Nova Scotia
The Best of Nova Scotia: Highlands, History and Halifax
Program No. 23038RJ
Explore the seaside villages of Nova Scotia from Halifax to the Highlands to see whales and puffins, and experience the Celtic and French roots of this spectacular region.
Participant Reviews
Based on 37 Reviews
SHOWING
This is agreat trip even with a lot of time on the bus. Gorgeous part of the world with an interesting history.
— Review left October 8, 2025
Excellent program, with an interesting and full itinerary covering many different areas of the province and historical events. The scenery was beautiful and varied.
— Review left September 23, 2025
The Best of Nova Scotia was a very enjoyable and well organized tour. The music at Ceilidh, whale watching, natural beauty of Cape Breton fulfilled my hopes. The historic site and the food were also great. Our leader Linda kept everything moving smoothly with a lovely smile.
— Review left September 21, 2025
The Nova Scotia trip is a wonderful way to dip your toes into three different cultures that make up the province today.
— Review left September 16, 2025
Colleen and our driver, Trevor worked so well together! They were the best!
— Review left September 7, 2025
This was a wonderful tour, and I will definitely look to Road Scholar for other tours of interest.
— Review left August 11, 2025
I can't say enough good things about my amazing Road Scholar tour in Nova Scotia. The country is beautiful and full of interesting history. The other participants were very friendly and made the experience even better and our leader, Margo, was positive and full of energy. I wouldn't change a thing!
— Review left August 9, 2025
A good overview of the Nova Scotia Scottish and French Acadia history. This tour was beneficial for getting a sense of the breadth of Nova Scotia past and present.
— Review left July 24, 2025
We really enjoyed this trip! Colleen is an outstanding guide! She is full of knowledge, energy, and great stories! She made sure everyone was well taken care of. I especially enjoyed seeing where my ancestors lived in Lunenburg and saw their names on the Fisherman's Memorial. We saw the beauty of Nova Scotia, the history, culture, nature, and wildlife. A very wonderful, well-rounded trip. Unfortunately we didn't see whales due to the fog and rolling Bay of Fundy but that was out of our control. Thank you again, for a great trip! (Note - I didn't see an option to give a star rating. This is a 5 star trip!)
— Review left July 17, 2025
Of 15 Road Scholar trips my husband and I have enjoyed, I can now name a favorite "top-of-the-list" experience. This program about Nova Scotia: Highlands, History, and Halifax is the best. Every part of the trip exceeded our expectations, including our group leader, Colleen, our coach driver, Jed, all the presenters, and all our fellow travelers. There is so much to experience in Nova Scotia, that the trip could easily have been extended another day or two!
— Review left July 15, 2025
This was a great trip - lots of things to do and places to see. Even the bus rides turned out to be a great part of the trip, which we were concerned about when first reading the itinerary. We learned a lot about the very interesting history of this part of Canada and its interconnectedness with US History of the eras. Group leader was AMAZING. Highly recommend this trip.
— Review left October 13, 2024
This program was a wonderful way to see Nova Scotia and experience its varied landscapes. The program offers many diverse experiences, from excellent whale watching to toe tapping Celtic music. Our tour leader, Colleen, was exceptional; personable, knowledgeable and efficient! Colleen and the entire tour was delightful in every respect.
— Review left September 24, 2024
Great program to learn about and see Nova Scotia. Beautiful scenery! Lot of history which was very interesting. There is a lot of time on the bus, which is pretty accurately described in the itinerary. Our leader Colleen McNab was excellent. I would recommend any tour with her leading.
— Review left September 10, 2024
Excellent program about Nova Scotia. The itinerary was packed with a variety of learning opportunities presented by terrific local experts. Therefore, the days were long with much time in the bus…and well worth it. Colleen McNab was a superlative group leader.
— Review left September 8, 2024
We had been looking forward to touring Nova Scotia for years and the trip did not disappoint. From visiting historical sites and going whale watching, to enjoying amazing scenery and learning about the Acadians and the Scottish Gaels and the Bay of Fundy tides, it was an excellent experience.
— Review left August 14, 2024
I have recently returned from The Best of Nova Scotia Highlands, History and Halifax tour and do not know where to begin in describing this tour. For it being my initial tour, RS has set the bar very high for any other tour group to match or even attempt to exceed. From the tour guide, Deanna Curtis and our bus driver Don, to the information presented by their knowledgable instructors, to the opportunities provided for additional learning through their personnal experiences and the unexpected by the contributors unknowingly -whales out doing themselves right off the side of your boat- to the landscapes and the many beautiful people you meet along the way. Learning and hearing of their ancestry and of the progress these people of Cape Breten have made as well as the Grand Pre area and its people and their struggles is very educational. I can not say enough about this tour, you just have to see it to appreciate the land and her people.
— Review left August 13, 2024
Quick but thorough overview of the history and culture of Nova Scotia, one of the oldest European settlements in North America. Informative lectures and guides make this an enjoyable and fascinating tour.
— Review left August 6, 2024
I learned so much interesting history about Nova Scotia and its people, including present-day Acadians, Gaelic, and MikMaq (First Nation) people. A great trip.
