Afternoon: HOTEL CHECK-IN: Following your independent arrival to Halifax proceed to the hotel for check in, available from 4:00pm. PROGRAM REGISTRATION: Following check-in, meet your group leader in the lobby to register beginning at 5:00pm. Receive your information packet containing an up-to-date schedule and relevant information that we be reviewed during our orientation session following dinner. Please be aware that program activities and scheduled times could change due to local circumstances. In the event of any changes, we will alert you as quickly as possible.

Dinner: Dinner at the hotel.

Evening: ORIENTATION: Meet program hosts and fellow participants during a program overview session. We’ll briefly review the program itinerary and schedule providing you with the remainder to explore the neighborhood, or simply relax in the hotel. If you arrive late, your information packet will be left at the hotel front desk for you. The following day you will begin an in-depth exploration of the Maritimes. Few places remain so enchantingly disparate as the eastern edges of Canada – Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and New Brunswick. This area was finally settled by western European immigrants – principally, Scottish, Irish, English and French, creating a magical mosaic of cultures, both old and new. With local experts, learn about the rich history and culture of this region from folklore music, rugged coastline, remote fishing villages and Acadian farms, to 21st- century cities.

Lodging: Atlantica Hotel Halifax

Meals Included: Dinner

Breakfast: Breakfast at the hotel.

Morning: PRESENTATION: A local historian will introduce you to the history of this city. FIELD TRIP: At Halifax Citadel National Historic Site, explore the grounds of the fort with a local expert and hear about the major role it has played in the development of Halifax and the importance of the city as a major North American port. The present Citadel, completed in 1856, is the fourth fort to occupy the hill overlooking Halifax Harbour. It was established to guard against a land-based attack from the United States. This massive, star-shaped masonry structure is an excellent example of a 19th-century bastion fortification.

Lunch: Lunch on your own to explore local fare.

Afternoon: FREE TIME: Following lunch, enjoy some free time to explore the downtown harbor area. Walking through central Halifax, you will see evidence of the long history of Nova Scotia’s capital city. Halifax has always been a significant port as well as a site of extreme strategic importance for the Atlantic coast. Today, Halifax is a busy international port, boasting the second-largest natural harbor in the world, and its maritime heritage blends easily with modern-day business and commerce. It is the center of many maritime activities, particularly along its busy, scenic waterfront. FIELD TRIP: Explore Pier 21, “Canada’s Ellis Island,” with a local guide including the Exhibition Hall. From the 1920s to the 1970s, Pier 21 was Canada’s “front door” to over a million immigrants, Home Children, wartime evacuees, refugees, returning troops and war brides. Pier 21 is now a National Historic Site and a monument to Canada’s immigration experience. By viewing the interactive displays, virtual projections and many fascinating images, you will gain insight into how immigration to Canada enriched the country’s social and cultural landscape and changed a nation forever.

Dinner: Dinner at a local restaurant overlooking beautiful Halifax Harbour.

Evening: FREE EVENING: Enjoy the evening to explore on your own or relax at your hotel.

Lodging: Atlantica Hotel Halifax

Meals Included: Breakfast, Dinner

Breakfast: Breakfast at the hotel.

Morning: EXCURSION: This morning, travel to Peggy’s Cove, one of the most picturesque and charming fishing villages on the East Coast with its rustic, weathered wharves balanced on huge granite boulders. The town is named after the sole survivor of a schooner shipwrecked on Halibut Rock off Lighthouse Point – Peggy (Margaret) of the Cove. The most well-known lighthouse in Canada, and one of the most photographed lighthouses in the world, was built here in 1914. Positioned on a granite ledge, it serves as the local post office. In 1998, Swissair Flight 111 tragically crashed into the ocean off Peggy’s Cove. Victims of the crash are interred at a memorial site in a peaceful, park-like setting. FIELD TRIP: Historic walk of Lunenburg. Explore historic Lunenburg’s narrow streets, visit its historic churches and examine the Victorian architecture of the Old Town. The town’s picture-postcard harbor, its colorful waterfront and the homes of flamboyant sea captains reflect its seafaring heritage. Many of these beautifully maintained homes were on the original town plan, established in 1753, the first British colonial settlement in Nova Scotia outside Halifax. Later, a vibrant economy was built on farming, fishing, shipbuilding and trade, particularly with the West Indies. The renowned fishing and racing schooner Bluenose was built here in 1912, as was the replica Bluenose II in 1963.

Lunch: Dine on your own, and enjoy one of the many local harborside establishments.

Afternoon: FREE TIME: Enjoy free time in Lunenburg this afternoon before returning to Halifax.

Dinner: Dinner in Halifax.

Lodging: Atlantica Hotel Halifax

Meals Included: Breakfast, Dinner

Hector Heritage Quay/Traditional entertainment/Alexander Graham Bell National Historic Site

Breakfast: Breakfast at the hotel.

