The Ultimate Four Day Road Trip Itinerary for Cape Breton
In July of 2025 we took a road trip to Cape Breton – we were looking for a Canadian vacation that we could bring our dog Pringle along with us. This itinerary is also dog-friendly which is a bonus – this is our exact itinerary during our stay and was a winner for us. There is a bit of driving involved, but that’s how we ensure that we fit the most into our road trips – you can cut some stuff out or extend your stay. This road trip assumes you’re driving in to Cape Breton, and out, but could easily be adjusted to whatever you are looking for to make your trip unforgettable! Read along for the ultimately three day road trip itinerary for Cape Breton & click on the links in the overview of each section for the google maps locations.
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Day One
Arrival day! This is a slow day to welcome you to Cape Breton as you’re probably driving here. If you’re motivated and arrive early, there are a few options for activities. In the morning, head out towards the Groundswell Pub & Inn. Here you will find Kayaks and Stand Up Paddle boards for rental and you can spend the morning kayaking around to find your own coves and see the coast from a different perspective. Check with the Groundswell Inn if this place will be open on the day you are there (they weren’t for us) before making plans around it – or do it on a whim and hop over to the beaches if they aren’t open.
In the afternoon, you can beach hop. A few beaches around the hotel area include Petit Nez Beach and Pondville Beach Provincial Park. You can spend the afternoon taking a walk across Petit Nez Beach (a 5km walk out and back – All Trails link here) – it’s an adventure to access the beach but you could have the entire place completely to yourself. After getting your steps in at Petit Nez Beach, hop over to Pondville Beach Provincial Park. This beach may be a bit busier but is nice and sandy.
Once you’ve taken in the sun (fingers crossed for good weather), head back to the Pub & Inn to check-in, get changed, and hop out to the patio for some dinner & drinks with good views (they even have live music some nights).
Highlights
- Highlights: Kayaking & SUP rentals, Petit Nez Beach, Pondville Beach Provincial Park
- Breakfast: La Goelette a Pepe Cafe
- Lunch: Shirley’s Spud Wagon – these people were SO friendly and they have quite a big menu.
- Dinner: Groundswell Pub & Inn
- Accommodations: Groundswell Pub & Inn – link for website/booking here.
Day Two
After a night spent in the pub and overlooking the water, you’re going to wake up and head to the beach. Stop for a quick bite and coffee at the local spot the Farmers Pantry, and continue on to Point Michaud Beach. Point Michaud is a super long and beautiful beach – you can choose to either stroll along the beach, rent surfing equipment, take a surfing lesson, or relax (they even have a sauna rental available right beside the beach!).
After a morning well-spent at the beach, you’re going to head towards Big Spruce Brewing, but you will go a little past to get some lunch and check our some gift shops to bring souvenirs back. You’ll head towards Baddeck, a cute seaside town with lots of restaurant options. When you’re driving towards Baddeck from Point Michaud, google maps will take you the quickest way – reroute it to go alongside Bras d’Or Lake. The small towns, houses, and empty roads make this drive worthwhile and it doesn’t add too much time to the route. You can either drive straight to Baddeck for lunch, or stop at Charlene’s Family Restaurant – this spot claims it has some of the best seafood chowder and my husband wholeheartedly agreed! Once you get to Baddeck, take time to walk around the town and check out the cute storefronts.
After Baddeck, you’re heading back slightly from where you came from – towards Big Spruce Brewing. Optional – if you are sick of driving (I get it) skip Baddeck and just go straight to Big Spruce Brewing – they have a food truck on-site with some great food options (burgers, fries, salads, and more). If you do drive back from Baddeck, stop at the Red Barn Gift Shop for some cool souvenirs. Once you get to Big Spruce Brewing, check out their multiple bars with different drink options, their cool merch shop, the lawn game options, or chill at the outdoor (or indoor) seating and admire the views. This was such a good afternoon relaxing and trying a flight (or two if you’re not driving) of beers.
After this, you’ll make the quiet but scenic drive to Glenora Inn. We decided to take the route that drove right by the creek. We decided to pull over just 5 minutes outside of Big Spruce Brewery to head down to the creek. You can walk around and swim in the creek which was awesome for our pup – if you have extra time and the weather is nice, head to the creek for a quick refresh. This was also a great stop which can be as quick as you’d like.
After a quiet drive you’ll make it to Glenora Inn. The main highlight here is how stunning the grounds are, whiskey tours, tastings, and an on-site restaurant that has daily entertainment – traditional Cape Breton style. This is also North Americas first single malt distillery, so whiskey lovers are in for a treat.
Highlights
- Highlights: Point Michaud Beach, Big Spruce Brewery, Exploring Creeks (approximately at this google maps location, but drive along the creek until you see a small pull over spot with a few parking areas and some signs), Glenora Inn Distillery (with stunning grounds).
- Breakfast: The Farmers Pantry – again, so friendly. The Ham & Cheese scone & their iced coffee options were awesome.
