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Atlantic Canada’s National and Provincial Parks

By Andrew Hempstead, author of Moon Nova Scotia & Atlantic Canada

The region’s national and provincial parks come in a wide range of personalities and offer an equally eclectic array of activities and facilities, from wilderness backpacking at New Brunswick’s Mount Carleton Provincial Park to lounging in luxury at Cape Breton Highlands’ Keltic Lodge resort.

sprays of water rushing down a waterfall in Cape Breton
Waterfalls at the north end of Black Brook Cove in Cape Breton Highlands National Park. Photo © Andrew Hempstead.

National Parks

Atlantic Canada has 9 of Canada’s 45 national parks. Cape Breton Highlands National Park, in Nova Scotia, is one of the most spectacular, but it is also very accessible: ocean panoramas, abundant wildlife, and an extensive network of hiking trails are the highlights. Best known for its wild horses, Sable Island National Park, off the Nova Scotia coast, is much more remote and requires an air charter to access. In the same province, Kejimkujik National Park is the only one not on the ocean, which means visitors trade kayaks for canoes to explore the extensive system of freshwater lakes. In New Brunswick, Fundy National Park is renowned for the world’s highest tides, while Kouchibouguac National Park fronts the calm waters of Northumberland Strait. The beaches of Prince Edward Island National Park are a popular destination for vacationing families. Newfoundland and Labrador has three parks—Terra Nova, renowned among kayakers; Gros Morne, where spectacular cliffs rise above inland “ponds”; and Torngat Mountains, protecting the remote northern tip of Labrador.

For information on these parks, including detailed trip planners, visit the Parks Canada website.

rocky and mountainous landscape in New Foundland
The moonlike Tablelands of Gros Morne National Park. Photo © Andrew Hempstead.

Provincial Parks

Protecting areas of natural, historical, and cultural importance, Atlantic Canada’s many hundreds of provincial parks also provide a wide variety of recreational opportunities. All provide day-use facilities such as picnic areas and washrooms, while many also have playgrounds, canoe rentals, and concessions. A good number also have campgrounds and summer interpretive programs.

You’ll find lots of information about provincial parks at local information centers and in general tourism literature. You can also contact the following:

Start planning your adventure in Canada

Andrew Hempstead

About the Author

Kayaking around Bowen Island, enjoying a powder day at Whistler Blackcomb, chowing down on pancakes at the Elbow Room, joining the mid-day crowd at Butchart Gardens, and surfing on the west coast – Andrew Hempstead has done all of this and more. He’s out there not because it’s part of compiling a guidebook, but because he loves Vancouver and Victoria. These diverse experiences, coupled with a deep respect for nature and an interest in local history, have been essential in his creation of Moon Victoria & Vancouver Island.

Andrew spends as much time as possible out on the road, and rather than having an itinerary laid out for him by local tourism offices, he travels incognito so he can experience the many and varied delights of Vancouver and Victoria the same way his readers do.

Since the early 1990s, Andrew has authored and updated over 60 guidebooks, contributed to dozens of major magazines, supplied content for online clients like Expedia and KLM, and been employed as a corporate writer for Parks Canada. His photography has appeared in a wide variety of media ranging from international golf magazines to a Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Museum. Andrew has spoken on guidebook writing to national audiences, and he has contributed to a university-level travel writing textbook.

Andrew and his wife Dianne own Summerthought Publishing, a regional publisher of nonfiction books. He and his family live in Banff, Alberta.

Learn more about this author

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Image of river with fall trees and text Atlantic Canada's National & Provincial Parks

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