Morning: Travel by coach to Baddeck. EXCURSION: En route to Baddeck, we will stop at the the Hector Heritage Quay, located on the scenic Pictou waterfront. The site offers visitors a unique glimpse into the journey of early Scottish settlers to Nova Scotia and their life in the new world. The proud centerpiece of the award-winning attraction is a full-scale reproduction of the tall ship Hector that is renowned for bringing the first wave of Scottish immigrants to Nova Scotia in 1773. It was this historic voyage that established Pictou as the "Birthplace of New Scotland". The site also features a working blacksmith shop, rigger's shop, carpentry shop, resident artist's studio, and Ship Hector Company Store.

Lunch: Lunch en route.

Afternoon: Following lunch, enjoy a lively, toe-tapping performance provided by a local group. FIELD TRIP: Continue on to Cape Breton Island to the town of Baddeck and visit the Alexander Graham Bell National Historic Site. Discover how air and water captured Alexander Graham Bell's imagination. Explore the amazing life of the man who invented the telephone and his many accomplishments, including his work to bridge the world between sound and silence by teaching the deaf to speak.

Dinner: Dinner at the inn.

Evening: FREE EVENING: Explore the village of Baddeck on your own.

Lodging: Lynwood Inn

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Cape Breton Highlands National Park/Rug hooking demonstration/Free time in Baddeck

Breakfast: Breakfast at the inn.

Morning: FIELD TRIP: Cape Breton Highlands National Park/Cabot Trail. Explore the Cabot Trail and Cape Breton Highlands National Park as you journey through this spectacularly scenic area. The Cabot Trail is a paved road that loops 185 miles around the northern tip of Cape Breton. This remote rugged area passes through many charming Celtic communities, each with breathtaking scenery and unforgettable hospitality. Cape Breton Highlands National Park conserves and protects the majestic highlands and coastal wilderness stretching across the northern tip of Cape Breton Island between the Gulf of St. Lawrence and the Atlantic Ocean. EXCURSION: Stop in Cheticamp, a coastal town famous for its rug-hooking tradition and enjoy a demonstration. The internationally renowned Cheticamp hooked rug enjoys a colorful history. Their popularity is due to the perfect workmanship, rich pastel colors, diversity of design and the distinguished owners who display them with pride of history and talent.

Lunch: Picnic lunch en route.

Afternoon: FREE TIME: Following your return to Baddeck in late afternoon, enjoy free time to explore this quaint town.

Dinner: Enjoy a traditional Lobster supper in Baddeck

Evening: FREE EVENING: The evening is free to explore on your own or relax at the inn.

Lodging: Lynwood Inn

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: Breakfast at the inn.

Morning: FIELD TRIP: The Fortress Louisbourg National Historic Site. Explore this breathtaking historic site with a Parks Canada interpreter to discover the history of Nova Scotia and the battle between the French and the English for control of North America. Founded by the French in 1763 and abandoned by the British in 1768, Louisbourg was a place of great importance in North America. It was the administrative capital of French holdings in Atlantic Canada and one of France’s key economic and military centers in the New World. It was also a center for trade with France, the French West Indies, Lower Canada (now Québec), Acadia and New England. Over 100 trading vessels a year sailed in and out of the harbor. This site is North America’s largest historical reconstruction. Unlike most colonial settlements, no modern city was built here; thus, the site preserves a massive archaeological time capsule.

Lunch: Lunch on site at Hotel de la Marine.

Afternoon: Travel to Stellarton.

Dinner: Dinner en route.

Evening: Mid evening arrival; check into hotel in Stellarton.

Lodging: Holiday Inn Express

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: Breakfast at the hotel.

Morning: Travel by ferry to Prince Edward Island. The relaxing ride allows you to breathe in the bracing sea air and photograph the picturesque views. Once at Wood Island, travel on to Charlottetown. Gain an overview of Prince Edward Island from a presentation on the coach by your Group Leader. PERFORMANCE: Participate in a presentation of traditional Scottish music and dancing, called a ceilidh. The word “ceilidh” derives from the Gaelic word meaning “visit.” Enjoy lively music provided by local musicians.

Lunch: Lunch in Summerside.

Afternoon: FIELD TRIP and LECTURE: Province House National Historic Site. At Province House National Historic Site, discover the significant role this building has played in the history of Canada. The Charlottetown Conference was held here in 1864. The delegates were driven by fears of American expansionism and by Britain's growing desire that its North American colonies should look after themselves. Yet these men were gripped by the idea of a new, independent nation. After further conferences in Halifax and Quebec, the delegates hammered out the terms of Confederation, and Canada was born on July 1, 1867. Province House is also the seat of the Prince Edward Island Provincial Legislature since 1847. Look for the tax record, a path in the stones of the main floor where farmer's hobnailed boots etched a valley in the floor as they walked to the old tax office. A spool of cotton ribbon on a table in the library was once used to tie up bundles of documents, thereby coining the term "red tape". And as you enter Province House, look down at the stone step, worn in the middle from the weight of so many people entering the building. FIELD TRIP: Walking field trip and presentation on historic Charlottetown by a local historian.

Dinner: Dinner at a local restaurant.

Evening: Free evening to continue your exploration of Charlottetown.

