9 Best Sights in The Fundy Coast, New Brunswick

The halls of the Aberdeen Cultural Centre ring with music and chatter. The converted schoolhouse is now home to theater and dance companies, a framing shop, artists' ateliers, and several galleries, and concerts and artist talks are also hosted here. Galerie 12 represents leading contemporary Acadian artists. Galerie Sans Nom is an artist-run co-op supporting avant-garde artists from throughout Canada. The artist-run IMAGO Inc. is the only print-production shop in the province. Guided tours are available by appointment.

On the campus of the University of Moncton, this museum has one of the world's largest collection of Acadian artifacts reflecting 400 years of Acadian life in the Maritimes and covering culture and beliefs, domestic life, politics, and more. Additionally, a fine art gallery showcases contemporary works by local and national artists.

The university is also home to several pieces of public art, so look out for these as you drive through

If you love antiques and would thrill at the notion of discovering an old barn or attic crammed with centuries-old furniture, household items, and miscellaneous other artifacts, it's worth the short trip out here from downtown Moncton. Within a restored 1883 meetinghouse, there are authentic household, work-related, schoolroom, and even military items of the area's non-Acadian pioneer settlers, including the Lutz family, from as far back as 1766. Ignore your first impression—there's more than immediately meets the eye when you enter; more than 3,000 artifacts are crammed into the upper floor and basement areas as well as the main level, and guided tours tell fascinating stories behind the objects. The museum hosts a Canada Day Farmfest and occasional theater, tea, and supper events.

This is an excellent theme park, adjacent to Magnetic Hill. It includes the SplashZone water park with a huge wave pool, thrill-ride body slides, including the 60 km/hour (37 mph) Kamikaze and three giant twister slides. The FunZone has plenty of thrill rides as well as rides for younger children, including battery-powered Bumper Boats with built-in squirters, while video games in the TekZone and four 9-hole golf courses round out the attractions.

This is the largest zoo in Atlantic Canada, covering 40 acres and housing 575 animals in more than 70 species, including a Big Cat exhibit housing endangered Amur tigers (which produced three cubs in 2018) and a leopard in a replication of a Siberian landscape (the New Brunswick climate is also similar to that of Siberia). In addition to imaginative viewing areas, the cats are fed from a zipline, which encourages them to chase and jump. There's no shortage of other exotic species, including lemurs, lions and other big cats, zebras, and ostriches, plus around 80 bird species are represented, both Indigenous and exotic. A tropical house has reptiles, amphibians, birds, and primates, and at Old MacDonald's Barnyard, children can pet domestic animals or ride a pony in summer. Check feeding times on the way in.

Built in 1883, this beautiful house was the home of an Intercolonial Railway executive and gives more than just an idea of how a prosperous Victorian family would have lived. It also hosts exhibitions and events. After touring certain rooms of the house, you can get refreshments in the Verandah Tearoom, but check the closing time—you might need to take your afternoon tea first, before your tour.

When the world's highest tides come in on the Bay of Fundy, the surge of water pushes far upstream on the Petitcodiac River, reversing the flow with a wall of water up to a meter high and raising the overall river level. It is an incredible sight when tides are at their highest. With its terraced seating and positioning, Bore Park on Main Street is the best vantage point; viewing times are posted. In summer, there's an introductory talk about the tides. The park is part of the larger Riverfront Park, with 5 km (3 miles) of multiuse trails along the banks of the river.

Entering the water is extremely dangerous because of the deep, soft mud that lines the river.