Author: Ian Stalker
Organization: Baxter Travel Group
Contact: istalker@baxter.net
Halifax will be reinforcing its nautical roots in 2007, with the ocean-facing city's Tall Ships 2007 celebration being the largest gathering of tall ships in North America next year.
The July 13-16 celebration will see more than 35 of the "world's most unique and historic sailing vessels" gathering with a fleet of traditional Maritimes schooners to celebrate Nova Scotia's sea-going heritage.
Those in Halifax during the event will be able to board the vessels, meeting their crews, and shore-side entertainment is planned as well.
"It's always a big deal," Destination Halifax's Deanna Wilmshurst says of gatherings of the distinctive-looking vessels.
A tall ships Halifax visit in 2004 drew more than 500,000 visitors and injected $18.2 million into the local economy.
Wilmshurst likes to note that Halifax has revitalized its downtown area, with the waterfront being a lively tourist centre, having a casino that also draws entertainers; Pier 21, a one-time terminal that was the first contact with Canada that thousands who immigrated to this country during the 20th century by ship had and now serves as a museum telling of how it and those who arrived in it helped shape this country; museums; restaurants; and companies that offer different tours, including summertime whale-watching expeditions.
Among waterfront museums is the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic, which includes an exhibit about the Titanic, with Halifax being a focal point of Titanic rescue efforts. Those viewing the exhibit can see artifacts from the doomed ship and learn of the likes of radio dispatches from the vessel as it was sinking.
As well, people can also visit Fairlawn Cemetery, where many Titanic passengers whose bodies were retrieved from the ocean are now buried, with many of the gravesites marked by identical tombstones. Those tombstones include one for a J. Dawson, reportedly the inspiration for the name of the title character Jack Dawson in the movie Titanic.
Wilmshurst says the area around Halifax - and more distant parts of Nova Scotia - have plenty of interesting areas as well. "You can have a lively urban experience (in Halifax), yet in half an hour you can be in Peggy's Cove sea-kayaking or whale-watching," she says. "You can be based in Halifax and go to wineries or visit Lunenburg (a UNESCO World Heritage Site). To me, that's the beauty of Nova Scotia."
Visiting Nova Scotia's Louisbourg Fortress is "like stepping back in the late 17th century," she says, while the province's eastern shore is "really pristine" and has white-sand beaches.
Cape Breton Island's scenery is always appreciated by tourists, Wilmshurst adds.
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