bel79

Hello everyone. I’m torn between two holidays ideas and I’m hoping you can help! My boyfriend and I would like to travel to either Maine/New Brunswick (return trip from Boston ) OR Nova Scotia/New Brunswick (return trip from Halifax ) on 2-9 June.
We really like taking long drives (so long distance are not a problem, which might be useful to point out), as well as short to moderate hikes, and it would also be nice to take a kayaking trip somewhere. Rugged and remote looking places also appeal to us. We also love seafood and ideally it would good to spend a couple of nights in a more out-of-the way guesthouse/B&B for that ‘sense of remoteness’ (ideally we would stay in two different locations on this trip, about 3 nights each).
Which destinations would you recommend, for all of the above, plus for its scenery?
I realise 2-9 June is not very long, but we are good at getting the most out a short space of time. Your help would be really helpful as we really can’t decide. Thank you!

Bowsprit

Please consider visiting Cape Breton Provinicial Park on Nova Scotia. It is a stunning place and ticks all your boxes.

Why New Brunswick? You could visit PEI and Nova Scotia and zip right through New Brunswick.

bel79

Thanks so much for your reply!
New Brunswick is included in the Maine itinerary as it would mean seeing a bit of Atlantic Canada, so two trips in one I guess, or having a taste of both. If we flew to Halifax then I guess Nova Scotia would be the main draw and I could swap NB for PEI if that's recommended.
I'm just not sure which trip to choose! I like the idea of a combined US/Canada trip, but at the same don't want to miss out on stunning scenery!

bardo1

You don't have as much time as you think. I would fly in/out of Halifax and stick with Nova Scotia. A quick and shortened version might look something like:

Land in Halifax earlyish and start the long drive to Cape Breton Island (5 hours before stops).

4 nights at Cape Breton Island:
* 2 days to explore Cape Breton Highlands National Park
* 1 day for Louisbourg and environs
* 1 day for something else or see more of the park (there's enough

Drive back to Halifax
4 nights in Halifax hotel:
* 2 days to explore Halifax
* 2 day of side trips (plenty to choose from: Truro, Five Islands Provincial Park, Lunenberg, Mahone Bay, Peggy’s Cove, many more)

Drive to Halifax airport.

This is somewhat rushed even with 4 nights at each base instead of 3 each. If you are locked into only six nights, it is still worthy but I think Maine or New Brunswick need an additional 6 nights (or a separate trip altogether).

emalloy

Perhaps it isn't a consideration for you, but renting a car in Canada and dropping off in the US will probably involve BIG drop off charges. I like bardo 1 's plan FWIW.

bel79

Thanks all! Both trips would be round trips, so we would fly in and out of Boston for option 1 and Halifax for option 2.
As time it short, how about flying into Boston and just doing Maine? This would be a slightly cheaper option, but not sure if equally scenic as Nova Scotia? Any thoughts appreciated!

bardo1

Scenic is subjective. Google "Cape Breton Highlands National Park" and click on images fore an idea.

For a Maine trip, I would strongly suggest flying in and out of Augusta or Portland. The Washington DC area (my home base) has non-stops to both for a little over $200 in summer - not sure where you're starting from. It's always a little cheaper to fly to Boston, but not worth the extra driving and time lost, IMO.

tracys2cents

Very possible to have cool, rainy weather. And the hiking needs to be accompanied by heavy-duty mosquito protection in early June.

bel79

Thanks everyone. Flying from UK and Portland/Augusta are a LOT more expensive to fly into! So it would have to be Boston for the Maine trip... With regards to rain and mosquitos, is the situation the same in both areas, or perhaps slightly better in Maine? Not sure if I should have that as a factor when making the decision.

PaulRabe

I've been to Maine, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia.

Bardo's itinerary is exactly what I would recommend.
Cape Breton NP and Louisburg are two gems that exceeded my expectations, and that isn't easy to do.

> With regards to rain and mosquitos,
> is the situation the same in both areas
In June, weather in both places is a roll of the dice. It could be great in one place and lousy in another, or vice versa, or great in both places, or lousy in both places. I would check the weather about a week before departing and, if it looks bad, change only which days you plan to be in Halifax. Parts of that place can be enjoyed in rain, so you may be able to change lodging plans in order to stay in Halifax during the worst of the weather.

joesorce

Moosehead Lake, Mt. Katahdin, those are two areas in Maine that I would look at for B&B's in beautiful isolated areas. Late June is generally much more tourist-friendly in regards to black flies and mosquitoes and weather...but you never know. If you visit in early June, you don't really need to make advance reservations and will be able to wander and choose.

joesorce

Flying into Boston would give you more choices for last-minute changes of itinerary. If Maine is cold or rainy or having a particularly bad bug season, you could head down to Cape Cod, or visit Boston and surrounds, or head to Newport Rhode Island, or up to the White Mountains. Flying into Halifax would leave you a lot more limited regarding changes-of-plans.

Bowsprit

Bardo's suggested itinerary is exactly right. I want you to know that one year we flew into Halifax in June and were met by intense fog that actually lasted throughout most of the trip. We didn't see the harbor in Halifax until we returned to fly out a week later. Fog is fierce in Halifax, unfortunately. I don't know if there's a time during the summer when it's less of a factor to contend with.

bel79

I just want to say a big thank you to everyone, this is such fantastic advice. I really appreciate it. I think we're likely to fly into Boston and make our way up. Realistically we can't go far into NB, so wouldn't go further than St Andrews (even though that means missing Fundyband Hopewell rocks). And we can be flexible, Thanks again for your time.

bel79

I meant Bay of Fundy and not Fundyband (massive typo!) - in case you were wondering!

bardo1

As you've probably already seen, the RT difference between flying non-stop to Boston and flying non-stop to Halifax is about £100 (from London, not sure where you are).

If your destination is Nova Scotia, it's so worth it.

If your destination is Maine, then Boston fine.

Just think about it.

bel79

Thanks bardo. I've been reading through the post again and I'm changing my mind again.... And actually, because of a special offer travelling to Halifax would be £100 each cheaper! I think if I'm honest I want to go to NS, but I'm worried about the weather, i.e landing there for a week and being shrouded in fog! With flying into Boston it seems easier to make alternate plans. But maybe we should just take the risk!

CindyW

Are you open to camping? If so, read on. If not, never mind...You mentioned that you like remote. Well, one of the most amazing places I've ever been, and I've been to a lot of places, is Grand Manan Island off of the coast of New Brunswick. You have to take a ferry to it, and you can camp at the Hole in the Wall campground, where you are right on a cliff and can hear the whales breathe at night (or at least we did--you could check into whether or not they are around there that time of year--we were there in late July). We did this for three nights as part of a three week trip flying into Bangor, Maine, driving up to PEI, down through Nova Scotia, then Acadia National Park in Maine, back out of Bangor. I don't know if I would have been so impressed if we had stayed in a B and B--hearing the whales at night was the highlight. But it was also really fun to be on a small island--we took another ferry to an even smaller island, Whitehead Island, and hiked all around it, and that was fun, too. While on Grand Manan, we went to a lobster dinner in a church basement! Fun! And I can't ever look at a chocolate croissant without thinking of the morning we went to a bakery and got some sweets and then pulled over on the side of the road and sat on a bench to watch the sunset and saw whales out in the far distance. We put our camping gear in a box and checked it as one of our bags. You wouldn't need much for just two, right? We also stayed at the Broadcove Campground in Cape Breton, and it was stunning. We went to a little outdoor music festival one night, and had a blast.