nancymo84

Husband and i are doing up to a 3 week road trip in a new small travel trailer . Leaving July 8 2020 and can do up to 3 weeks. We are leaving from Kitchener, ON. but have no idea on how to start planning this trip.

Any advise from anyone that has done this trip would be so helpful.

Thank you

tlc195

Check out this thread regarding PEI with some info on NS. It lists the many places we love to visit, hope it helps.

Halifax and PEI

We have been visiting PEI for many years and love the island and people.

Tom

NorthwestMale

My gut feeling is that, for you, half the fun (in life) (will be) getting there.

I've been on basically the entire path most would take from Kitchener to Sydney, NS (just using that as a landmark, since Cape Breton is perhaps the farthest-away highlight on your trip)

I suppose you would go on a typical path on the way there, and then deviate on the way back if there is time, AND if it suits you to do so.

So that puts you in proximity to Montreal, Quebec City... Trois Rivieres... Riviere-du-Loup... Frederickton... etc.

You can decide whether there are important spots among or near those that you want to hit along the way. (maybe hit the nearby/easy ones on the way BACK, and do any side trips on the way EAST {esp. if they seem really important, as you won't likely take time for them if you are rushing back home later} ).

Much of the planning depends on your own priorities... and as such, we here can't exactly give you the "best" ideas without some sense for what YOU want.

I myself have written many responses about Nova Scotia and the Maritimes here on Fodors, so if you click on my name it will list all of my posts, and then you can click on the relevant posts and read, and maybe decide a rough 'outline' for what your priorities are, and then people here can better fine-tune your visions to make it great.

cdnyul

From Montreal, when going to the Maritimes we go through Maine.
Montreal to Portland and then up the coast, crossing at Saint Stephen.

nancymo84

Thank you, so much info for us to look thru

eliztravels2

A new trailer--how exciting! We too have a small trailer and have taken it from southern Ontario across the country in both directions. Here’s my advice on how to get started.

Think about what kind of trip you want this to be. Did you buy a trailer because you want to get out of doors, enjoy Canadas’s natural beauty, hike, swim, canoe, learn about the flora and fauna? Or did you buy it because it seemed like a convenient and not too expensive way of getting from here to there? Do you want to spend your time on the edge of pristine wilderness (provided the campground has a hot shower!) or are you okay being close to the city surrounded by large RV’s in what amounts to a grassy parking lot? Chances are you will have little of both but it helps to know your main focus.

Plan driving time realistically. Three weeks is plenty of time so there is no need to rush. You will need time to set up/pack up, shop for groceries, take an interesting detour, and attend to emergencies such as a flat tire or purchase a necessary piece of equipment. Be prepared for rain and cool weather.

Give your trailer a trial run close to home . Although we have had several decades of camping/travel experience and about 10 years with our current trailer we still try to do what we call our “shakedown cruise” two or three weeks before our intended departure. Nothing gets a trip off to a bad start than arriving somewhere later than you intended, maybe even in the dark or the rain, and discovering you don’t know how to light the stove, have forgotten the big pot to cook spaghetti in, and have a warm sleeping bag but no pillows.

Enjoy your planning. I’ll keep an eye on this thread and provide more suggestions when I can.

nancymo84

Thank you so much for all the tips! We started yesterday looking thru books etc to get some ideas, this is harder then i thought to plan...lol
First time planning this sort of trip. One question im wondering, is it better to park trailer at one campground and do day trips?

tlc195

I have never owned a camper BUT given how small PEI is I would stay in one campground and use that as a base to travel from assuming you plan to be on the island for a few days.

NorthwestMale

I don't have any first-hand knowledge of campgrounds, but I perceive that the larger the area, the more sense it makes to have one camp ground for a home base, and do day trips.

The Maritime provinces are so laid-back that you probably don't need to remain moored to one spot while doing day trips (with the exception of Halifax).

Truro, NS is central-ish to a handful of options, so IF you found something in that area, you could stay 3 or 4 nights and do day trips to meaningful spots, including Halifax.

eliztravels2

I thought I’d posted a reply some days ago but it seems to have vanished, so I will try to recreate it and hope the OP is still checking for updates.

-I agree that PEI can all be done from one location. PEI National Park has a lovely beach.

-if you want to do Montreal and/or Quebec city it will be difficult to find a nearby campground and it won’t likely be very appealing but you definitely don’t want to take your trailer into the city because of parking problems. If you want to do smaller cities, Halifax, Fredricton, Moncton, St. John, you will have better luck finding nearby campgrounds. If you just want to spend part of a day enroute find a Walmart or shopping mall on the outskirts where you can unhitch and leave your trailer for the day. We rarely do this but I believe there are locks that you can use to prevent someone making off with your trailer.

-In Nova Scotia, if makes sense to camp in at least two locations, one on the mainland and one on Cape Breton. Cape Breton has campgrounds on both the east and west sides of the island and from either you can do the complete loop in one day if you wish. Planning at least two days on Cape Breton gives you two chances to do the spectacular Cabot Trail drive without fog. I think clockwise gives you the best views.

In general, to use an old saying “there are many ways to skin a cat”. It will probably take a trip or two to discover your own preferred style of trailer travelling. As long as you are reasonably prepared and go with a sense of adventure you should be fine.