Top Things to do in Nova Scotia
Top Hotels in Nova Scotia
- 1. Maritime Inn Antigonish
- 2. Prince George Hotel
- 3. Comfort Hotel Bayer's Lake
- 4. The Lord Nelson Hotel & Suites
- 5. Cambridge Suites - Halifax
- 6. The Sutton Place Hotel Halifax
- 7. Comfort Hotel Bayer's Lake
- 8. Hampton Inn & Suites by Hilton Halifax - Dartmouth
- 9. Chateau Bedford, Trademark Collection by Wyndham
- 10. Hampton Inn by Hilton Halifax Downtown
Top 10 Nature & Parks in Nova Scotia, United States
From Yarmouth to Sydney, Nova Scotia is full of scenic landscapes, rich history, and interesting local culture. Sights and fun experiences abound in Nova Scotia, and there is a little bit of something for everyone. Soak up the beauty and serenity to be found in the Annapolis Royal Historic Gardens, or head to Cape Breton Highlands National Park for the stunning landscape and wildlife. Explore the history of the area at Louisbourg's Fortress Louisbourg, or hike the Skyline Trail in Ingonish.
Restaurants in Nova Scotia
1. Cape Breton Highlands National Park
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 1,529 reviews
Treasures abound throughout the headlands and rugged cliffs of Cape Breton Highlands with its abundant wildlife, spectacular scenery and human history dating back to the last Ice Age.
Reviewed By live2love_love2live - Wilmington, United States
There is so much to see, do, and explore in this beautiful area of Nova Scotia. If you love a variety of hiking trails, great photo opportunities, chance encounters with wildlife, remote/quiet locations, and unsurpassed beauty, then you MUST visit this national park.
2. Annapolis Valley
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 21 reviews
Reviewed By tshep42 - Halifax, Canada
This is a beautiful rural region of NS. Probably the most popular thing to do is the wineries. A number is great companies have wine tours. For us beer drinkers though, there’s some nice breweries to visit. This is the farming capital of NS and I recommend a visit during the apple blossom festival. It’s great doing a u-pick for apples as well. There is some excellent restaurants in Wolfville and Kentville, some small theatre companies, and world famous scallops in Digby. There’s great parks and hikes in, for example, Blomidon and Cape Split.
3. White Point Hiking Trail
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 50 reviews
Reviewed By JFLeB325 - Moncton, Canada
We came here today for a quick walk. What a great place for a hike. There are no signs here. Park at the wharf and follow the rocky road. You will not regret it.
4. Gaff Point Trail
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 34 reviews
Reviewed By Justtravelling4 - Halifax, Canada
We thoroughly enjoyed hiking this trail, it really had a little bit of everything. A beautiful beach, stunning water views, and stunning treks through wooded areas. The walk through the fir trees was one of my favourite portions of the trail, the smell was amazing. There are some exposed roots in places and the walk across the beach rocks is a little challenging on the ankles, but overall a pretty easy to moderate trail. I recommend walking the farm land area over the hill instead of the entire beach as it gives you a break from the sea rocks. The owners have it marked and don’t mind as long as the horses are not in the field. Once you get to the loop we went to the right first. It means you finish on the water view side of the trail. The trail in total including walking Hirtle Beach is about 6.6 km. We finished the entire trail in about 90 mins, this included stopping for pics etc. I highly recommend for anyone of any age, definitely a trail I’d return to.
5. Point Pleasant Park
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 830 reviews
Have a picnic with sweeping ocean views or hike through 186 acres of forest in one of Halifax's most cherished parks.
Reviewed By nroe - Brackley Beach, Canada
Halifax residents should be very proud of this gem of a green space at the tip of the city. Wonderful walks, great vistas, lots of parking, Dog friendly and lots of off leash areas for the furry pals. Bouncing back nicely from the hurricane damage of Juan.
6. Halifax Public Gardens
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 3,989 reviews
Welcome to Halifax’s greatest natural and national treasure and most visited site in Halifax, Nova Scotia– a timeless oasis in an ever changing world. A beautiful Victorian-inspired garden open to the public since 1867. 16 acres in the Victorian Gardenesque style; Scroll beds shaped in an E for the reigning monarch, Serpentine beds, raised carpet beds and a profusion of colour through the artistry of our Gardeners. The Victorian Gardens were all about symmetry and there is grand harmony throughout. The majestic trees, 240 varieties, nurture and shelter and many are original. The Victorians were all about education and introduced many new species to Nova Scotia. Check our What's Blooming on our website to discover the highlights of each month. Horticultural Hall, circa 1837, the original meeting place of the Nova Scotia Horticultural Society houses a coffee shop Due to COVID-19, events are limited, our Information Desk and daily tours are not operating. Please Social Distance.
