YYZ - QC - NB - NS - PEI Road Trip!

Old Sep 5th, 2015, 01:06 AM
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YYZ - QC - NB - NS - PEI Road Trip!

Hi!

I'm planning a 2 week long road trip from Toronto to the East Coast for May 2016. We just started planning so we only have a general itinerary. There will only be one driver so I'm trying to keep the drives daily to a minimum.The amounts below are the total amounts, there will be multiple breaks and stops during them.

Any suggestions for hotels, restaurants, pubs, activities, attractions would be very appreciated. This is my first big trip so I don't entirely know what I'm doing, be nice please!

The whole thing will be pretty casual, a few must sees planned but mainly just enjoying the views and exploring whatever we find intriguing.

Day 1: Toronto to Quebec City - 7.5 hr drive - Stay 1 Night
Day 2: Quebec City to Fredericton - 5.5 hr drive - Stay 1 Night
Day 3: Fredericton to Saint Stephen to Saint Andrews to Saint John - 3 hr drive - Stay 1 Night
Day 4: Saint John to Alma (Fundy National Park) - 2 hr drive - Stay 1 Night
Day 5: Alma to The Rocks Provincial Park to Moncton - 1 hr drive - Stay 1 Night
Day 6: Moncton to Yarmouth - 6 hr drive - Stay 1 Night (Taking the 101, more small towns route)
Day 7: Yarmouth to Peggy's Cove to Halifax - 4 hr drive - Stay 2 Nights
Day 8: Halifax to Sydney - 5.5 hr drive - Stay 1 Night (more scenic coastal route)
Day 9: Sydney to Cape North (Cabot Trail) - 4 hr drive - Stay 1 Night
Day 10: Cape Breton Island to New Glasgow....to PEI.
Day 11-12: Charlottetown to somewhere - Stay 1 - 2 Nights
Day 13: PEI or New Brunswick to Montreal - Stay 1 Night
Day 14: Montreal to Toronto - 5 hr drive

I'm not sure what to do when PEI comes along. Should we take the Ferry to PEI from NS or go back into NB and take the Confederation Bridge?
We know we want to stay in Charlottetown 1 night and would like another night in PEI but we're not sure where. We don't have much interest in Anne of Green Gables and don't know very much about PEI to be honest... Bad Canadians !

Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thank you in advance
carlyjean is offline  
Old Sep 5th, 2015, 01:23 AM
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After looking this over I'm realizing I just jam packed every possible place into this. I have no idea if this is too much. We want to see as much as possible but we don't want to shortchange something awesome just so we can see every place.

Maybe skip St Stephen & St Andrews and head straight to St John from Fredrick?
Also skip Yarmouth and head straight to Penny's Cove & Halifax...

I definitely wouldn't mind more time for Cape Breton Island.

Thankfully we have lots of time to iron things out.
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Old Sep 5th, 2015, 03:06 AM
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My experiences grumbling in traffic jams suggest you should add at least an hour to the schedule for that first day's drive. Both Montreal and Quebec City have constricted access routes producing delays as bad or even worse than you experience in Toronto.
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Old Sep 5th, 2015, 04:02 AM
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This seems like an overly ambitious itinerary for a first trip. You will be on the move almost constantly with no time to explore. Here are my suggestions.

Don’t try to do everything. A shorter ‘must see’ list will still give you a rich and enjoyable experience and leave time and energy to explore the unexpected. There will be other trips in your future.

Since you have no particular interest in Anne of Green Gables and it will too early in the season for the beach, I suggest you leave out PEI. The countryside there is not unlike rural areas of Ontario near where you live. Cape Breton, on the other hand, is spectacular coastal scenery.

Leave some flexibility in your schedule. Accommodation shouldn’t be too hard to find in May so you probably can arrange some of it as you go along. Consider BnBs for some of it. Getting to know the locals adds a different dimension to the trip.

Go prepared--with the right gear and mental attitude-- to do what you want to do in all kinds of weather. A view out over the ocean can be wonderful in a storm, but not so much if you are soaked and shivering.

Enjoy your planning. The maritimes are such a wonderful part of this great land.
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Old Sep 5th, 2015, 12:48 PM
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Thank you both!

I'm thinking we're going to leave out PEI. Gives us some more breathing room.
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Old Sep 6th, 2015, 03:09 PM
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narrow that down. personally, i was not impressed with saint john and would not return. i'd consider staying in lunenburg rather then yarmouth. but if you want to see digby, i guess staying in yarmouth makes sense. there is the ferry from saint john to digby you could consider. that would give the husband a few hours off from driving. agree to adding another night to cape breton would be nice. i'd consider staying in baddeck rather then sydney, unless there's a reason you want to go there. i would add on some time too on your routes. i found driving around those provinces slower then i expected. i would leave pei for another trip. it would be nice to be able to stay at the same place 2 nights in a row once in a while so your not driving everyday. remember that some attractions may not open until the may long weekend.
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Old Sep 15th, 2015, 05:34 AM
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Don't leave out PEI... Aside from Cape Breton it's the most beautiful and unique (not like Ontario at all).

I would skip Yarmouth for sure, but spend a night in St.Andrews and take the ferry from St.John to Digby.

Spend extra time in Cape Breton and visit Fundy Park on your way back. Instead of doing PEI to Montreal in one day, which is a long drive, plan to spend a night around Fundy and leave from there to go to Montreal.

Lots to do on PEI aside from Anne of Green Gables... Awesome beaches, golf, wonderful restaurants, etc.

Hope this is helpful.

Julie, Islander-by-choice
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