— Review left July 20, 2024
Nova Scotia is a lovely and interesting place with a very friendly and welcoming population. This program hits many of the recognized highlights of the province and is a good sampling of a wonderful piece of the world.
— Review left July 14, 2024
Took the Nova Scotia tour. Wow! Fantastic program. Learned and did a lot. Recommend taking this tour. Who knows, I may move here now.
— Review left October 9, 2023
This tour was an excellent introduction to the history, peoples & cultures, and geography & geology of Nova Scotia. I highly recommend it to anyone interested in exploring maritime Canada.
— Review left October 8, 2023
Loved this program. Our group leader, Lerenda Donovan is the best...helpful, knowledgeable, adaptable, caring and has a great sense of humor. Our bus driver, Josh, meshed with the group well. He's a very competent, safe driver and was very helpful. Our lunch stop at the Old Orchard Inn was great.
— Review left September 25, 2023
Outstanding leadership made our first experience with Road Scholar a perfection! Learning the history of Nova Scotia & Cape Breton through the eyes of our presenters was extremely impressive.
— Review left September 24, 2023
For this being our first Road Scholar adventure, we were very pleased on how all aspects of our trip were handled. Even with a pending hurricane involved, Road Scholar stayed on top of things!
— Review left September 24, 2023
Nice trip. Philippe was an above-excellent travel guide. Jim, our bus driver, was outstanding.
— Review left September 19, 2023
Wonderful experience! The Nova Scotian people were warm and friendly everywhere, especially our expert instructors. I had no idea all the history this place holds. Amazing.
— Review left October 9, 2022
After getting to know my daughter-in-law who lived and was raised, schooled, and worked in Nova Scotia for the first 48 years of her life, I asked: Why is Nova Scotia NOT part of the United States? She said that I would have to go to Nova Scotia to really learn that. Now I know. What a beautiful and historically interesting land. I always learn so much on my Road Scholar tours.
— Review left September 18, 2022
Travel with Road Scholar is easy to arrange, fun, and offers all kinds of opportunities to explore, to meet other travelers from other parts of the county and even from other countries. Its focus is on educating the traveler about as many aspects of life in a particular country/geography as possible. It's just a wonderful way to travel. I highly recommend it!! I expect to be on another adventure in 2023.
— Review left September 17, 2022
This is an excellent well balanced program with stimulating lectures to accompany on sight experiences. I would also recommend adding at least two days on your own to take in the liveliness of Halifax, especially it’s vibrant waterfront scene, fabulous immigration museum and farmers craft and seaport market
— Review left September 16, 2022
A great program for those wishing to learn more about one of the Maritime areas of our neighbor to the north. Comprehensive coverage of Nova Scotia literally went from one end of the island to the other with a mix of topics and activities including a great whale watching trip.
— Review left September 11, 2022
Wonderful variety of adventures. Super leader, Tracy, kept us busy and interested. The Digby Pines Resort was my favorite lodging. The restaurant on Halifax waterfront, McKelvies Delishes Fishes Dishes was the best service. We visited two UNESCO world heritage sites, Grand Pre and Lunenbourg.
Don’t miss live music in Baddeck, “Kay-lee” is the pronunciation. Spelling is unfamiliar, so I won’t try. We saw ocean, boats, lighthouses, whales, sunsets, green hills, cliffs, fog, gardens, birds, bees, historical costumes and properties. The weather was not cold, I hardly wore my sweater. I needed my rain coat and sun hat. The bus was leisure travel, only 22 attendees. Our driver, Lane, was very qualified and friendly.
Some Halifax hills were hard to walk on.
— Review left August 16, 2022
This was a meaningful in depth exploration of an area filled with many diverse cultures, fascinating history, and unbelievable natural beauty...not to mention incredible food! My head is still spinning with the plethora v of experiences in a place not far from home yet previously unknown to me.
— Review left August 14, 2022
Wonderful trip! Traci was fantastic and she worked like a mule to keep things going. The people on the trip were fun to be with, the food was excellent, and the hotel accommodations were very good. Some people on the trip wanted 'newer' accommodations, but I thought the hotels were charming -- rooms had coffee makers, most had a fridge, and all were were clean and sufficient.
— Review left July 25, 2022
Nova Scotia is breathtaking. The tour director was wonderful and more people should experience Atlantic Canada.
— Review left July 17, 2022
On Your Feet in Beautiful Nova Scotia!
— Review left October 13, 2019
This was a very well-organized RS program with a very knowledgeable trip leader and terrific speakers. We went to a number of museums, a whale watching cruise, a Cape Breton musical performance, an outdoor presentation about the indigenous people of the Cape Breton area, and great scenery as we drove along the coast of Cape Breton. We had a great time!
— Review left August 26, 2019
What a wonderful program! So many interesting and diverse experiences! It was far more than sightseeing at a few places; I feel like I learned about and experienced so many different aspects of Nova Scotia, and am very grateful for the opportunity. It was very comprehensive without being overwhelming.
— Review left July 21, 2019