Join a relaxed walking tour of Old Sydney, founded by Loyalists fleeing the American Revolution. You will visit four museums: St Patrick’s, the oldest Roman Catholic Church in Cape Breton; Cossit House, built in 1787; Jost House, offering interesting exhibits from this same period; and the Cape Breton Centre for Heritage & Science. At the end of your tour, return to the ship with your guide or visit the local shops that are within easy walking distance and return to the ship on your own.

Travel to the beautiful resort village of Baddeck, situated on an inlet of the lovely Bras d’Or Lakes. It is here that Alexander Graham Bell spent the last 37 years of his life, and you’ll visit the Alexander Graham Bell Museum operated by Parks Canada, which does full justice to the outstanding accomplishments of the man best known for the invention of the telephone, and remarkable contributions in the fields of medicine, genetics, electricity, sound and speech, as well as aeronautics and marine engineering. The museum itself is architecturally striking, as its design is based on the tetrahedron form Bell used for his flight test kites. It houses an extensive collection of Bell artifacts contributed by the Bell family. On the picturesque 45-mile drive to Baddeck, you will see Boulanderie Island, the Seal Island Bridge, Kelly’s Mountain and St. Ann’s Bay.

Learn about the hard life of a miner on this interactive tour of the Cape Breton Miners Museum. A 30-minute motor coach trip brings you to the museum. A highlight of your visit is sure to be the adventure of touring the Ocean Deeps Colliery, an actual underground coal mine located beneath the building. Retired coal miners guide you on this 30-minute excursion into a 1932 mine, where you experience firsthand what it was like to extract coal “by the sweat of your brow.” Your tour will focus on the geological development of the Sydney coalfields and the various techniques that have been used to mine these coal seams since 1720. Before leaving the museum, you have a chance to purchase a memento of your visit and explore the Miner’s Village, complete with company house and company store. Your last stop will be at the Old Town Hall in Glace Bay, built in1902 and restored as a Historical Monument to the Mining Community of Glace Bay. Light refreshments will be served.

This is an opportunity to actually experience life during the 1744 French settlement of Canada, with a behind-the-scenes visit to North America’s premier historic reconstruction—the authentically recreated Fortress of Louisbourg. A 40-minute drive brings you to Louisbourg; then your visit to the fortress will begin with a brief overview and outside walking tour of the site. Then you will participate in your pre-selected program of choice, Costumes & Chocolate: Details of 18th-century clothing and French chocolate making. Next, you will enjoy a hot, 18th-century-style meal at one of the town’s local restaurant pubs. In 1744, only a spoon was used as an eating utensil! Experience a life like no other and relive the 18th century in French North America.

Notes:
Tour operates June through mid-October. Considerable walking is involved. This tour is not recommended for persons with walking problems or wheelchairs. Bring warm clothing and comfortable footwear.

Sail away to "where the only sound you hear is the wind in your sails." You are invited to join the Amoeba for a sailing experience as unforgettable as Cape Breton’s Bras d’Or Lakes. Bras d’Or is an inland sea forming the heart shape of Cape Breton Island. The pristine waters cover one third of the island, to a depth of over 900 feet, the deepest saltwater lake in Nova Scotia. After a one-hour drive from the ship to Baddeck, sail on the Bras d’Or Lakes on the deck of the 67-foot staysail schooner, the Amoeba. View Alexander Graham Bell’s stately mansion, Beinn Bhreagh. Watch for bald eagles in their natural setting, and aAfter your sailing experience, you will have free time to visit the resort Village of Baddeck.

Notes:
Dress warmly; bring a jacket or windbreaker. This excursion does not operate in May.

Join us for a musical experience unique to Cape Breton Island. Influenced by Scottish, Irish and Acadian traditions, enjoy professional local entertainers as they offer singing, step dancing and of course, lively fiddle playing. This special presentation is exclusively for the guests of Holland America Line. Meet at the World’s Largest Fiddle and follow the piper to an intimate performance space in the Sydney Cruise Terminal located directly across from the ship. Refreshments, including traditional Cape Breton oatcakes will be served.

Discover the many influences that have given Sydney its colorful character from its founding by Loyalists in 1785 to the present day. You’ll learn why its harbor is among the most strategic on the Atlantic, playing a major role in both World Wars. And you’ll see the former "company community" of Whitney Pier where employees of the steel and coal industries forged their lives for many years. Visit the Whitney Pier Museum, devoted to the 55 ethnic groups that make up the population of Sydney and the Fort Petrie Battery that protected the harbor from enemy attack during World War II. A light refreshment will be served at the Whitney Pier Museum.

Board your coach to explore Sydney, the largest community and commercial center of Cape Breton Island. Begin your tour in the historic north end settled in 1785 by British Loyalists from the New England colonies and pass by Victoria Park, the site of the original garrison camp. Continue through downtown Sydney, passing Wentworth Park to Whitney Pier, former site of Sydney Steel Mills which date back to 1900. As well, learn about the importance to the economy of the Sydney Coal Fields. These industries brought immigrants from many parts of the world, giving Sydney a multicultural mix of over 50 ethnic backgrounds. Continue to the First Nations community of Membertou, a modern day blueprint for all aboriginal communities in North America. Experience a unique presentation about the traditions and culture of the Mi’kmaq people. Interact with the elders as they sing a song, play traditional games, talk about their medicines and spirituality, and answer your questions. After a visit to their gift shop, travel along the waterfront returning to the Marine Terminal and you cruise ship.

At the entrance of the Great Bras d’Or Channel are the dramatically beautiful Bird Islands. Rising like rocky pillars from the sea, these islands are the nesting grounds of thousands of seabirds, razorbills, kittiwakes and more than 300 pairs of Atlantic puffins in addition to bald eagles and seals. Leaving the pier, you will travel approximately 45 minutes to the heart of Cape Breton to Big Bras d’Or and board a 38-foot Cape Islander tour boat for a 2½-hour educational, narrated boat tour. Learn about the nesting habits of seabirds and other local folklore on this half-day excursion. Visit the nature-oriented gift shop located on site and bring your camera.

Notes:

Dress warmly in layers; bring a jacket. Extra layers are required in early May. Tour does not operate from August to October. Binoculars are provided.

Ciad mile failte—a hundred thousand welcomes await you. Nova Scotia is Latin for New Scotland, and nowhere is the aptness of this name more evident than on Cape Breton Island. This picturesque excursion takes you on a circular tour of the very heart of Cape Breton Island and includes some of the island’s most dynamic scenery on shores of the famous Bras d’Or Lakes. Stop at the geographical center of Cape Breton Island to visit the Nova Scotia Highland Village, a 50-acre historical site overlooking the Bras d’Or Lakes. Take a chronological journey through 180 years of Cape Breton’s Scottish architecture, hosted by costumed staff trained in conversational Gaelic and local history. A lunch stop will be made in the village of Baddeck—the home of Alexander Graham Bell, inventor of the telephone and Cape Breton’s most famous resident. A brief stop will also be made at the Alexander Graham Bell Museum, housing the world’s most extensive collection of Bell artifacts.

Notes:
There is a fair amount of walking at the Highland Village. However, the tour is very scenic and if you wish, you can enjoy the views from the motor coach.