Tour #3 – Halifax Historic City Tour
This four hour Halifax Historic City Tour can be customized to your personal preferences. This tour will begin with Pier 21, which was the gateway to Canada for more than one million immigrants between 1928 and 1971. Pier 21 is referred to as the “Ellis Island of Canada” is The National Museum of Immigration, and may have the history of your family if they entered Canada through Halifax.
This row of docks are known as the Cunard Piers, named for Samuel Cunard who is the Father of Passenger Cruise Ship Travel. Cunard Lines have been the pioneering brand of ocean travel since 1840 when the Britannia began the first scheduled transatlantic crossing between Southampton, England, and New York City, USA.
Statue of Edward Cornwallis, founder of Halifax in 1749, Governor and Captain General of Nova Scotia 1749-1752.
The small sculpture in the corner of Cornwallis Park, is called” Vytaiemo” and is the Traditional Ukrainian greeting of welcome. It is a memorial to the Centenary Celebration of the first Ukrainian immigrants who landed in Canada, looking for a new life in 1891 and 1892.
The Nova Scotia Heritage Property Act authorizes the Municipality’s to establish a registry of buildings, street-scapes, sites, conservation areas and conservation districts of municipal significance by the adoption of a heritage by-law, Driving down Young Street to Point Pleasant Park you will pass the Wright house, Oland’s Castle and many historic homes.
The Point Pleasant Park Gates is the opening of a 180 acre park that was once the home of seven forts that were use until the Second World War for the defense of the Halifax Harbor (1749-1948) the business of Halifax from 1749 to 1948 was war. The Harbor Look off is a chance to view Halifax Harbor looking seaward. At the entrance to the Harbor during the World Wars, you can see where submarine nets were stretched across our harbor entrance. Black Rock Beech is where the English displayed the bodies of convicted Pirates.
From its birth, Halifax’s economic prosperity rose and fell with the wars that the British were involved in. From wars with France, the Seven Years War, American Revolution, Napoleonic Wars, War of 1812 to involvement in the American Civil War and in the two World Wars. Today Halifax still remains a military hub with Canada’s Atlantic Fleet based at the dock yard, including its submarines and Helicopters base at Shearwater.
Halifax Public Gardens
One of the finest surviving examples of Victorian Gardens in North America. Started in 1837 on four acres of common land, which was expanded to its sixteen acre size in 1866 and saw the addition of a bandstand, fountains, statues and wrought iron gates. The bedding out of annuals in highly designed carpet beds was established, Griffin’s Pond was redesigned and water fowl was introduced.
Halifax Citadel (National Historic Site)
The first fort was built in 1749 when the city was founded, was part of the western perimeter wall for the town which was protected by a total of five stockaded forts. The current stone built, star-shaped fortress was completed in 1856, following twenty-eight years of construction. Today you can explore the fortress and see the hourly changing of the guards and the noon firing of the cannon.
Halifax Explosion
On December 6,1917 at 9:04:35am, the SS Mont-Blanc, a French cargo ship fully loaded with wartime munitions collided with the Norwegian Relief Vessel, SS Imo. Sparks from the collision started a fire that resulted in the largest man made explosion in the history of the world before the atomic bomb. All buildings and structures covering nearly 500 acres were obliterated, about 2,000 people were killed and 9,000 people were injured.
Horse Shoe Island
From this site you can see Halifax’s Northwest Arm, a body of salt water that stretches from the Armdale Rotary to the Atlantic Ocean. You can see the Armdale Yacht Club on Melville Island and the stone building that was once part of a prison for American sailors during the War of 1812. The Memorial Tower can also be seen from here as well as the Nova Scotia Yacht Squadron established in July 1837.
Sinking of the RMS Titanic
The White Star luxury liner, RMS Titanic, the largest ship afloat at the time, sank in the North Atlantic on April 15,1912 at 2:20am after colliding with an Iceberg about 375 miles southwest of Newfoundland. On her maiden voyage from Southampton, England to New York City, USA, carrying 2,224 people of which only 710 people survived. There are 121 victims of the disaster buried in three grave sites in Halifax.
Visit the Maritime Museum to see Titanic artifacts as well as other items from our long seafaring history, or our military museum with its hundreds of years of battle ships starting from 1749 to modern day. Enjoy a wonderful meal in our many restaurants, stroll our boardwalk along the waterfront and see Historic buildings, shops, and architecture.
