Thursday 15 March 2012

Tourism in Richmond County

Spring temperatures have finally arrived and our thoughts turn towards getting outside and preparing the yard and garden for spring planting. Richmond County is fortunate to have Greenhouse Co-op located in St. Peter’s, which offers an excellent variety of Annuals and Perennials for our gardens, as well as flowering shrubs and many of the popular trees such as Maples, Flowering Crabs and fruit bearing varieties suitable for our climate conditions. Every year, visitors driving through St. Peter’s stop in at the Visitor Information Centre and comment on how nice the village’s main street looks with the beautiful baskets of flowers hanging from the lamp posts, and flower boxes located along main street and at the VIC. We get many questions asked about the types of flowers used in the baskets and the care that goes into maintaining them. Visitors also ask a number of questions about flowers that they see growing along the sides of the roads, describing them by colour and size, some actually bring in a sprig of the plant to see if we can shed some light on what it might be, as they do not see these plants back home. Luckily we can refer them to the Greenhouse where their knowledgeable staff can give them the answer.

Many visitors also comment on different areas of North America where they have travelled, talking about how beautiful some communities have made their area by hosting programs where landowners have planted flowering shrubs and trees along the highways, adding to the attraction of the area for visitors. Whenever I drive along some of our roads where the trees look like matchsticks ready to tumble, I can’t help but think how nice it would be if we had a program where land owners would replace the damaged trees with a beautiful colourful shrub or fruit tree. Just think what an improvement that would be and how much nicer the drive for visitors to our area.

Accolades continue to build up for Cape Breton. This time Cape Breton has been noted as the Number 1 Romanic Destination in Canada according to the travel website vacay.ca. Cape Breton was chosen for this distinction because of the charm of our country setting with its easy going life style, cozy pubs, charming B&Bs and romantic resorts, beautiful scenery and pristine beaches. This is a designation that can describe all areas of Cape Breton, from the beautiful scenery of Inverness, Cabot Trail, Bras d’Or Scenic Drive, to Mabou with the Red Shoe Pub, Baddeck’s Ceilidhs at St. Marks Hall and the Bras d”Or Lakes Inn in St. Peter’s, intertainment at the Louisbourg Playhouse or the Eighteenth Century Experience with traditional music at the Begger’s Banquet at the Point of View Suites in Louisbourg. For accommodations, the island has many different types that would be perfect for a romantic getaway, from the resorts and Inns such as the Inverary Resort in Baddeck, Castle Moffet in Whycocomagh, the Dundee Resort in Dundee, Point of View Suites in Louisbourg and the Bras d’Or Lakes Inn in St. Peter’s. To the charm of a country B&B and Inns found at such places as the English Country Garden in Indian Brook, Cranberry Cove in Louisbourg, Grandma’s B&B in River Bourgeois and the Canal House B&B and MacDonald’s Country Inn in St. Peter’s and the L’Auberge Acadian Inn in Arichat. Cottages around the island would be another romantic setting for couples looking for an intimate getaway. The charm of these accommodations are just some of the many romantic locations found around the island. Whatever the reason couples pick Cape Breton Island for their getaway, be it a anniversary or their honeymoon, a stop at any of our quant, peaceful communities would offer a perfect setting.

On the local scene: Remember March 17th is St. Patricks Day. St. Peter’s will be celebrating St. Pats Day at the Bras d’Or Lakes Inn with traditional music and Paul Davis and your choice of Corned Beef and Cabbage or Coq Au Vin, reservations are necessary for this event. St. Patricks Dance at the Framboise Community Center from 9pm until 1 am. The Riverdale Community Center in Lower River will be having an Adult Dance from 9pm until 1am. A St. Paddy’s Day Dance will take place at the West Bay Community Centre from 9:30pm until 1:30am. Until next week, Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

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