Reviewed By thevellas2019
relaxing place to walk and or sit on a bench, quiet and beautiful, ponds and ducks galore with the flowers in full bloom, so pleasant and totally unexpected in the heart of the city, across from Lord Nelson hotel which made things very convenient for me, also only a 15 min walk to the harbour front,
7. Shubenacadie River
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 10 reviews
8. Cabot Trail
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 1,759 reviews
One of the most magnificent loop drives in North America treats visitors to the spectacular scenery of the Cape Breton Highlands.
Reviewed By Lets_Cruise_13 - Ottawa, Canada
On Tuesday August 20th, 2019, leaving Baddeck my wife and I drove the Cabot Trail which is a scenic highway completed in 1932 in northern Victoria County and Inverness County on Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia. The Cabot Trail is 298 km or 185 miles in length and completes a loop around the northern tip of the island, passing along and through the Cape Breton Highlands National Park (the Park). That morning, at the Park’s East Gate we stopped to purchase two $7.80 adult day passes to drive through the Park. At the booth, the Park employee provided us with information on what to look for and other fishing villages to visit. The western and eastern sections of the Park follow the rugged coastline, with views of the ocean. The southwestern section passes through the Margaree River valley before passing along Bras d'Or Lake. Driving the Trail, we stopped at the many lookout spots in and outside the Park, such as Lakies Head, Neil’s Harbour, Rusty Anchor Restaurant in Pleasant Bay, Chéticamp and in Inverness to take photos of mountainous plateau, ocean views and fishing villages during our scenic drive through stunning landscape. What a marvelous day it was for travelling! For nature lovers, hikers or just anyone wishing to visit Cape Breton Island and the surrounding areas, the Cabot Trail and the Cape Breton Highlands National Park is a must to see as it provides beautiful scenes. We would recommend it to family and friends.
9. Annapolis Royal Historic Gardens
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 733 reviews
ESCAPE from the hectic pace of everyday life with a visit to Annapolis Royal’s beautiful Historic Gardens!In a beautiful setting overlooking a tidal river valley, the 17 acre Historic Gardens is a premiere Nova Scotia attraction showcasing gardening methods, designs and materials representing more than four hundred years of local history. Highlights include a Rose collection of more than 270 cultivars, an Acadian House representing pre-deportation 1671 time period, and much more…
Reviewed By BenLar137 - Calgary, Canada
We visited early October, and so, while there were flowers, the blossoms were not at their peak. Also, it was a little early in the autumn colour season, and so the leaves had just started turning. BUT, we had a fantastic visit nonetheless! The Acadian cottage is quite charming, the main garden spaces were still green and meticulously maintained, with a few blossoms still popping. For us, we were most impressed by their garden innovation section, where we learned about several techniques that we could use in our own garden. Their statue collection in the garden was also amazing. Staff were pleasant and helpful, and we would say this is a must-see, extremely highly recommended attraction for this fabulous part of Nova Scotia.
10. Arisaig Provincial Park
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 41 reviews
Located west of Antigonish, this park was created to protect the many fossil beds located in the cliffs overlooking its beach.
Reviewed By Joby_lake - Ottery St. Mary, United Kingdom
Our one full day in the area found us exploring the Antigonish area, especially Arisaig Provincial Park and Cape George. The weather was reasonably warm with some clouds around and gave us good visibility for the views. The drive to the park was an easy one and the parking even easier as there was very few people around. Mid September appears to be quite a quiet time to go. There is a small circular walk with gentle inclines which is a good way to get out and stretch the legs if, like us, you have spent the previous week touring and sitting down a lot in a car. The autumnal air made for a pleasant walk. We didn’t see any animals, only heard the odd bird. There were plenty of colourful mushrooms appearing on the damp floor. If you are in the area and the weather is good, do go and visit. If you are lucky you may find a fossil or two, or sea glass, or maybe even a mineral or two on the beach.
