Lunenburg Things to Do

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A quick look at Lunenburg and you will immediately understand why it has made it on the UNESCO World Heritage List. It is quite evident that extra special care has been taken to preserve the harmony and beauty of its unique maritime architecture. Many of the Old Town's heritage homes have now been turned into restaurants or souvenir shops (some good, some bad), but it doesn't take away the essence of the place. The Old Town area is not that big and it is quite easy to walk up and down the streets, snapping pictures here and there. So put on your walking shoes and enjoy!

This Museum commemorates the fishing heritage of the Atlantic Coast of Canada. Housed in brightly painted red buildings, with floating vessels at wharfside, the Museum offers a host of attractions and nautical Gift Shop.

We went on the Bluenose II in September and saw no whales. I don't know if that was because whales are scarcer (is that a word?) in September or if that was because no whales go where the Bluenose typically sails.

You realize that getting sailing tickets to the Bluenose is somewhat difficult. They presell most of the tickets, and have a few (maybe 25 or 40) "rush seats" (no one actually gets a seat) each day. We had to stand in line for 2 hours (made sure we were in the first 25) to go sailing the day we went.

I was not lucky to see the sailboat "Bluenose II" in Halifax's harbour, but to my surprise, she swayed softly on the waves of Lunenburg's harbour. Apparently, the ship travels regularly between these harbours.
What is it about? The "Bluenose II" is a reconstruction of the famous "Bluenose I" (who would have thought that???), the ship that is seen on the dime coin. She was built in 1921 and became famous because she constantly won races against her US competitors. in 1942, she was sold to the Caribbean and sank soon after. The reconstruction was built in 1963 and is nowadays nearly as famous as the original.

Located in upper Lunenburg, this church is in my opinion the most beautiful of the town. Shining bright white, it really looks divine in the middle of the square. But St. John's suffered a terrible tragedy not long ago: On November 1st, 2001, the church burned down almost completely and had to be rebuilt in a long process from 2002 to 2005.
The original church was founded in 1753 and thereby is Canada's second oldest Anglican church. It's built in Carpenter Gothic style where typical stone features are made from wood.

Best discovered during a walk through the steep streets of Lunenburg, the town's architecture is what made it earn its UNESCO world heritage site status. The centre of Lunenburg is a close to complete ensemble of 18th century wooden houses. To learn more about them, you should grab a free map of the local board of trade first. It provides you with an overview about the most important sights and also marks with a little dot every heritage property. Then, start walking and enjoy the views.

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There are many buildings worth seeing in Lunenburg but perhaps none as impressive as St. John's Anglican Church. When Lunenburg was founded in 1753, services were first held in the open air on this site. 500 pounds were donated for the building of a church, and a church frame was brought to Lunenburg from Boston (the frame could have been the old King's Chapel in Boston) and the church was completed in 1763. Several alterations were made throughout the years: it's been moved a bit, made bigger, suffered damage from fires... but through it all it has retained it's beautiful gothic architecture and gorgeous woodworks.

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Until tourism became a major industry, the town of Lunenburg had always relied on fishing, ship building and ocean-based commerce to sustain its economy. Today, the Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic pays tribute to the sea-related activities that have helped shape Lunenburg. To be quite honest, I didn't find the museum all that entertaining BUT it does include a visit of two real-life fishing boats, the Cape Sable and the Theresa E. Connor, which allows you to get a very clear and vivid picture of what life must be like on the sea since you have access to all the rooms on board, from the kitchen to the dormitories.

Of course, another popular attraction in Lunenburg is Canada's most famous schooner, Bluenose II. It is operated by the museum and if it happens to be in Lunenburg, you'll be able to go on board but as this ship is in great demand, make sure to check the schedule beforehand to find out if it's in Lunenburg or not (http://museum.gov.ns.ca/bluenose/sailing-schedule.html).