Before settling in for the winter, make a plan to check out New Brunswick’s best-kept secret

A finback whale shows off during a whale watching tour. Photo Credit Tracey Tong
Editor’s note: This story is part of an occasional series, Fall for local travel. Parenting Times did not receive any compensation or complimentary goods or services in connection with this story.
Registering for extracurriculars, stocking up on school supplies and refreshing the kids’ wardrobes might leave you in need of just one more vacation — no matter how recently you’ve taken one — before the cold weather arrives.
If you’re seeking a destination that’s far enough to offer a change from Ottawa — yet not too far or expensive — to wrap up the sunny season, look no further than Grand Manan Island, New Brunswick.
With a population of around 2,600, Grand Manan, the largest of the Fundy islands, welcomes seasonal residents and — as we were surprised to discover during a recent family trip — many visitors from greater Ottawa and southern Quebec.
We travelled by air (in the interest of maximizing time off), but Grand Manan — just over 900 km from downtown Ottawa — is a doable drive, made better if you can share the time behind the wheel.
Upon arriving in Blacks Harbour, N.B., take the ferry, which runs seven times a day during high tourist season, to Grand Manan Island. The ferry ride is an adventure in itself with its views; fresh ocean air; a small but current lending library supported by the Rotary Club of Grand Manan, the Grand Manan Library Board, Coastal Transport Ltd. and the Fundy Community Foundation; and a café with locally caught seafood options.
It’s an easy 33 km drive from one end of the island to the other. In one day, we saw a few lighthouses (more on that later), heart-pounding cliff views, and fishermen’s wharves lined with hundreds of lobster traps — both a photographer’s delight and a culture shock for our daughters, ages five and nine.
The island offers more than enough to fill a weeklong stay, but for those looking to venture out, there are excursion options ranging from no cost (there’s no charge for the ferry that travels between Grand Manan and the fishing community of White Head Island) to $240 per person for an up-close-and-personal visit with puffins.
In 2018, Reader’s Digest named Grand Manan No. 3 on its World’s Seven Best Small Islands list, and for good reason — the unsupervised beaches are fairly unpopulated, free of litter and an excellent hunting ground for sea glass (a favourite activity for our girls). There are activities for hikers, cyclists, sea kayakers, surfers, rockhounds (we found quartz, amethyst and agate) history lovers, and more.
Here’s what Grand Manan has to offer:
First, a place to hang your hat
Grand Manan has a range of accommodations from trailers on campgrounds to inns and cottages to bed and breakfasts.
For history buffs
Unlike the national museums we find at home in Ottawa, the Grand Manan Museum has a bit of a homemade feel, in the best possible way. This museum, with its impressive collection of taxidermy sea birds, fishing paraphernalia, and even a horse-drawn hearse from one of the island’s first funeral homes, includes community contributions, which gives it heart.

Boat bumpers at the Grand Manan Museum. Photo Credit Tracey Tong
For outdoor enthusiasts
An online search will turn up more than two dozen trails and hiking routes for Grand Manan, but one of our family’s favourites was the moderately difficult (as a point of reference, my 70-something-year-old in-laws decided to pass on this activity) hike to the Hole in the Wall. For $5 per adult (kids under 16 are free), visitors can walk a marked trail to the famous rock arch, carved by the ocean 10,000 years ago. As trail conditions are affected by rain and erosion, owners suggest sticking to the trail, but venturing off rewarded us with a bald eagle sighting and fabulous views of the Bay of Fundy.

Editor Tracey Tong on the Hole in the Wall. Photo Credit David Simpson
For lighthouse lovers
There are three lighthouses — once manned, but now automated — on Grand Manan: Swallow Tail (the lighthouse you see when you arrive on the ferry), The Whistle at Long Eddy Point and Southern Cross. Visitors can climb the steep stairs to the top of Swallow Tail — a veritable bargain at $2 per person — and imagine what it was like to be a lighthouse keeper living there.
I found my favourite souvenir of the trip at Swallow Tail. I joined the U.S. Lighthouse Society in support of lighthouse preservation and then purchased a passport for $20, which has space for stamps collected from notable lighthouses across the U.S. and Canada — two of which are located on Grand Manan.
Swallowtail Lighthouse, against the backdrop of the Bay of Fundy. Photo Credit Tracey Tong
For budding photographers
In addition to the aforementioned beaches, lighthouses and museum artifacts, the wildlife, the cliffs surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, fishing communities and herring weirs will turn any cell phone owner into a postcard photographer.
For whale watchers
Grand Manan is world-renowned for its whale watching. We went with Sea Watch Tours, a company that guarantees a whale sighting (or you don’t pay). Our four-hour tour on the convertible fishing boat Day’s Catch yielded dozens of humpback and finback sightings so close, I had to zoom out to get a decent photo. It’s something we won’t be forgetting soon, so while it was the most expensive activity of the week ($75 to $95 per person), it was worth it.
Follow up the tour with a visit to the Gaskin Museum of Marine Life, the cozy home of the Grand Manan Whale & Seabird Research Station, a registered charity that does research and education to promote the conservation of the marine environment. The waters around Grand Manan Island are important feeding areas for whale species including minke, finback, humpback and the North Atlantic right whale, which according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is one of the world’s most endangered large whale species.
The Gaskin Museum of Marine Life is the home of the Grand Manan Whale & Seabird Research Station. Photo Credit Tracey Tong
For birders
According to Grand Manan Island Tourism, 363 species call the Grand Manan Island archipelago home. Machias Seal Island Bird Sanctuary, located 18 km from Grand Manan Island by boat, is inhabited by puffins.

Playtime at one of the rocky beaches on Grand Manan. Photo Credit Tracey Tong

Herring weirs in the Bay of Fundy. Photo Credit Tracey Tong

Ellie and Millie Simpson take a break during a hike. Photo Credit Tracey Tong

View from the top of a cliff on Grand Manan Island. Photo Credit Tracey Tong

View from the top of a cliff on Grand Manan Island. Photo Credit Tracey Tong

Beachcombing was a favourite pastime for Millie Simpson, age 9. Photo Credit Tracey Tong
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Useful websites
Coastaltransport.ca
Gmwsrs.org
Grandmananislandtourism.ca
Grandmanancamping.com
Seawatchtours.ca
Swallowtaillighthouse.com
Uslhs.org
Looking for some other local destinations?
Visit ottawaparentingtimes.ca/fall-for-local-travel/ for 2023’s story on Parc Safari in Saint-Bernard-de-Lacolle, QC.