Nova Scotia/Prince Edward Island

Explore the maritime sights, sounds and seafood of Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island as you travel through some of Canada's most stunning landscapes.

Tour Description

Discover the rugged, salt-sprayed coastlines and lush green inland of Nova Scotia. Colored by its maritime origins and vibrant history, Nova Scotia is a breathtakingly beautiful, diverse and culturally rich destination guaranteed to stir your imagination.You also get to experience the magical beauty of crescent-shaped Prince Edward Island, the smallest of the Canadian provinces. This land has miles of sandy beaches, stunning cliffs, a welcoming community, and some of the best seafood around.

The tour begins in Chicago, traveling through the Midwest plains before reaching the East Coast. In Portland, Maine, take a high-speed ferry toward your first stop in Nova Scotia. Spend three days exploring Nova Scotia's charming capital of Halifax, where you'll explore the amazing Peggy's Cove and visit the Maritimes Museum of the Atlantic. After exploring the beautiful Bay of Fundy, make the journey to Prince Edward Island. Here you can visit the famed Anne of Green Gables home and feast at one of the Island's most popular restaurants. The next day, cross the Northumberland Strait to Caribou and visit Cape Breton Island, where you will stop at the Alexander Graham Bell Museum. Enjoy a trip along the Cabot Trail in Cape Breton Highlands National Park. Next, your excursion takes you to the posh capital of Montreal, the second-largest French-speaking city in the world. Here you can experience the hustle and bustle of this diverse, cosmopolitan city and enjoy some its finest shops and restaurants. A sightseeing tour will take you to Montreal's top-notch spots.

Tour Photos

Highlights and Inclusions

• Roundtrip rail transportation by Amtrak, deluxe motorcoach and ferry
• Reclining coach seat with leg rest on Amtrak for two nights (Midwest) and one night in cabin on VIA Rail
• Hotel accommodations for 9 nights
• 12 meals
• Sightseeing and scenic excursions per itinerary
• Services of a professional tour manager
• Baggage handling, taxes, and tips

Scenic highlights of your trip include:

• Halifax
• Maritime Museum of the Atlantic
• Peggy's Cove
• Hopewell Rocks
• Charlottetown
• Cape Breton Highlands National Park

Itinerary

Day 1 - Depart Chicago
Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island Midwest and West travelers will meet in Chicago Union Station this afternoon. At 8:00 p.m. we'll start boarding the eastbound Lake Shore Limited. Departure is scheduled for 9:30 p.m. Relax in your comfortable reclining coach seat with leg rest. Roomettes or Bedrooms are available at an additional cost. You're free to explore the train. Go to the lounge car for snacks, sandwiches, and beverages.

Eastern tour members will depart tomorrow for Boston.

Day 2 - En Route
The Lake Shore will pass through Toledo, Cleveland, and Erie early this morning. Enjoy the passing scenery as we continue through the states of New York and Massachusetts to Boston. Upper New York residents can board at Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse, Utica, and Albany during the day.

Eastern and Mid-Atlantic travelers will arrive in Boston throughout the day and transfer to our hotel. The Lake Shore Limited's arrival into Boston is scheduled for 8:01 p.m. We will transfer to the Hampton Inn for the night.

Day 3 - En Route to Yarmouth
Following breakfast this morning, we'll board our motorcoach and travel to Portland. An “on-your-own” lunch stop will be made en route. Upon arrival, we’ll board Bay Ferries’ high-speed ferry, The CAT for the five-and-a-half hour crossing to Yarmouth, Nova Scotia. Upon arrival into Yarmouth, we will transfer to the Rodd Grand Yarmouth, our home for the night. (B)

Day 4 - En Route to Halifax
This morning we’ll board our motorcoach and head to charming Halifax. Halifax is the Maritimes largest city and one of Canada's most important commercial centers. An “on-your-own” lunch stop will be made en route. Upon arrival, we'll check-in at the Delta Halifax. Our home for the next two nights is conveniently located near major Halifax attractions. You're free this evening to begin to discover all that this delightful, nautically-oriented city has to offer. Try the great seafood!

Day 5 - Halifax
A full breakfast is included each morning in Halifax. You'll spend the day on a sightseeing tour of the greater Halifax area, stopping at some historical sites. We'll also enjoy several views of the magnificent Halifax Harbor, one of the most beautiful in the world. We'll follow the rugged coast of St. Margaret's Bay to famed and picturesque Peggy's Cove. This afternoon we’ll visit the Maritimes Museum of the Atlantic where you will immerse yourself in Nova Scotia’s rich maritime heritage. You’ll discover the role Halifax played and see many relics from the Titanic disaster. You’ll also learn about the 1917 Halifax explosion that killed 2,000 people and reduced the city to ruins and debris. We have a gala evening planned for you at the Grafton Dinner Theatre. Each dinner course will be followed by one of the acts of a musical or light comedy. (B, D)

