Bras d’Or & Its Heartland for 6 people

On leaving the City of Sydney you will travel along the Trans Canada Highway along the scenic shoreline of the Bras d’Or Lakes, called by many Canada’s Inland Sea. This route takes you through the historic communities of Boisdale, Christmas Island and Iona. A Gaelic welcome to the "Highland Heart of Nova Scotia" awaits you in Iona, Cape Breton Island.

Experience Nova Scotia's Gaelic culture at one of many community events or at the Highland Village outdoor pioneer museum. View some of the most breathtaking scenery that this Province has to offer on the shores of the mighty Bras d'Or. The Iona Peninsula is well worth the visit. The Iona Peninsula is located in the centre of Cape Breton Island, almost completely surrounded by the magnificent Bras d'Or Lakes - Canada's Only Inland Sea. The Bras d'Or is a 1,165 km2 (450 sq. mi.) basin that is one of the finest sailing and boating venues in the world. They separate Cape Breton's Highlands and Lowlands. The Bras d'Or coastline abounds with wildlife and is particularly noted as a breeding area of the magnificent bald eagle. A living history museum and cultural centre that presents, interprets and celebrates Gaelic Nova Scotia.

During the 1700s and 1800s, thousands of Gaelic speaking emigrants from the Highlands and Islands of Scotland settled in eastern Nova Scotia. The Highland Village Museum follows the rural experience of these early settlers, and their descendants, on a journey into the early years of the twentieth century. The site features Gaelic language and related cultural activities, traditional crafts and chores, costumed animators, farm animals, thousands of artifacts and 11 period buildings.

Let the Highland Village Museum/An Clachan Gàidhealach make Nova Scotia's Scottish Gaelic culture a part of your group's Cape Breton experience. Scottish traditions and demonstrations are part of daily life at the village. The arts of weaving, quilting, rug hooking,.and others are showcased throughout the Village. You will go to the scenic center of Cape Breton Island, touring to Estmer and then on to the Little Narrows Ferry. You’ll have a brief stop at Baddeck Village with time for a walk along the waterfront. This national historic site communicates the story of Alexander Graham Bell's wide ranging interests and inventive work, much of it undertaken here at Baddeck, Nova Scotia. The site's 10 hectares overlook Baddeck Bay, on Bras d' Or Lake, and Beinn Bhreagh, Bell's summer home, where Bell pursued much of his scientific work. The museum commemorates and interprets the work of Alexander Graham Bell and his associates. The exhibit complex functions as a centre for the study of Bell's scientific and humanitarian work as illustrated by the artifacts and documents preserved there.