New England -Canada excursions

[buckster]

We are leaving 9/7 on the Amsterdam, which docks in Halifax, Quebec City, Bar Harbor, Sydney, Saguenay, Newport, Gloucester, Charlottetown and Montreal. We are interested in excursions - your favorites and those not worth taking. Did you book through the cruise line or independently?

Thanks.

[MercedMike]

We had some great excursions in most of those ports. Check our report at Canada/New England Cruise (http://www.elite.net/~thehalls/maasdam.html) for some shore excursions that we recommend. Some were independent, some were ship's excursions.

If the Bay of Fundy and the world's highest tides interest you, we definitely recommend the tour guide we used there. And the Lulu Lobster Boat in Bar Harbor was really great!!

Have a GREAT cruise!

[RuthC]

I might be of some help if I knew what your interests are. Do you like history? Shopping? Museums? Active excursions?
I've done the NYC-Montreal cruise twice; most of the ports are the same.

In Newport you may want to do the Mansions. You can purchase a combination ticket that allows you to see several at a reduced price. I recommend The Breakers, Marble House, and Rosecliff.
It's not too far to walk to the International Tennis Hall of Fame.

In Halifax I took the Duck Tour on a rainy, foggy morning. I still enjoyed it, but would have preferred better weather. Later that day I took the Titanic Tour and enjoyed it tremendously, even in the rain. It includes entry to the Maritime Museum, and allows sufficient time there.

In Sydney I was fortunate to sail Bras d'Ors Lake on a crystal-clear, warm day. Beautiful.

The Ann of Green Gables tour in Charlottetown was a good tour. Besides touring the house we also rode to the north shore, stopped in a fishing village, and made the mandatory shop-stop at a place that sells yummy jams/jellies laced with potent potables.

Hope this helped.

[BllvAnn]

If you are a history buff, Halifax is a haven! As was already reported in an earlier reply, the Maritime Museum is great but you may also take a tour that takes you to Peggy's Cove if you like rocks and an old lighthouse that is now a post office!! The memorial to the Swiss Air plane that crashed a few years ago is there at Peggy's cove and there are a few small shops/restaurants serving FRESH seafood that is to die for!! The homes in the area all belong to the local fisherman which makes the area a photographers dream. Even just sitting and watching the sea is nice. Also in the city of Halifax itself is the "Citadel" which is a restored fort built century's ago and houses a musem. The view from the citadel of the harbour is beautiful. If you would rather just wonder the waterfront, it has been fully restored and makes for a lazy day of shopping, eating or just watching the world go by!! If tours are offered going to Lunenburg on the South Shore, or the Annapolis Valley, they also have lots of history to share with you, some going back to the early explores of the new world!!
Hope this helps and sorry for being so long winded!!!

[fcorey]

In Newport you may want to do the Mansions. You can purchase a combination ticket that allows you to see several at a reduced price. I recommend The Breakers, Marble House, and Rosecliff.
It's not too far to walk to the International Tennis Hall of Fame.


I have to agree with Ruth on this. I grew up there and my family still lives in that area. My cousin actually works for the historical society. The three "cottages" that Ruth is recommending are recognizable from movies like The Great Gatsby, and True Lies. Another home you should try to see is "The Elms" which while not as grossly ornate as the Vanderbuilt Breakers, it had some amazing technological advances for its day and is quite beautiful.