Fodor's Nova Scotia & Atlantic Canada by Fodor's Travel Guides

Author:Fodor's Travel Guides
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Fodor's Travel
Published: 2019-04-22T16:00:00+00:00

MONCTON AND DIEPPE

80 km (50 miles) northeast of Alma.

Metro Moncton—the second-largest city in Atlantic Canada (after Halifax, Nova Scotia)—is an attractive, welcoming city, with several family-friendly attractions, some world-class restaurants, a splendid modern museum, and an ongoing calendar of festivals throughout the year.

The World Wine and Food Expo and the annual Santa Claus Parade of Lights draw more than 100,000 people in November, as do the HubCap Comedy Festival in February and the Northrop Frye Festival, the largest bilingual literary festival in Canada, in April. Outdoor summer concerts at Magnetic Hill, by the likes of U2, Nickelback, and AC/DC, seem to have gone into a hiatus, but the smaller River Glen Amphitheatre is planning to take up the slack, and Avenir Centre, the state-of-the-art hockey arena that opened in September 2018, is also set to become a major entertainment venue. Year-round entertainment is provided at the historic Capitol Theatre, the casino’s concert hall, and smaller venues.

Two natural attractions are the main draws here: the Tidal Bore and the Magnetic Hill. The latter is often derided, but the optical illusion does create a very strange sensation and it’s worth experiencing. The Tidal Bore, once justifiably described as the other kind of bore, was restored to its former glory after riverbank erosion has been addressed, and the bore can be several feet high, depending on the tides. As a result, the city has made the most of its downtown riverside, with a park and boardwalk and a small amphitheater overlooking the best place to view the tidal bore sweep around a bend in the river. In summer, buskers often take advantage of this “stage.”

Moncton is an agreeable, lively place, home to two universities and a center for information technology and communications. It is often called the Gateway to Acadia because of its equal mix of English and French and its proximity to the Acadian shore, though it also has a large Irish population and a growing Korean community. The renovated downtown has unique shops and restaurants and such beautiful flower displays that it has won national “Communities in Bloom” awards.

With its twin city of Dieppe—the join is almost imperceptible—Moncton is considered the shopping mecca of Atlantic Canada. Moncton’s big chain stores are mostly strung out along Mountain Road, Mapleton Road, and the Trinity Power Centre, while Dieppe is home to Champlain Place, the province’s biggest shopping mall. Both cities have good Saturday farmers’ markets, and other retail opportunities.

GETTING HERE AND AROUND

Moncton is one of the few places in the province accessible by rail, on VIA Rail’s Montréal—Halifax route known as “The Ocean,” which runs three times a week. Dieppe is home to Greater Moncton International Airport, one of the province’s major airports. Maritime Bus provides long-distance bus service from points all along the Trans-Canada Highway between Québec and Nova Scotia, from Saint John, and down the Acadian Coast from Campbellton. By road, the Trans-Canada Highway (Route 2) loops around the city, with several exit points.

Moncton and Dieppe have an excellent bus system, operated by Codiac Transit; the fare is C$2.

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