Help me plan family vacation to Portland, Quebec City and Nova Scotia
July 22, 2017 5:04 PM Subscribe
Plan is to fly into Portland. What I'm really trying to figure out is the best (i.e fast yet still affordable) way to travel between these areas.
I'm (age 28) trying to take my parents (in late 50s) on a vacation to Portland (Maine), Quebec City and Nova Scotia. Also welcome are any suggestions of what to see and where to stay, but choosing a route is what I'm really getting stuck on. I noticed there are ferries and rails but the prices are outrageous. We plan to rent a car, so I am considering just driving the whole way but I realize that might take up a lot of time with customs/the drive itself etc. Also I have no idea how scenic this drive would be. We're flying from Cleveland, OH early next month if that matters.
I'm (age 28) trying to take my parents (in late 50s) on a vacation to Portland (Maine), Quebec City and Nova Scotia. Also welcome are any suggestions of what to see and where to stay, but choosing a route is what I'm really getting stuck on. I noticed there are ferries and rails but the prices are outrageous. We plan to rent a car, so I am considering just driving the whole way but I realize that might take up a lot of time with customs/the drive itself etc. Also I have no idea how scenic this drive would be. We're flying from Cleveland, OH early next month if that matters.
How much time do you have for this vacation? QC and NS are in opposite directions and you'd be staring at a lot of travel time even if you took the CAT from Portland to Yarmouth.
I'd probably consider doing either Quebec OR Nova Scotia. You want to spend time enjoying yourself, not shuttling back and forth. And there's a lot of nature and nice stuff in Maine that you can enjoy on the way to either place.
posted by selfnoise at 5:20 PM on July 22, 2017 [1 favorite]
I'd probably consider doing either Quebec OR Nova Scotia. You want to spend time enjoying yourself, not shuttling back and forth. And there's a lot of nature and nice stuff in Maine that you can enjoy on the way to either place.
posted by selfnoise at 5:20 PM on July 22, 2017 [1 favorite]
Yeah, that's a crap ton of driving for a weeklong vacation. I would eliminate one of the stops. Going from Quebec to NS is something like 10 hours of driving.
posted by furnace.heart at 5:29 PM on July 22, 2017 [5 favorites]
posted by furnace.heart at 5:29 PM on July 22, 2017 [5 favorites]
In a week that's literally impossible. Drive up to QC, have fun, come back to Portland for a few days. NS is farther especially without the ferry and there's more to do in QC.
posted by selfnoise at 5:32 PM on July 22, 2017
posted by selfnoise at 5:32 PM on July 22, 2017
Can you switch to a cruise and are your dates flexible? Planning summer travel for these places is best done WELL in advance. Move your dates into Sept and Oct and you wont be competing with families.
Here's a cruise from Boston to Quebec city. You can rent a car and do the 5 hour drive to Boston. There is one rental agency that allows this and I think it is Enterprise. I did it several years ago. [
Saturday, September 9 Montreal, QC, Canada 4:00pm
Sunday, September 10 Quebec City, QC, Canada 7:00am 5:00pm
Monday, September 11 St. Lawrence Seaway (Cruising)
Tuesday, September 12 Charlottetown, PE, Canada 8:00am 5:00pm
Wednesday, September 13 Sydney, NS, Canada 8:00am 4:00pm
Thursday, September 14 Halifax, NS, Canada 8:00am 4:00pm
Friday, September 15 Bar Harbor, ME 8:00am 5:00pm
Saturday, September 16 Boston, MA 7:00am
$799 a person.
Otherwise drive times, costs, and logistics will make it a not relaxing week, I'm afraid.
posted by beccaj at 5:33 PM on July 22, 2017 [1 favorite]
Here's a cruise from Boston to Quebec city. You can rent a car and do the 5 hour drive to Boston. There is one rental agency that allows this and I think it is Enterprise. I did it several years ago. [
Saturday, September 9 Montreal, QC, Canada 4:00pm
Sunday, September 10 Quebec City, QC, Canada 7:00am 5:00pm
Monday, September 11 St. Lawrence Seaway (Cruising)
Tuesday, September 12 Charlottetown, PE, Canada 8:00am 5:00pm
Wednesday, September 13 Sydney, NS, Canada 8:00am 4:00pm
Thursday, September 14 Halifax, NS, Canada 8:00am 4:00pm
Friday, September 15 Bar Harbor, ME 8:00am 5:00pm
Saturday, September 16 Boston, MA 7:00am
$799 a person.
