A 7-day Fundy Coastal Drive itinerary through New Brunswick

This spectacular 7-day Fundy Coastal Drive itinerary gives you all the information you need to plan your Bay of Fundy road trip through New Brunswick. This route starts in Saint Andrews and includes key sites such as Ministers Island, Saint John, the Saint Martins Sea Caves, Fundy Trail Provincial Park, Fundy National Park, Hopewell Rocks Provincial Park, and Moncton. It also provides some tour and accommodation suggestions.

The drive from Saint Andrews to Moncton covers roughly 320 kilometres with an active driving time of four and a half hours. However, there’s so much to see along this route that it’s well worth taking your time. A week allows you to soak in everything this region has to offer. If you’ve got some flexibility, we’ve also suggested some spots where you’ll get the most out of extending your stay.

This itinerary details the route in order as approached from the west. If you’re beginning this drive from Moncton in the east, start at the bottom and work your way back up.

The information below was gathered via a visit hosted by Tourism New Brunswick with travel expenses covered, as well as subsequent visits to portions of the drive on my own. Have questions about this Fundy Coastal Drive itinerary? Join our Facebook community!

View our Fundy Coastal Drive map in Google Maps below. Click here for more details on what you’ll find along New Brunswick’s Fundy Coastal Drive >

This post contains affiliate links. If you click on these and make a booking or purchase, we will earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. Check our Disclaimer for more information. Thanks for your support!

Day 1: Saint Andrews

Your Fundy Coastal Drive itinerary starts in the seaside resort town of Saint Andrews.

While you’re here, take in some whale watching, drive to Ministers Island, and visit the shops and restaurants on Water Street.

It’s often possible to do all this in one day. However, Ministers Island’s hours of operation change daily with the tides. Depending on that timing and the availability of whale watching tours — and you’ll definitely need to book whale watching in advance — you may prefer to add a second day in Saint Andrews for a more relaxed experience.

If your budget can swing it, The Algonquin Resort is an iconic Tudor Revival style coastal resort, one of Canada’s historic railway hotels. It’s well worth the splurge.

Day 2: Head for Saint John

When you’re ready to get your Fundy Coastal Drive itinerary under way, pack up the car and head toward New Brunswick Route 1. The drive from Saint Andrews to Saint John takes approximately an hour.

For an overnight stay, we recommend the Hilton Saint John. It offers some of the city’s best views over the Saint John River and the Bay of Fundy.

Day 3: Sea Kayaking in Saint Martins

Dedicate a full day of your Fundy Coastal Drive itinerary to Saint Martins exploring the sea caves. It will take approximately 45 minutes to reach Saint Martins from Saint John along NB Route 111.

The tides will dictate your itinerary on the day of your visit. First, you’ll want to make a reservation with Bay of Fundy Adventures. (The tour out of Saint Martins is called the Sea Caves Kayak Tour.) You’ll either kayak in the morning and explore the sea caves on foot in the afternoon or vice versa. When the tide is out, the sea caves can be accessed on foot from the parking lot beside the Caves Restaurant.

Book your overnight stay in Saint Martins at the Beach Street Inn, a boutique hotel with breezy and well-appointed rooms and an excellent on-site restaurant.

Day 4: Fundy Trail Provincial Park

New Brunswick’s Fundy Trail Provincial Park is truly a choose-your-own-adventure type of destination. You can spend an hour or a day here exploring the 30-kilometre stretch of road that traces the shoreline with 21 lookouts, five beaches, and four waterfalls. To access the park, cross the covered bridge in Saint Martins and continue along Big Salmon River Road until you reach the entry gates.

Fundy Trail Provincial Park is open from mid-May to late October, and the daily hours of operation change throughout the season. You’ll be charged a small fee as you enter. There is a simple canteen at the Cookhouse, or you can pack a lunch and have a picnic.

It takes roughly 45 minutes to drive through Fundy Trail Provincial Park without stopping, but we recommend dedicating a full day to exploring the many hiking trails and lookouts along the route. If you try to map the route outside the park’s operating season or exclude tolls in your search, your GPS or map service may try to send you around the park. Be sure to check your route and timing carefully before you set out.

Once you leave the park through the east gates, you’ll drive for roughly 10 minutes or 12 kilometres to reach Shepody Road. This is the turn-off that takes you directly to the entry gates for Fundy National Park. There’s one large sign that marks this turn, so keep an eye out for it. If you miss it, you’ll likely end up in Sussex and need to loop the long way back down to the national park!

