Things to do in Dartmouth

1. Go swimming at one of beautiful lake beaches. I recommend Birch Cove (life-guarded) or Bell lake (not lifeguarded, open your eyes underwater for the beautiful crazy-green-blue water)

2. Rent a canoe/kayak and paddle the extensive lake and lock system. Rent from Graham’s Grove park (it used to be dragon fly rentals). A couple of hours will allow you to explore Lake Banook and Lake Mic Mac. You can actually paddle all the way from the Halifax harbor to Truro NS (an hour’s drive away) though the water is often low by mid-summer, and there are a couple of portage sites where city development or the Shubie Lock system necessitate getting out and carrying. Graham's grove park in Dartmouth

3. Quaker house – oldest house in the area, from the 1750’s. Survived the Halifax explosion.
Quaker house

4. Visit Shubie park. Have a bar-b-que, swim at the lake, walk amongst the wilderness or along the interpretive trail, and visit the interpretation center where they tell of the local flora/fauna and of the native history in the area.
Shubie park wiki info

Here is the map to get from the Hotel to Shubie park:

View Larger Map

5. Have a round of golf at Brightwood golf course (site of the wedding reception)
Brightwood golf course

6. Shopping – box store shopping abounds at Dartmouth Crossing, on the way in from the Airport. Also, Mic Mac Mall is the largest mall East of Montreal. It’s all pretty similar to what you would find in Ontario.

7. Great fine dining at La Perla restaurant or MacAskill’s restaurant, both near the waterfront.

Car Rental info

Can be picked up at the airport, or if you find it cheaper in Dartmouth we can help organize transport and get you to a car rental agency. Most places will rent all of their vehicles by May. Halifax is a very popular place in the summer. So…if you are going to rent a car, book early to have options.

1. Easycar – seems to be the cheapest option, though not necessarily the most convenient. You will have to get into downtown Halifax to pick the car up. easycar

2. Ace Car rentals - Cheap option. Online booking only. They rent out all of their vehicles early.
Ace car rentals

3. Discount Car and Truck Rentals. Same price at airport as in city. Seemed to have slightly better availability.
City – 1-902.468.7171
Airport – 1-902-468-7171

4. Enterprise. They were sold out months before the summer at all locations in 2009. More expensive than Discount
City – 1-902-469-1689
Airport – 1-902-873-4700

5. National. Also sold out months before the summer in 2009. About the same prices as enterprise.
Airport – 1-902-873-3318

6. Budget – reasonable prices at airport
Airport – 1-902-492-7500
City – 236 Brownlow ave. 1-902-492-7500

Halifax/Dartmouth info sites

Here are a couple of websites that can give you information about the cities where the wedding and activities will be taking place:

Halifax (site of the boys' brewery tour and harbor hopper):
Halifax info
Halifax wiki

Dartmouth (site of bridal shower, rehearsal dinner, wedding ceremony, wedding reception, and where Jenny grew up):
Dartmouth info
Dartmouth wiki

Hotel reservations and location

Hotel option - Holiday Inn Harbour View has a block of rooms reserved. They will be reserved for our party with a reduced rate until June 20, 2010. To make a reservation, call (902) 463-1100, ask for reservations and say that you are with the Foster/Niefer wedding.

Room rate is $130/night for a standard room. There is an option to upgrade.

Accommodations options

*Note* when looking at maps of Halifax and Dartmouth, most don’t give you a sense of just how hilly both cities are. Halifax has flat bits, but is predominantly built around one major hill – the Citadel – and Dartmouth is even more hill-bent. The walk from the Holiday Inn to the Church is very downhill, and the walk to the golf club is slightly uphill. The slight uphill is still bigger than any hills in Ottawa, so something to be considered when planning locations and outings for anyone who may have physical impairments

1. Holiday Inn Halifax Harbourview)-Dartmouth, group rate hotel
10-15 minute walk, 2 minute drive to Brightwood Golf Course; 10-15 minute walk, 2 minute drive to Grace United Church; 25 minute walk, 5 minute drive to Jenny’s parents’ house; 10 minute walk to ferry terminal to access Halifax. Phone 1-902-463-1100 for reservations
Holiday Inn Harbourview website

2. Hampton Inn and Suites Dartmouth Crossing
Heart of a (nice) shopping district. A car needed to access the rest of the city. Phone 1-902-406-7700 for reservations. Hampton Inn and Suites website

3. Plenty of hotels in Halifax. Near the waterfront are the Westin, Marriott, and Delta Halifax. All can be found online. If you want historic and swanky (where royalty stay, though the prices are similar to other Halifax hotels, in the heart of Halifax, but farther from wedding action) try the Lord Nelson Hotel.

4. B&B options:
a. Lakeside Point B&B, phone 1-902-461-1549 Lakeside Point B&B
b. Blockhouse Hill B&B phone 1-902-463-1811 Blockhouse Hill B&B
c. Stern’s Mansion B&B, phone 1-902-465-7414 Stern's Mansion B&B
(plenty more if you google-map B&B in Halifax or Dartmouth. Also, there are some nice Inns that can be found online, eg. Inn on the Lake, Halifax Waverly Inn)

5. Cottages:
There are cottages that are privately owned, and those that are part of a resort/hotel.

I don't know any specific privately-owned cottages, but there are websites where you can find them. Most places require at least a 1-week stay. If you are searching for a specific area and would like to be close to Halifax, the best places to look are Peggy's Cove, St Margaret's Bay, and the Eastern Shore heading up to Musquodoboit. Lunenburg and Chester are within 1 hour of Halifax/Dartmouth.
Cottage finder
NS cottage rental

6. Camping around Halifax/Dartmouth

Your best option is Shubie campground (short for Shubenacadie, a series of canals that stretch from the Halifax harbour inland almost to New Brunswick, on which the native Mi'kmaq used to travel every year). I camped there several times as a kid...it's pretty nice, though the bathrooms are like any public campground. It's about a 10-15 minute drive from the church, reception, and rehearsal dinner bar-b-que. It has a lake front, and lots of trails through the woods around. Camping is on open sites.
Shubie Campground

Woodhaven is also within Halifax city limits. I've never been, but here is the website:
Woodhaven

Location for cocktails and wedding reception

Brightwood golf and country club, 227 School street, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia.

Cocktails start after the ceremony.
Reception will start at 6pm.

Map shows directions from the church to the golf course. Free parking available in front of the country club.

Church and ceremony

Church: Grace United Church, 70 King Street, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia
website: http://www3.ns.sympatico.ca/grace.church/index.html
Officiating Minister: The Reverend Stephen Fram, BA, MDiv
Organist: Malcolm Bradley