Help with Planning a New Brunswick Vacation
 

Hi all,
I'm starting to look at a summer vacation in New Brunswick. The travellers will be myself (25yrs old) and my brother (21yrs old). We're definitely going to the Bay of FUndy but we're not sure what else to do (we'll be there a week). We like museums, but also love outdoors things (kyaking, hiking). A nice beach for a couple days wouldn't be bad either. I've also never been to PEI or Nova Scotia but not sure whether we should try fitting either of those in.

We're going to fly into Portland, ME because of the amazing difference in airfares (I can get tickets for around $100RT BWI-Portland on AirTran vs. a much larger amount on Air Canada).

We're planning on going around the 4th of July holiday.

Thanks for any advice!

-Dcstudent

Hi,

My trip was a few years ago, so I am not sure this is the most relevant. I am sure others will chime in.

You could drive up to New Brunswick from Portland, or you could take the CAT from Portland or Bar Harbor (next to Acadia) into Nova Scotia, and then drive.

We drove through NB - we stayed in Fredericton and St. John, but only for a day each. There are a few things to see, but I would not say 1 week. Definitely Bay of Fundy - that was awesome. Also loved the reversing falls and the river surge (forget what it was called). Of the two, I liked St. John better, its smaller and prettier.

A drive to PEI is definitely doable, and totally recommended. I would say that PEI has the better beaches, plus awesome seafood, and really friendly people. The bridge to PEI was also interesting (toll road, and no pull outs).

A word of warning - if you are planning to return on a Sunday down Interstate 95, beware of the traffic - a LOT of people who are not in any particular hurry, most towing boats or RVs. Speeds on the interstate average about 30-40 miles/hr - if you are lucky. I love that area - but I always plan to come back a day late or early just to avoid the horrible traffic on Sundays in the summer!

Have a great trip!
DG

You could easily handle either NS or PEI - likely not both.

If you want the Bay, you could always Ferry into Yarmouth and then loop around the bay (or vice versa) back to the US. The Annapolis valley is truly lovely.

Not sure if you quite have enough time to make it to Cape Breton and still do the stuff around Fundy that you want. That and Halifax were my favourite periods of time in the Maritimes.

Only if your destination is NS.

A couple of comments. NS has enough to keep you occupied for 1 week without stopping in NB or PEI. If you choose NS, then the CAT Ferry mentioned previously is a very good, albeit expensive, option. There is another thread in this forum discussing vacationing in NS.

Although you can spend a week in NB, it is much better suited to combine with PEI, especially given your desire to spend a day or two on the beach. your route up from Portland (3-4 hours from the Canadian border) would take you through St Stephen (Ganong Chocolate factory), St Andrews (Algonquin Hotel), St John (Reversing Falls mentioned previously). Heading on towards PEI you would have the opportunity to do some hiking in Fundy National Park as well as some kayaking. It is very fun to do the later around Hopewell rocks, only to come back at 6 hours later and walk in the exact same location where there had been 20 feet of water. Moncton doesn't have any other claim to fame other than Magnetic Hill (not worth it IMHO).

PEI is awesome, great for golf, walking/lounging on the beach. It is very busy during the summer, with most of the crowds congregating in the Cavendish area (home of Anne of Green Gable). There are many nice beaches here although you can find equivalent in other parts of the island which are much less populated. The other prime tourist spot is Charletown (spp?), the only city (pop 30,000!) on the island. BTW, you only pay for the bridge ($35-$38 CAD?) on the return trip. It is much more enjoyable from a bigger vehicle as this allows you to see over the sides of the bridge.

Drive times.

Portland-Border/St Stephen: 3-4 hours...could run into moderate lines at the border...there is an alternative border crossing only a mile upriver which never has any line-ups. St Andrews is about 1/2 hour away, albeit a bit off the track to St John.

St Stephen-St John: 1.5 hours.
St John-Funday National Park: 1-1.5 hours
Fundy National Park-Moncton: 45 minutes-1 hour.
Moncton-PEI Bridge: 1.5 hours.
PEI Bridge-Cavendish. 30 minutes NW. PEI is so small that you are never more than 1 hour or so from all of the prime tourist destination, unless you you to the eastern or NW tip of the island (not bad if you don't want the tourists)

Funny assesment. Actually St John is about 115,000; Fredericton about 45,000. IMHO, St John has a much grittier feel to it with the oil refinery and the frequent summer fog while Fredericton is much cleaner with the greens on either side of the river. That being said, Fredericton would be a bit (1-1.5 hours) out of a Portland-PEI road trip and you can easily spend a day in St John...

Hope this helps.

Very helpful information everyone! Thank you!