Outdoors & Nature in Louisbourg & Eastern Shore
Fortress of Louisbourg National Historic Site
Largest historical reconstruction in North America, a partial rebuild of an 18th-century French fortress.
Big Glace Bay Beach
Kennington Cove Beach
Wild beach within Fortress of Louisbourg lands marking the 1758 British landing site.
Louisbourg Lighthouse
Site of the first lighthouse in Canada, with a short coastal trail and views of the Fortress.
Louisbourg Lighthouse Trail
Mira Gut Beach
Morrisons Beach
Peck's Cottages & Riverdale RV Park
Two-bedroom housekeeping cottages with a co-located RV park, a five-minute drive from the Fortress of Louisbourg historic site.
Scatarie Island Light at Main-à-Dieu
Wave-battered fishing village viewpoint with a relocated heritage light.
Want a starting point?
Locally-ranked outdoors lists
25 Best Places to Visit in Cape Breton (2026)
A locally-curated, ranked guide to the island's essential stops — beaches, lookoffs, fortresses, lighthouses, fishing villages, and the drives that connect them
The best beaches on Cape Breton Island
Sandy stretches, warm-water swimming, and the wild Highlands coast
The best hikes on Cape Breton Island
From the Skyline Trail to quiet local lookoffs — ranked by what they deliver
The 15 best Cabot Trail stops, in driving order
A clockwise loop with the must-stop lookoffs, beaches, hikes, and meals — plus where to skip and where to spend extra time
Cape Breton in fall — the 12 best stops for autumn colour
Where to be in early-to-late October when the Highlands turn red and gold — plus when to go and what else is on
Cape Breton lighthouses worth visiting
Working harbour beacons and dramatic Highlands cliff posts