19th, 2016, 04:43 AM
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Here's a tip:
Canada has "washrooms", not"restrooms".
I think that's a better word.

Iced tea is usually from a sweetened mix, not fresh brewed. This might be the only negative I can think of.
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Old Aug 21st, 2016, 10:08 AM
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Have you sorted out accommodation yet? We're just back from PEI, Cape Breton and Lunenberg area and in each case would highly recommend our accommodation - which ranged from $75-$115 CDN per night for self catering accommodation. I'm just starting a trip report but here they are in advance

PEI - Ocean Peek Bed and Breakfast

In Stratford which is a suburb of Charlottetown - great location to do day trips around the island (we prefer to stay in one place and do long-ish day trips than move around a lot). We stayed 4 nights in the Arundel Suite which is a comfortable one bedroom apartment with a nice deck with a peekaboo ocean view (in the distance). Breakfast is served - cold cereal, breads, bagels, muffins, ham, salami cheese, fruit etc. Very nice owner - not an intrusive style B&B which we don't like.

http://www.booking.com/hotel/ca/ocea...=total;ucfs=1&

$115/night

Cape Breton - Worn Door Step, Baddeck

Another great find - in Baddeck (start/finish of the Cabot Trail and cute town) with another peekaboo view. We had unit #4 - a large studio with frig/microwave/toaster/kettle. A private seating area and a communal seating area on the roof with a lovely view. Delightful owners (no breakfast - but plenty of choices a couple of blocks away).

$75/night

Lunenberg - Atlantic View Motel

3 minutes drive to Lunenberg main drag (or 20 minute walk) - spotlessly clean motel with frig and coffeemaker. They have larger units with kitchens.

$99/night

Will get to my trip report with restaurants/etc - we had some great meals!
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Old Aug 23rd, 2016, 06:40 AM
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Thanks so much Elizabeth! This is exactly what I was looking for! We leave 2 weeks from today!
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Old Sep 5th, 2016, 06:06 AM
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Sorry - we're in the middle of selling our house and I haven't had a chance to do the trip report - so following is stream of consciousness thinking re PEI/Cape Breton/Lunenberg areas - mainly restaurants!

PEI

We took it very easy as we had been prepping the house for sale and were exhausted! But we did one big loop drive from Stratford up to Cavendish Beach area and ended in Malpeque (of the oyster fame) at the Malpeque Oyster Barn - it was terrific. The oysters were superb - and we eat a lot of oysters but these were exceptional. Also had scallops which were delicious. Ordered their version of Oysters Rockefeller which was a bit of a miss. Reservations are advised - even if you just call along the way (I called about an hour before we arrived)

If you stay in the above B&B we had a good hamburger at the diner down the street (corner of Trans Canada highway and Kinlock Road) - it's called Phinley's.

Also near Ocean Peek is a golf course (on Kinlock Road - called Fox Meadow). They have a good pub/restaurant that has a beautiful view. The reviews on TA implied it was a fancy white tablecloth restaurant but that didn't fly so it's good pub food now at good prices and kitchen is open until 9pm.

A somewhat hidden gem in Charlottetown is the restaurant at the Culinary Institute. Lovely view and we had an excellent meal with enthusiastic servers. Overall we found the menus started to look similar in PEI and NS but the Culinary Institute was doing some interesting twists. Highly recommend.

The second day we did the Eastern Shore drive - it was less traditionally scenic than the Cavendish drive but we enjoyed it. Stopped in Souris for reputedly the best Lobster Roll in PEI. It was good but clearly I don't "get" lobster rolls! But we were focused on getting to Point Primm for lunch at the Point Primm Chowder House. It's a favourite destination in the evening as the sunset view is lovely but also really busy during the day. The food is delicious although the ordering system is a bit clumsy, but worth it (you line up to order). Several different types of chowder - I had the classic seafood chowder which was delicious. My husband had the crab cakes which he really enjoyed but the star was the smoked fish sampler platter. Order it!

I'll post Cape Breton later or tomorrow - have to go vacuum!
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Old Dec 12th, 2016, 05:32 PM
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Hi,
These posts are very helpful in planning our trip. We will be in NS for 10 days in July and thinking of spending 3 nights Halifax, three nights Baddeck and 3 nights PEI. Any and all suggestions are welcome.
Also looked into going to Nfl but think that would be too much.The only part of NS I have seen has been Yarmouth-Lunenberg- Digby route
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