One of the things I love most about living abroad is getting to see much more of a country than I ever could on a more traditional vacation, and even though Canada is huge, I’m still setting my sights on visiting each and every province and territory while we’re here. So, to that end, we recently spent a week exploring the Maritime provinces of Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and New Brunswick.

Of course, the Maritimes were high on our to-visit list for many reasons, including but not limited to famous lighthouses, rocky beaches, and vastly changing tides, but there were still many surprises for us to discover during our trip! Here are some of our favorite things we ate, drank, and did while wandering around in Eastern Canada:

Nova Scotia

Probably the most famous of the three Maritime Provinces, we opted to fly in and out of Nova Scotia’s capital and largest city: Halifax. Prior to our visit, I think the only thing I really knew about Halifax was that there was a large explosion here in the early 1900s. However, I now have a plethora of opinions about this coastal city and a whole host of recommendations for anyone who visits in the future!

Good eats:

If you know me, you know seafood is not really my jam, so I was thinking I might be underwhelmed by Nova Scotia’s cuisine. Luckily, that wasn’t the case at all! One of the most famous dishes associated with Halifax is the curious Halifax Donair. Donair, doner, kebabs, or whatever you want to call them are popular in many places around the world, very often as a late-night, post-drinking meal, but the ones in Halifax definitely hit different. It might be the sweetened condensed milk in the sauce or maybe it’s the general vibes coming from the locals who hang around the most popular take-out joints, but if you’re going to Halifax, you absolutely must experience this delicacy for yourself!

Although I typically prefer savory dishes/meals as opposed to sweet snacks/desserts, I can’t not mention Nova Scotia’s Moon Mist ice cream. It was on my list of local foods to try as a unique swirl of grape, banana, and bubblegum ice cream specific to this region, but honestly, I thought, “oh, that’ll be nice to taste, but it probably won’t be my favorite”. But I was wrong! I loved it! I have no idea if the ice cream quality there was just superior or if that seemingly random combination is just something special, but I absolutely loved carrying my brightly colored ice cream cone with me down the waterfront feeling very much like a kid enjoying the last days of summer vacation!

Great drinks:

Trying out several local breweries has now become a habit of ours on longer trips, and Halifax did not disappoint. In fact, we were spoilt for choice and really only tried a small portion of all the brewery options in the city. One of our favorite spots was a newly opened Beer Garden from Good Robot Brewing. Their beers were really good and the atmosphere was perfect. Another place we really liked was Propeller Brewing Company. They had flight boards in the shape of propeller blades (so on theme!), and in addition to a beautiful patio, they also had board games and an arcade to enjoy while you sip.

Fun activities:

The most iconic thing we did while in Nova Scotia was probably our time spent at Peggy’s Cove. One of the most photographed places in Canada, Peggy’s Cove Lighthouse and its surroundings were absolutely beautiful. Don’t forget your jacket though because even on a hot August day, the wind and fog really cut deep (I truly felt bad for those wearing shorts and tank tops)! Another fun (and cheap) activity to do in Halifax is to take the ferry from the waterfront across the water to Dartmouth for a different view of the city. The ferry is part of the public transport system, so it was super easy and convenient.

Prince Edward Island

Perhaps the most idyllic Canadian province, Prince Edward Island is the setting for the classic Anne of Green Gables stories. Driving onto the island (across the second longest bridge in Canada), it really felt like we stepped back in time. Old wooden farmhouses are aplenty on PEI, and we even saw a horse-and-buggy crossing sign. If “charming” is something you’re looking for in a vacation destination, PEI might be the perfect place for you!

Good eats:

We only spent one day on the island, so our meals were somewhat limited. However, we did stumble upon a really cool place called the Prince Edward Island Preserve Company. Part store, part restaurant, part tourist attraction; it really checked off a lot of boxes! They serve several PEI specialties like seafood bubbly bake, potato pie, and raspberry cream cheese pie, and you can enjoy these treats in what looks like a dining room straight out of someone’s grandma’s house. There were quilts decorating the walls, hummingbird feeders at every picture window, and enough wooden furniture to make me think about fire safety. But my favorite part was definitely the walk around the gardens – so pretty!

Great drinks:

PEI is definitely what I’d call “rural”, but luckily, there are still several places you can go to try out some local brews, especially in Charlottetown (the capital). We opted for Craft Beer Corner, where we sampled some of Upstreet Craft Brewing’s beers. The beers were really good and the bathroom had a disco party option, so what more could you possibly ask for? We also considered checking out Deep Roots Distillery, which makes their own liquors from local ingredients, but unfortunately, we just didn’t have the time. There’s always something that gets moved to the next-time list!

Fun activities:

A lot of our day on Prince Edward Island was spent driving around to the different sights. After checking out the capital, we went to Cavendish beach/dunes/cliffs to get a little hiking in, but my favorite activity of the day (aside from the general windows-down, Canadian-music-blasting, road trip vibe) was watching the sunset on the western side of the island. With the help of Google maps and a sun-tracking app (which showed us exactly when and where the sun would set that day), we carefully selected and made our way to Seacow Head Cove and watched nature do its thing from the comfort of two very picturesque Muskoka chairs. Pure PEI Perfection!

New Brunswick

As a non-Canadian, the only thing that initially came to mind for New Brunswick was Brunswick stew, which as it turns out is from Brunswick County, Virginia…so prior to our trip, I had a bit of research to do on this one. And mostly because it was totally unknown to us, we actually chose to spend more than half our trip based in Moncton (the largest city of NB), and I’m so glad we did because it allowed us to see several different sides of this diverse and (in my opinion) underrepresented province!

Good eats:

We had a lot of delicious food in New Brunswick, including a lobster roll from the lobster capital of the world, scallops fresh from the Bay of Fundy, and another Maritime specialty: garlic fingers! However, our absolute favorite dish came from Tide & Boar Gastropub. It was a burrata and tomato appetizer, and we both strongly considered ordering another (which is unheard of for Tucker). In fact, the Gastropub was so good that we later went to Tide & Boar Brewing just to try more of their food and drinks. Speaking of…  

Great drinks:

I swear, I’m not being paid to hype up Tide & Boar, but they also had the best beers of the trip! Their watermelon sour was quite possibly the best sour I’ve ever had, and through multiple flights and multiple visits (plus a couple of free samples from the super friendly staff), we were able to try everything they had on tap, and it was all amazing. Tucker even made sure to compliment their brew master lol. Another amazing brewery we visited in NB was Holy Whale Brewery out in Alma. Holy Whale got its name from the old church that now houses the brewery, and the stained-glass windows alone are enough of a reason to visit. Luckily, the beers were also great!

Fun activities:

The main reason we wanted to spend several days in New Brunswick was to make sure we’d be able to experience both the high and low tides of the Bay of Fundy. This bay boasts the world’s greatest tidal change at over 50ft (16m), and it was definitely a once-in-a-lifetime experience. At low tide, you get to walk around on what is essentially the ocean floor, and if you want, you can find a place to sit, and over the course of an hour or two, watch the water level rise by several feet right in front of your eyes. So cool!

And there we have it! Another amazing trip in the books and another part of the world explored! Until next time, Maritimes! Cheers!