Otherwise drive times, costs, and logistics will make it a not relaxing week, I'm afraid.
posted by beccaj at 5:33 PM on July 22, 2017 [1 favorite]
Btw if you want something that scratches the NS itch drive to the ile d'orleans which is right outside QC and is a lovely, bucolic little island with food and sights.
posted by selfnoise at 5:36 PM on July 22, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by selfnoise at 5:36 PM on July 22, 2017 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: Hmm yea I have a bad habit of trying to "pack everything in" but now that you all have said it, I agree doing all these places might be overkill. Unfortunately now we'll have to sort out what to remove. Ile d'orleans is a good idea. Dates aren't flexible and we're not really fond of cruises. Thank you to everyone that has helped out so far!!!
posted by BitterYouth at 5:45 PM on July 22, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by BitterYouth at 5:45 PM on July 22, 2017 [1 favorite]
I second sticking with Portland to Quebec City. Coastal Maine and Nova Scotia are great but you'll be there at the peak of tourist season and it is going to be difficult/expensive to find places to stay along that route.
If it were me I'd visit downtown Portland the day you arrive, have a good meal, then drive to QC the next day. Spend three days in/near QC then take a couple days to drive south (maybe through New Hampshire) and spend a final day on the coast, either in New Hampshire or Maine. There are towns with attractions to suit a variety of tastes.
posted by plastic_animals at 6:02 PM on July 22, 2017
If it were me I'd visit downtown Portland the day you arrive, have a good meal, then drive to QC the next day. Spend three days in/near QC then take a couple days to drive south (maybe through New Hampshire) and spend a final day on the coast, either in New Hampshire or Maine. There are towns with attractions to suit a variety of tastes.
posted by plastic_animals at 6:02 PM on July 22, 2017
If you do end up going to QC and you like scenic drives, you can drive back to Portland through Lac-Megantic, then Coburn Gore and down through Rt. 27 in the US. That will take you through the heart of what I think of as Quebec's "little town with a church in the middle" country. Then Coburn Gore is a lovely wilderness area. If you drive up through Jackman on the way up, look out for the Wyman Lake rest stop as there's a lovely view of Maine lakes and wilderness.
If you do Il d'orleans and it's a nice day, you can do Montmorency Falls on the way up or back to town and it's worth the (long) stair climb.
As someone mentioned above, make sure that you talk to the rental service before you fly out to make sure they are OK with the car going into Canada. They will likely need to see whatever paperwork you are going to present to cross the border.
posted by selfnoise at 6:05 PM on July 22, 2017
If you do Il d'orleans and it's a nice day, you can do Montmorency Falls on the way up or back to town and it's worth the (long) stair climb.
As someone mentioned above, make sure that you talk to the rental service before you fly out to make sure they are OK with the car going into Canada. They will likely need to see whatever paperwork you are going to present to cross the border.
posted by selfnoise at 6:05 PM on July 22, 2017
I don't know if it helps but there are nonstop flights from Portland to Halifax now.
posted by JanetLand at 12:42 PM on July 23, 2017
posted by JanetLand at 12:42 PM on July 23, 2017
Coastal Maine and Nova Scotia are great but you'll be there at the peak of tourist season and it is going to be difficult/expensive to find places to stay along that route.
Seconded. The traffic along the Bar Harbor/Ellsworth/Bangor corridor right now is horrible – well, maybe not U.S. 20 rush hour in Cleveland horrible, but bad enough – and a lot of the roads are ripped up. Come back and visit this part of the world not in July/August, plus with more advance planning.
Mount Desert Island and Cape Breton Island both claim they are the place to go; you could visit both some other time, and see which you prefer.
posted by LeLiLo at 11:28 PM on July 24, 2017
Seconded. The traffic along the Bar Harbor/Ellsworth/Bangor corridor right now is horrible – well, maybe not U.S. 20 rush hour in Cleveland horrible, but bad enough – and a lot of the roads are ripped up. Come back and visit this part of the world not in July/August, plus with more advance planning.
Mount Desert Island and Cape Breton Island both claim they are the place to go; you could visit both some other time, and see which you prefer.
posted by LeLiLo at 11:28 PM on July 24, 2017
« Older Replace an existing toilet – what are the most... | Hidden bodies of water...in my ear? Newer »
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by saucysault at 5:16 PM on July 22, 2017