14 Best Sights in South Shore and Annapolis Valley, Nova Scotia

This iconic red-and-white lighthouse has long been one of Nova Scotia’s most-visited attractions and is thought to be one of the most photographed spots in Canada. A wooden lighthouse was erected on this point in 1868, to be replaced in 1915 with the concrete octagon that stands today. In 2021, a C$3.1 million redevelopment made the lighthouse fully accessible, adding a huge viewing platform looking out over craggy rocks and the lighthouse, and walkways connecting visitors to the parking lot and village. 

Temporary exhibitions here are devoted to established and up-and-coming artists, and there's a permanent collection strong on maritime and Inuit art, works on paper, and works by women artists. It amounts to more than 3,000 works, though not all are on display.

This museum, named for an early settler from New England, is worth a visit. It recaptures late-1700s life with household items such as quilts and toys, plus fishing gear and information about shipwrecks and sea captains.

A faithful replica of the former lighthouse and keeper's quarters offers incredible views and information panels, and if you'd like to go inside during the summer months someone at the visitor center will happily take you inside. The local university carries out bird-banding, tracking, and nesting projects here. Informative tours along the beach and guided nighttime walks are also available (C$25,  nuitstella.ca). Encircling the lighthouse and its hinterland, Le Petit Bois trail network threads through woodland, marshland, and along coastal paths.

Artifacts dating back to the mid-19th century, including rare photographs of local shops, factories, and shipyards, are among the holdings of this museum of Lunenburg County history. There's also a folk-art gallery, a First Nations gallery, and the Kidology Korner, with toys and games from pretechnology days. Walking trails wind from behind the museum building through nearby parkland.

Despite a devastating fire in 1897, some evidence of Windsor's earliest days remains at Fort Edward, which, dating from 1750, is the oldest blockhouse in Canada.

This is one of Canada's oldest surviving lighthouses, located on the site where Samuel de Champlain and Sieur de Monts landed in 1604. Inside, the Port of the Privateers exhibit recounts the lighthouse's decades of stalwart service, from its completion in 1855 until 1989, when operations ceased. Even if the lighthouse isn't open when you arrive, there are interpretive signs outside, and the views of Liverpool Harbour from the park are splendid.

These 6-acre gardens are devoted mainly to indigenous plants from the Acadian Forest Region. Nine native habitats are displayed, and there's also a medicinal and food garden, a beautiful walled garden, and a conservatory.

One of the last untouched tracts of coastline in Atlantic Canada, this park has isolated coves, broad white beaches, and imposing headlands, all of which are managed by Kejimkujik National Park and Historic Site (just plain "Keji" to locals or the linguistically challenged). A hike along a 6-km (4-mile) trail reveals a pristine coast that's home to harbor seals, eider ducks, and many other species. To protect nesting areas of the endangered piping plover, parts of St. Catherine's River Beach (the main beach) are closed to the public from late April to early August.

Many Wolfvillians will tell you that the best show in town is watching swifts—aerobatic birds that fly in spectacular formation—descend on the Tufts Centre's oversized chimney at dusk on summer evenings. The venue is named in honor of the late ornithologist, author, and longtime resident who published Birds of Nova Scotia in 1961. The illustrated tome is still considered the bible for birders in the province, and Tufts had lots of material to work with because Nova Scotia, being located on the Atlantic flyway, is an important staging point for migratory species. Birders can tick several off their "must-see" list without straying too far from Wolfville. Each summer as many as half a million sandpipers and plovers flock to Evangeline Beach near Grand Pré to gorge on the Minas Basin's nutrient-rich mudflats before continuing nonstop to South America. Winter, meanwhile, brings hundreds of regal bald eagles to Sheffield Mills, northeast of Kentville.

The Liverpool area has easy access to some of the South Shore's best beaches, and this one has more than a kilometer of fine, pale-color sand. Backing the beach is a dune system that shelters nesting sites for piping plovers—a clue to the location's uncrowded tranquility—and beyond this are salt marshes. Make sure to stick to the designated paths here. The shallow water makes Summerville ideal for families, and near the beach is a picnic area with tables that have sunshades. Amenities: parking (free); toilets. Best for: solitude; sunset; swimming; walking.

With four migratory seabird sanctuaries nearby, this 1,600-acre park is a great spot for birding, and it has some good hiking trails. Or you could just stretch out on one of the white-sand beaches. Occasional organized activities include family fun days, a sand sculpture contest in September, and stargazing.

Life became easier for the locals after this mill opened in 1860, greatly reducing the time needed to card (process) wool. On a visit here you can view the restored mill, glean fascinating facts from engaging guides about its working days, and try your hand at carding wool and spinning yarn.