The Unknown Child (Titanic Site – Halifax Nova Scotia)
The photograph (photo-left) of the baby Sidney Leslie Goodwin, is now believed to be the Titanic’s unknown child. Photo Credit: Photo copyright by Carol Goodwin, used by permission.
The center photo shows the final resting place of the Unknown Child at the Fairview Lawn Cemetery in the North End of Halifax, Nova Scotia. Over one hundred victims of the sinking of the RMS Titanic are buried here.
Mr. Goodwin (photo-right) is the last living relative of the Unknown Child at the Titanic Site. Through DNA testing a match was found. Mr. Goodwin on the left traveled from New Zealand to visit.
Five days after the passenger ship Titanic sank, the crew of the rescue ship Mackay-Bennett pulled the body of a fair-haired, roughly 2-year-old boy out of the Atlantic Ocean on April 21, 1912. Along with many other victims, his body went to a cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia, where the crew of the Mackay-Bennett had a headstone dedicated to the “unknown child” placed over his grave.
When it sank, the Titanic took the lives of 1,497 of the 2,209 people aboard with it. Some bodies were recovered, but names remained elusive, while others are still missing. But researchers believe that they have finally resolved the identity of the unknown child, concluding that he was 19-month-old Sidney Leslie Goodwin from England. The remains of the rest of the Goodwins family have never been recovered.
Historic Halifax City Tour is a minimum of 4 hours. Tour pricing does not include meals, museum or Park entrance fees. Please allow extra time if you wish to stop for a meal.
Halifax Historic Tour Price
$75 CAD per hour / per vehicle (taxes included) (4 Passenger Sedan)
$75 CAD per hour / per vehicle (taxes included) (6 Passenger Minivan)
$150 CAD per hour / per vehicle (taxes included) (8 Passenger Stretch Limo)
*These are the maximum number of passengers that each vehicle can accommodate legally. Comfort level depends on the number and size of passengers traveling in each vehicle. For the viewing pleasure of our guests and to ensure everyone is comfortable, we recommend the following:
Sedan: Up to 3 passengers, everyone has a side window view.
Minivan: Up to 5 passengers, everyone has a side window view.
SUV: Up to 5 passengers, everyone has a side window view, 6 to 7 passengers if you wish.
Stretch Limo: Up to 8 passengers, everyone has a window view.
Do to provincial motor vehicle laws, we cannot take more passengers that each vehicle has seat belts for. Everyone must wear a seat belt and infants and toddlers must be in proper child seats (we do not supply).
Included: Halifax Historic City Tour (Minimum 5 hrs)
(Click on Vehicle To View Full Size)
HALIFAX TOUR GUYS – Booking Form
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Your Needs: Customers should dress for the weather. Please make sure to tell us if you need any of the following items before booking your tour. Baby Seats, Step-ups, Walker, Portable Wheel Chair (must supply own walker or wheel chair).
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Last Minute Changes: All tours will begin at 8 am unless prior arrangements have been made with the office. All tours can be changed with the driver upon arrival. All group tours or multi-vehicle tours must contact office. Cell phone must be kept on when ship arrives in port in case of early or late arrivals.
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Questions: If you have any questions before or after making your booking, please contact us – contact@halifaxcruiseshipshoretours.com or phone 1-902-406-6314
*Disclaimer: The purpose of the credit card information is to hold your booked tour with us. Once we receive your credit card information either with your booking form or by calling our office at 1-902-406-6314, we will email your Tour Confirmation within 48 hours to you. Your credit card will not be charged for your tour, and will only be charged for the following two reasons. If you fail to cancel your tour with us 72 hours before you Cruise Ship is scheduled to dock in Halifax, and/or fail to show up for your booked tour after your Cruise Ship has started to disembark passengers in the Port of Halifax. Your credit card will the be charged a fee of $150.00 per vehicle ordered. This charge is to cover your driver/tour guides time, associated office, and credit card fees.
Your driver/tour guide will gladly accept payment in Canadian Cash only. Tour prices do not cover meals, entrance fees to museums, parks, attractions, buggy rides, wine tasting, winery tours or boat fees. Driver gratuities are also not in the price structure.
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