Spend the remainder of this day exploring Fundy National Park. If you arrive later, relax for the evening and dive into the park on the following day.

Day 5: Explore Fundy National Park

Dedicate at least one full day of your Fundy Coastal Drive itinerary, and more if you can swing it, to exploring Fundy National Park. This is one of the most family-friendly national parks in Canada! Visit the beach in Alma, go for a swim at the salt water pool, or check out the expansive playground at the Salt & Fir Centre. Go for a hike, mountain bike on the trails, or rent a canoe or kayak to paddle on a serene lake. Take in the nine-hole golf course, then drive to Point Wolfe to see the only covered bridge you’ll find in any Canadian national park!

Staying overnight in Fundy National Park

Whether you plan to camp in Fundy National Park or sleep in a cabin or hotel, we recommend booking a two-night stay at minimum. This ensures you’ll have at least one full day to explore this beautiful park. If you have more time, you’ll have no trouble packing two to three days or more with family-friendly activities.

If you’d like to stay in Alma, we recommend the Alpine Motor Inn. This locally owned motel has been a staple in Alma for more than 40 years and offers simple and cozy accommodations. Tipsy Tails and the Alma Lobster Shop are excellent spots nearby to grab a bite to eat. At the Alma Lobster Shop, your freshly steamed lobster will be served to you on a paper-lined tray with a lobster bib at the ready. Now there’s an authentic New Brunswick experience!

Fundy National Park has several camping options, and each has its benefits and drawbacks. Headquarters Campground is very centrally located and convenient. The visitor centre is nearby, and a staircase connects the campground directly to the shops and restaurants in Alma. However, the campsites here don’t have private fire pits. We found the communal fire pits to be a fun way to meet fellow travelers during our stay, but some campers prefer to enjoy a campfire in isolation.

If a private fire pit is an essential camping experience for you, check out Point Wolfe Campground. It’s further down the road, but it’s on the Bay of Fundy and has a beach nearby, so it’s a popular choice. If you don’t mind being deeper in the forest and further from the action, Chignecto and Lakeview are smaller and more remote campgrounds. The Cannontown Campground is not far from Headquarters. It’s reserved for RVs and offers three-service sites.

Day 6: Hopewell Rocks Provincial Park

For day 6 of your Fundy Coastal Drive, depart from the village of Alma and follow NB Route 114 eastbound to Hopewell Rocks Provincial Park. It will take just over half an hour to travel the 45-kilometre distance.

The tides will dictate your best itinerary for the day at Hopewell Rocks. Book a sea kayaking tour with Baymount Outdoor Adventures for the portion of the day when the tide is highest. These tours are in high demand, so make this reservation as early as you can. Baymount recommends making your booking at least three weeks in advance.

Spend the other half of your day here exploring the caves and sea stacks on foot. There’s a shuttle from the visitor centre to the main staircase, or you can walk along the trail, which is less than a kilometre. At the launch area for the kayak tours, there is a ramp down to the rocks for those with accessibility needs. Note that the sea floor is always muddy and slippery when the tide is out, so comfortable clothes and grippy shoes are essential.

The restaurant on site is a convenient lunch option, or you can bring a picnic. If you’d like to continue on to the end of the bay, plan to overnight in Moncton.

Check out the top things to do in Moncton, New Brunswick >

Day 7: The end of the bay

If you’re travelling with history buffs, you’ll want to add this final day into your plans. It takes you to the very end of the Bay of Fundy and provides some of the area’s best historical and cultural context.

From Moncton, head roughly half an hour southeast to the village of Memramcook to visit Monument-Lefebvre National Historic Site. Here, you’ll learn about the Acadian expulsion through the community centre’s on-site museum. On a day when there are no events taking place, an hour provides enough time to explore the site.

The Fundy Coastal Drive concludes just short of the Nova Scotia border at Fort Beausejour-Fort Cumberland National Historic Site. The fort is located on the easternmost point of the Bay of Fundy on the Isthmus of Chignecto. It was built by the French but conquered by the British in 1755, who used it as a holding site for Acadians awaiting deportation. It’s a historically significant place that offers plenty of opportunity to learn, but it’s also worth a stop for the views alone!

From here, you can continue on to Nova Scotia, cross the Confederation Bridge to Prince Edward Island, or return toward home via the Trans-Canada Highway.

Explore more road trips in New Brunswick >