Nova Scotia In June/early July - Crowds? Weather? Festivals?
 

I'm in the process of planning next summer's vacation for my husband and I and we've decided to fly up from Florida and spend some time in Nova Scotia, Cape Breton, and possibly the Saint John area. Our first decision is when to go. Without going into the details of my employer's crazy vacation policy, I can take about two weeks anywhere between May 28 and July 9. My personal preference would be the weeks of June 25 to July 9, but I can take 2 other weeks during that time period if it works out better.

So my questions for those who are knowledgeable about the area are:

1. How are the crowds at the most popular sites during that time? I'm particularly worried about the first week of July, since that's a major holiday week for Americans. If we're staying in the area (for example, at a B&B in Peggy's Cove or Lunenburg) can we expect to get an hour or two in the mornings and evenings of relatively few people before the buses start to arrive or after they leave?

2. Is there really much difference in weather between late May/early June vs. late June/early July? I know you can never tell from day to day, but in general is there much difference in temperatures, rainfall, fog, winds, etc.?

3. Are there any festivals during that time we should be aware of - either because we'd like to attend or because we'd like to avoid them? For example, we enjoy art and craft festivals but would avoid wine festivals.

I haven't started on a detailed itinerary yet, but expect we'll fly into and out of Halifax and rent a car and then basically work our way from one end to the other - Yarmouth to Cape Breton, with a possible ferry ride over to Saint John for some sightseeing. We will be 63 and 54 at that time, and we enjoy nature, scenery, walking & mild hiking, and local arts and crafts. DH grew up on a sailboat so he loves everything related to the sea, and rocky coasts and lighthouses are just his cup of tea. He is also an avid photographer so we'll make lots of stops for picture taking.

So I'm sure I'll be lurking on the forum for quite a while and will back with more questions about places to visit, stay, and eat, but for now I'm just narrowing down the WHEN.

Thanks for any advice!

I'm more familiar with Maine than NS, have only been once, but here's my opinion.

This far north, June is "before" tourist season, and the weather will be better the later you go within your timeframe. I doubt that crowds will be a problem, either.

Nova Scotia has (I hope, still!) the best travel brochure of anyplace I've ever been, called the Doers and Dreamers Guide, I think. That wpuld certainly have festival info for you.

Enjoy planning!
~Liz

July 1st is Canada Day, a major holiday here. Can't comment on the "crowds", but I believe this would be a good time. You should check online travel guides for festival listings--highland games come to mind.

Huge difference b/t late May/early June and late June/early July!! Go with your June 25-July 9 dates. Don't worry about crowds in Nova Scotia. Cape Breton is spectacularly beautiful!

Order your Doers' & Dreamers' travel guide & maps from www.novascotia.com

Have fun planning your trip! B-)

Westjet has a seasonal (May-Oct)direct, non-stop flight Toronto(YYZ) to Sydney(YQY). Sydney is located on Cape Breton Island, NS

Thanks for the advice! I think I'll stick with the June 25 - July 9 plan so now I can start thinking about where to go. I've bookmarked the Doers' & Dreamers' website and when they have the 2011 guides available I'll order them.

I'll probably do the same thing that I did when planning a 2-week trip to Scotland - tape a large map to a piece of cardboard and use push pins to mark places I'd like to go and then see how an itinerary/route falls out. It worked great, and really helped visualize locations and distances.

We'll be flying up from Orlando so flights into Syndney don't really work out for us. Thanks for the suggestion, though.

www.Westjet.com has direct, non-stop Orlando/Toronto

I like your map/cardboard/push pin idea! B-)

Sorry...brain cramp. You said you want to fly Orlando/Halifax(YHZ). I gave you Toronto(YYZ).

If you're coming I also agree to not worry about crowds; I've never felt overwhelmed by crowds anywhere in Maritime Canada. Coming from the busy-ness that is Florida (in parts), I think you'll find even the more "touristy" parts of the Maritimes generally relatively un-mobbed and some parts with nary a soul in sight. Heavens, on PEI, I had beaches to myself. Even in the heart of Halifax, I've found rocky outcroppings in Point Pleasant Park overlooking the sailboats in the beautiful body of water that is the Northwest Arm...with maybe two other humans visible on another outcropping equally enjoying the relative peace & solitude.

