Five Things to do in Halifax, Nova Scotia

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Last Updated on September 11, 2019 by Amy

Halifax is one of our favorite big cities we’ve visited, and the summer in Nova Scotia is lovely!

Halifax Waterfront

Along the waterfront are a lot of interesting businesses.  In particular, there are several re-purposed shipping containers.  They serve as an outdoor beer garden, a bike rental shop,  a Segway rental shop, and a kayak rental shop.  There are also small shacks along the way, with goods or food for sale.  One we stopped at was the Canadian Sea Turtle Network, where we learned that we should be on the lookout for leatherback turtles, who come up to Canada from the Caribbean to feed on jellyfish.  There were also several tourism offices that we stopped in to poke around.

Taste Some Canadian Delicacies

There are also tons of places to pop in for delicious food.  We visited an Irish pub called the Old Triangle for dinner, back to the waterfront for a maple syrup beaver tail (flat pastry).  Another day, we had a don’t-miss lunch of poutine (pulled pork poutine from Smoke’s shack on the waterfront).  And, OF COURSE, there’s Tim Horton’s on the waterfront.

Seaport Farmer’s Market

Saturday morning, we got up and went to the Seaport Farmer’s Market, mostly to check it out.  We had breakfast of German pastries there, and I bought some vegetables and chicken breast.

Halifax Maritime Museum

Next, we stopped at the Maritime Museum.  The museum showcased the naval history of Nova Scotia, and also had exhibits on treasure hunting, the Cunard family and company, the explosion of 1917, and the Titanic.  We didn’t know much about the explosion, but, in short, in 1917 two ships collided in the Halifax Harbour.  

One ship was full of explosives, and shortly after the collision, the ship exploded.  The blast was the largest man-made blast up until nuclear devices.  Thousands of people died, and an entire section of Halifax (now the North End) was effectively flattened.  

The Titanic is tied to Halifax because of the rescue effort provided.  Halifax was the closest port, so most of the ships that responded were Haligonian (that’s right – Haligonian).  In fact, most of the bodies recovered from the Titanic are buried here.

The Citadel

We walked around the Spring Garden shopping district and on up to the Citadel.  We didn’t do the full citadel thing, which is tours and videos and museums.  Instead, we enjoyed the view from the top of the hill and hiked back down.

Bonus: Halifax Pride Parade

We just happened to be in Halifax at the same time as the pride parade.  We stood out in the streets to cheer and support the Halifax Pride parade, which was a lot of fun, even though it was quite cold, windy, and misty.  It was so cold we rewarded ourselves with hot cocoa!

Onward to Northern Nova Scotia

Halifax is a beautiful city and we’re glad we got to explore.  It’ll be hard to beat as we pass through other big cities on our worldwide tour!

Watch the Video:  6 Weeks in Nova Scotia

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