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Background Info: Charlottetown is a city of over 32,000 people located on the south shore of Prince Edward Island. Charlottetown is the capital city of Prince Edward Island and is best known as the Birthplace of Canada. It was here that the Fathers of Confederation first met in 1864 to discuss the possible union of all British North America into one country. As a result of the Charlottetown Conference, the birth of a nation took place when Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec, and Ontario united to form the Dominion of Canada. PEI did not join this union until 1873 when it needed the nation’s financial assistance in order to build a railroad.

The Trip: If you are planning to fly out to Charlottetown it takes 2 hours on a direct flight. There are also many flights (esp. with Air Canada) that connect through Montreal and Halifax, which means getting to PEI will of course take a bit longer. If you planning on driving from Toronto, be prepared for a 20 hour drive (considering stopping along the way for breaks).

Thoughts About the Place: I was in Charlottetown for a couple of days for a conference. On arrival, I was told at the information center that the only way of getting into town is either by taxi or by rent-a-car. My first thoughts about the place? A very quiet, small town. Coming from the hustle and bustle of Toronto, the light, minimal traffic had an almost soothing effect. The warm and sunny weather was a bonus. Even so, I was told that this was a bit unusual as the whole summer it was mostly raining. During my stay there it was also quite windy, which is a common phenomenon from what I understand. The small downtown core of Charlottetown is simple, yet picturesque. The little gift shops, small restaurants and cafes, and the few tourist attractions provide the ‘little town’ feeling in a provincial capital city. I must say that Charlottetown offers a cozy feeling not only to its visitors, but also its residents. Many people from busy cities such as Toronto choose to move to PEI which offers a more relaxed lifestyle and arguably a better place to raise children. I would suggest to any future visitor to take the time to visit the whole island of PEI, not just Charlottetown as this city can comfortably be seen in one day. You could take tourist buses to other parts of the island, such as Green Gables, the town setting of the famous Anne of Green Gables novels. You could also rent a car if you are staying for a few days (gas is cheap compared to many parts of Canada – when I was there gas was 1.18 while in Toronto it was 1.35 per litre). Renting a car will not only allow you to see the whole of PEI (it takes about 0.5 hrs to get from north to south and 3 hrs from east to west), but also to cross over into New Brunswick via the Confederation Bridge (although the toll to get across can cost around $50 – this is only paid once if you plan to return to PEI).

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Things to do in Charlottetown:

1. Anne of Green Gables Store and Anne of Green Gables Chocolates (two separate stores) on Queen St..

2. The shops within the downtown Confederation Mall are also a common attraction.

3. Any visitor must try the ice cream from COW’s Ice Cream shops. They have been voted “Canada’s best ice cream” in a Reader’s Digest opinion poll, and in 2008 was listed as number 1 in the “World’s Top Ten Places for Ice Cream” by Tauck World Discovery that they have the best ice cream.

4. Another interesting store to check out is the PEI Dirt Shirt store at the Peake’s Quay – they have T-Shirts made with real red soil from PEI (one of the interesting things about PEI is that the soil has a brick red colour).

5. St. Dustan’s Basilica – this beautiful cathedral is over 100 years old.

6. Founder’s Hall – 1864 was an important year for the soon-to-be Canada. Find out it’s history through state-of-the-art displays and multimedia presentations.

7. Confederation Center for the Arts – featuring theatre shows and an art gallery

8. Victoria Park – Located on the west side of the downtown by the Hillsborough River. Take a relaxing walk along the water and see the historic cannons on a hill close to the boardwalk. Stay until evening time and you’ll be able to see the beautiful sunsets. If you go into the woods you might find “Deadman’s Pond”, also known as the ‘bottomless pond’. Legend has it that a man was hung and thrown into the pond. Apparently a man was hung very close to the pond; for some reason his body sank right away, and people were unable to retrieve it, therefore earning its “bottomless” status. The park also offers tennis courts and a playground for kids.

9. Beaconsfield Historic House (near Victoria Park)

10. Peakes’ Quay Harbour – see the boats in harbour and check out the many stores, including one that sells shirt made of real PEI dirt (the soil in PEI is unusually red)