Day 6 - Hopewell Rocks & Charlottetown
We'll reboard our motorcoach this morning and travel to the Hopewell Rocks Ocean Tide Exploration Site. Ocean tides have carved the Flower Pot Rocks, pillars of sandstone and conglomerate rock with balsam fir and dwarf spruce growing on top. Visitors may walk the beach below the rocks from three hours before low tide until three hours after low tide. At high tide, the rocks resemble islands. An interpretive center provides viewing decks and multimedia exhibits about the Bay of Fundy. An opportunity for an “on-your-own” lunch is available at the High Tide Restaurant. We’ll depart Moncton by mid-afternoon for the 136-mile journey across land and sea to Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. On our way, we’ll cross the nine-mile-long Confederation Bridge that connects the New Brunswick mainland with Prince Edward Island, Canada’s smallest province. Late this afternoon we’ll arrive at our home for the next two nights, the Rodd Crowbush Golf & Beach Resort. (B)

Day 7 - Prince Edward Island
Today we explore the island. We'll tour northward passing horse farms, potato fields, sandy beaches, dunes and salt marshes that abound with shore birds. A visit to the home of “Anne of Green Gables” is scheduled; also a stop at Charlottetown's waterfront development and farmers market. We'll stop on our return at one of the Island's most famous eateries, the New Glasgow Lobster Suppers. Enjoy a family-style supper of lobster, cold ham, or beef, served at communal tables (included). (D)

Day 8 - En Route to Baddeck
This morning we'll reboard our motorcoach and travel east to Wood Island where we'll board a ferry for the hour-and-a-half crossing of the Northumberland Strait to Caribou. We'll stop in nearby Pictou for an “on-your-own” lunch. There will be time to visit the historic Hector Heritage Quay. We'll continue to Baddeck, a charming village on Cape Breton Island. We'll visit the Alexander Graham Bell Museum. You'll find working models and related written materials, artifacts and photographs of Bell's experiments during the 37 years he lived in Baddeck. Our home for the next two nights will be the Silver Dart Lodge. You'll have dinner at our delightful hotel. (D)

Day 9 - Cabot Trail
A full breakfast is included this morning. A highlight of your tour is the marvelous circle trip along the Cabot Trail through Cape Breton Highlands National Park. The views are breathtaking as your motorcoach surmounts some of the steepest grades in the world. Lunch is included. Watch for picturesque Neil's Harbour, a quiet fishing village; Cape North, where Cabot landed in 1497; the Sunrise Valley; the Lone Sheiling stone hut; Pleasant Bay; Cheticamp, noted for its rug hookers, and St. Peter's Church. We'll return to the Silver Dart Lodge. Dinner tonight is included. (B, L, D)

Day 10 - En Route to Truro
Following an included breakfast we'll board our motor-coach and travel west 162 miles from Baddeck to Truro. An “on-your-own” lunch stop will be made. At 2:31 p.m. we'll board VIA Rail Canada's Ocean for Montréal. A warm and friendly train staff is ready to meet your every need. The Park Car, with its all-glass, bubble-top Vistadome will be the “gathering place.” Enjoy your private accommodations. Dinner aboard the train is included. (B, D)

Day 11 - En Route to Montréal
Arrival into Montréal is scheduled for 10:03 a.m. Upon arrival, we'll depart on a sightseeing tour of this world class city including Notre Dame de Montréal (the most magnificent of French-Canadian churches), Old Montréal, the French Quarter, McGill University, and a view of this great city from an observation point atop Mount Royale. Following our tour, we'll check into the Fairmont Queen Elizabeth, which is located above the train station. Montréal's ever-expanding underground city soars upward, downward, and sideways around this area and beyond. You'll have access underground to more than a thousand boutiques, major department stores, and more than 125 restaurants and bars, movie theaters, art galleries, and more. (B)

Day 12 - En Route
This morning we'll descend into the VIA Rail Station and prepare to board Amtrak's Adirondack for our 9:30 a.m. departure. Relax in your comfortable reclining coach seat. The Adirondack has been nominated by National Geographic Traveler Magazine as one of the world’s ten best rail trips. Lake Champlain, America’s sixth largest lake will begin to dominate the scenery to the east with the famed Green Mountains of Vermont providing a scenic backdrop. Further south we’ll pass through Saratoga Springs, a onetime retreat for the rich and famous. Feel free to explore the train. You’ll find sandwiches, snacks, and beverages in the Café Car. Midwest tour members will disembark in Schenectady; East tour members will disembark in Albany. Midwest tour members will board the Lake Shore Limited and enjoy the same accommodations and amenities as on their eastbound trip.Eastern and Mid-Atlantic tour members will continue to home destinations or spend the night in Albany and continue home tomorrow.

Day 13 - En Route to Chicago
This morning we are scheduled to arrive into Chicago at 9:45 a.m. on the Lake Shore Limited. Passengers will continue to home destinations throughout the day.

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