Lodging: The Hotel on Pownal

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Prince Edward Island History/PEI Preserve Company/Green Gables National Historic Site/Dalvay by the Sea/Prince Edward Island National Park

Breakfast: Breakfast at the hotel.

Morning: PRESENTATION: A local historian will discuss the early settlement of Prince Edward Island as well as the island’s rich natural and cultural heritage. En route to Green Gables, stop at the Prince Edward Island Preserve Company. FIELD TRIP: Green Gables National Historic Site. Parks Canada staff will present the history of this site and its significance to Canadian literary history. Spend time at Green Gables, the famed fictional home of red-haired Anne Shirley, the heroine of Lucy Maud Montgomery’s classic 1908 novel, Anne of Green Gables. Discover the history of the house as well as biographical information about Montgomery. Green Gables, part of Lucy Maud Montgomery’s Cavendish National Historic Site, has become famous around the world as the inspiration for the setting in Lucy Maud Montgomery's classic tale of fiction, Anne of Green Gables. In real life, this farm was the home of David Jr. and Margaret Macneill, who were cousins of Montgomery's grandfather. Shortly after her death in 1942, Lucy Maud Montgomery was recognized by the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada as being a person of national historic significance, and a monument and plaque were erected at Green Gables in 1948.

Lunch: Lunch at Dalvay by the Sea

Afternoon: FIELD TRIP: Following lunch, explore the fascinating background of historic Dalvay by the Sea, a National Historic Site of Canada. This elegant Queen Anne Revival home was built in 1895 by a Scottish-American oil tycoon. FIELD TRIP and LECTURE: Prince Edward Island National Park. Located along the beautiful north shore of the island, the park has long stretches of sand dunes and beaches at its eastern end. The park is a dynamic system of shifting sand carried by wind and waves, and is the finest example of sand-dune ecosystems in Atlantic Canada. The park also contains heritage cultural sites, notably Green Gables and Dalvay-by-the-Sea National Historic Site. In 1998, ten miles of the Greenwich Peninsula were added to the park to protect unique dune formations, rare plants and animals as well as archaeological findings dating back 10,000 years. At the Dunelands Trail area of Prince Edward Island National Park, you will discover its diverse habitats. Known for its wetlands and forests, the park provides a home for a variety of plants and animals, but more for its beaches, sandstone cliffs sand dunes, barrier islands and sand pits. The coastal area is inhabited by the endangered Piping Plover, whose nesting sites are protected. Enjoy time to walk along the beach.

Dinner: Dine on your own, and enjoy one of the many Charlottetown restaurants.

Evening: FREE EVENING: Opportunity to attend a theatre presentation at Confederation Centre of the Arts

Lodging: The Hotel on Pownal

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch

Breakfast: Breakfast at the hotel.

Morning: FIELD TRIP and LECTURE: Hopewell Rocks. A Parks Canada expert will discuss the significance of this area. Over thousands of years, the Bay of Fundy's mighty tides have shaped the landscape of coastal New Brunswick. The Hopewell Rocks are also called the Flowerpot Rocks and created by the clash of continents, carved by melting glaciers and then sculpted by the highest tides in the world.

Lunch: Hopewell Rocks Interpretive Centre

Afternoon: FIELD TRIP: Tidal walk with Parks Canada naturalist at Hopewell Rocks. Walk the ocean floor (weather and tides permitting) with naturalists at low tide out to the Hopewell Rocks to learn about New Brunswick's most famous geological feature. Travel through Fundy National Park along the New Brunswick coast with its impressive views of seaside cliffs and colorful forests. Travel to Saint John, check into the hotel.

Dinner: Dinner at the hotel.

Evening: FREE EVENING: Enjoy the evening to explore Saint John on your own or relax at the hotel.

Lodging: Delta Brunswick

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Legacy of Loyalists and Shipbuilders/Quaco Museum/St. Martins Sea Caves and Tidal Harbor/Fundy Trail

Breakfast: Breakfast at the hotel.

Morning: LECTURE: Discover the legacy of Loyalists and Shipbuilders at the Quaco Museum in a session conducted by the curator and a local genealogist. Learn about the arrival of the Loyalists and the shipbuilding industry that at one time made St. Martins the second wealthiest community in the British Empire. Take an opportunity to explore the museum exhibits and archives. LECTURE: A second presentation explains the Bay of Fundy Tides, the highest in the world.

Lunch: Lunch at the Tidal Watch Inn

Afternoon: FIELD TRIP: St. Martins/Bay of Fundy. Visit the Sea Caves and Tidal Harbour, followed by a historic walk of the village. Discover St. Martins' quiet beaches, cliffs, caves, lighthouses and covered bridges while learning about the tides, geology and history of the area with a local expert. Marvel at the highest tides in the world sweeping in and out each day, carving sea stacks and caves into the rugged red cliffs that surround the village. EXCURSION: Explore the Fundy Trail with your local guide.

Dinner: Special farewell dinner at Tidal Watch Inn.

Evening: Following dinner, return to Saint John, overnight.

Lodging: Delta Brunswick

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: Breakfast at the hotel.

Morning: Independent departures.

Meals Included: Breakfast