- Lunch: Charlene’s Family Restaurant OR The Freight Shed: Waterside Bistro & Market
- Dinner: Glenora Inn Distillery
- Accommodations: Glenora Inn – link for website/reservation here (they have dog-friendly accommodations too at the Glenview location).
Day Three
If Day Two seemed awesome Day Three will blow you out of the water. Although there was quite a bit of driving again, we LOVED the activities that you’ll find. Wake up and head to a local cafe for breakfast – The Dancing Goat. Take your breakfast sandwiches and iced coffee to-go and head to Chimney Corner Beach. This was SUCH a stunning beach which wasn’t very busy. It’s a great spot to set up for the entire morning and take a quick walk across – coming to check out the scenery, get the pup a walk-in, and drink our iced coffees was a perfect morning for us.
After the beach, head back towards town around noon to get a pit-stop in at Route 19 brewery. You can opt for lunch here if you want, or just try some of their beers. If you want something a little off the beaten path for lunch, head to Fish Out Of Water (a local food truck) that’s on your way up to your evening stay. Then you’ll continue along the route towards fishing cove. Along the way there will be some cute stops for art, some antique stores, cafes, and more – stop as you please! We personally stopped at Myles From Nowhere (this was earlier on in the day and was a place full of antique furniture, items, art work, and more) and Freya and Thor Gallery & Cafe (for some iced lemonade, they also have some cool prints / artwork and they had some cute jewelry too).
After driving by some cute oceanside towns, you’ll reach Cape Breton Highlands Park and you’ll be able to stop along the coast for lots of scenic views. Continue driving until you reach Fishing Cove parking lot. Then you’ll pack up and be off on your adventure to the most STUNNING backcountry camping spot. Read here for our blog post on fishing cove & everything you need to know.
Highlights
- Highlights: Chimney Corner Beach, Route 19 Brewery, Cape Breton Highland National Park, Fishing Cove Backcountry Trip
- Breakfast: Glenora Inn Distillery (included with your stay) or The Dancing Goat – note there is one in Inverness and one a bit further away (we went to the Inverness location and they had great iced lattes and breakfast sandwiches!)
- Lunch: Fish Out Of Water (Food Truck)
- Dinner: Bring your own camping equipment & food – Taco’s in a bag, Simple Ramen, and Smore’s are our fan favourites.
- Accommodations: Fishing Cove (Backcountry Camping Spot)
Optional: If you’re not into backcountry camping / hiking, choose to stay somewhere else close within the Cape Breton Highland National Park. There are TONS of beautiful seaside towns with great accommodations.
Day Four
This is your last day and you can choose to stay overnight in Sydney or make the ambitious drive off the island like we did (back to Halifax… it’s a long drive!). After spending the early morning hiking back out of the backcountry campsite at Fishing Cove, you’ll drive out of the park stopping along the route for any photo ops as the views continue to be amazing! On the way out, stop along the coast for some stunning beaches to take a walk on or enjoy the nice weather. Black Brook Cove Beach was absolutely stunning, and there are a few others along the route that look just as nice such as Ingonish Beach.
For more coffee, a snack, or some lunch head onwards to Salty Rose’s & the Periwinkle Cafe or Bitsy Bean and the Night Owl. On route to Sydney, opt for a Puffin Tour (early May to mid September)! The tours run morning / afternoon / evening depending on the time of year you are visiting – details can be found here.
Once you arrive in Sydney, check out the Sydney Food Tasting Tour, or the local breweries. We stopped at Island Folk Cider House for a cider tasting – how fun to have a flight of ciders! After this, take a walk by the historic waterfront in Sydney, or other activities you could look into include visiting the Fortress Louisberg or visiting the Alexander Graham Bell site. After a jam-packed day, head for dinner in Sydney – there are so many restaurant options to look into! For waterfront patio, check out The Dory Pub or go for the Old Triangle Irish Alehouse.
Highlights
- Highlights: Cape Breton Highland National Park, Fishing Cove Backcountry Trip, Black Brook Cove Beach, Puffin Tour, Island Folk Cider House, Sydney
- Breakfast: Camping breakfast!
- Lunch: Salty Rose’s & the Periwinkle Cafe or Bitsy Bean and the Night Owl
- Dinner: The Dory Pub or the Old Triangle Irish Alehouse.
- Accommodations: Airbnb or The Simon Hotel Sydney
Other
Cape Breton is SUCH a stunning place. A lot of our time was spent in the car but we loved the scenery, checking out the local towns, and picking our favourite houses along the way.
If you’re looking to cut a day, we would cut Day One off this itinerary. For us, this was the best way to cut a long drive from New Brunswick to Cape Breton Island down and find a local spot to stay close to the start of the island, but it was definitely the least exciting day and there’s SO much to do and see in Cape Breton.
Cape Breton can also get busy during high periods (summer period and fall colour period). Book in advance as soon as you know your plans. There are also LOTS of nice airbnb options if you book early!