I've taken 3 trips to Maritime Canada: late May, mid-late June to Halifax area, late June to Moncton area & PEI. Weather is a bit of a crapshoot for sure; late May 2003 we hit some beautiful sunny low 70s weather in the Halifax area, while when I went in late June to Halifax 2007 , it was chilly and damp, go figure... late June to PEI/Moncton 2010 was a mix of sun & rain but on the cool side (around 70F; we needed sweaters while biking!). As a general rule of thumb, the closer to July/August, the greater the likelihood of warmer weather.

If you love nature, hiking, arts & crafts, the sea, lighthouses, I think you will love Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. I do, for those reasons, but also many more.

Happy travels! Daniel

Speaking as one Floridian to another, go as late as you can. We went in mid to late June and it was cold, think winter. It rained, they have serious wind and fog, many days it did not reach 60. When the sun came out it was beautiful and the people are fantastic but dress warm. Make sure you go to Digby and have scallops, they were the best I have ever tasted. Drive the Confederation bridge and enjoy the mussels on PEI, again by far the best I have ever eaten. You should have a great vacation but keep in mind the wind off the Atlantic at Halifax is noting like the wind off the Atlantic in Daytona.

stpetereb is so right. Too bad you could not go later. Last 2 weeks in July. Last week in July, first in August. But, from the dates you have given us, Late June/early July is preferred.

Yes, I would prefer to go later in the year but I have to work with the vacation dates I was given. I expect the weather to be variable and will be prepared with rain gear, cold weather clothes, and a couple of warm weather clothes. For some reason every time my husband and I go someplace we bring a heat wave with us, so I always have something with me that I can wear if it gets unusually hot.

Thanks for all the advice. I'm reading guide books now and deciding what to do while we're there. I'm definitely looking forward to it.

I agree with all of the timing sentiments listed so far. Don't even concern yourself with "crowds". As Nova Scotia isn't on the way to anywhere, it isn't overwhelmed by society as are many other spots.

One thing you can do this far in advance, to augment your map and push pin detail, is to print out the TIDE TABLES for the Bay of Fundy for the ENTIRE duration of your trip window.

Go to:

http://www.lau.chs-shc.gc.ca/cgi-bin...gion=5&zone=30

And print the 14-day table for perhaps 3 locations, maybe including Hopewell Cape and Truro. Plan to have that data with you in the glove box for occasional reference while on the go.

The tides are awesome there! But with six hours of time between high and low tide, you can strategize to make maximum use of your time.

You only get two chances per 24-hour period to see the extreme of "low tide", and usually one of those will be in the middle of the night.

As others have already said, compared to many other places, crowds are seldom a problem in most of the Maritimes. That being said, if you really prefer a time when there are few people around the attractions, generally the busiest time here is rather short, limited from about the last week in June until about the third week in August. September is generally a beautiful month here, but I don't think you have that flexibility. I hope you will make time to see New Brunswick and not just Nova Scotia (I am a New Brunswicker, so maybe biased :-). While the Cape Breton trail is fantastic, so are the vistas along the much shorter Fundy Trail roadway/walkway that you get to near St. Martins in New Brunswick. The Hopewell Rocks are well known, of course, and Fundy National Park is just another half hour or so further along that road. Don't forget small town Maritimes as part of your trip. I think a lot of people don't consider how interesting it is to spend a half day wandering around a town such as Sackville NB, Antigonish NS, Wolfville NS or St. Andrews NB (or many other places of similar size). Architectural and natural beauty, wonderful people, artisans and craftspeople, and an amazing amount of culture awaits you. Of course my preference is Sackville, but I am definitely biased lol. Take care and have a great trip. Bob (from Sackville NB, and an unabashed Bay of Fundy enthusiast)

I was in Halifax this past summer at the end of June, and had great weather. As many have already said, crowds aren't really an issue. You can read my trip report here:

http://www.fodors.com/community/cana...rip-report.cfm