DAY FOUR
What to do?
After exploring the east side of the island and getting your Anne of Green Gables fix, head to the provincial capital of Charlottetown. After spending several days in the countryside, it felt a little weird driving into a city with strip malls, a university, and buildings larger than a church. Charlottetown is a delightful seaside town which has a mixture of historic buildings, hipster coffee shops, candy shops, and working fishing boats. It also has a stellar playground at Victoria Park.
KipTripster Tip: The Kiwanis Club of Charlottetown Dairy Bar at the park only accepts cash, so plan ahead.
Victoria Park is the largest of Charlottetown’s parks, and it’s at the tip of the harbor. You’ll also find Prince Edward Battery with original cannons. If all you want to do is walk, you can follow the boardwalk that runs along the outside of the park and harbor.
Where to eat?
Head to Peakes Quay Restaurant & Bar for lunch. On the way in, look at the many photos on the wall of famous people who’ve eaten here. There’s one of Prince William and Princess Kate leaving the restaurant, so we figured if it was good enough for them, it was good enough for us. Our server was attentive and answered all of our questions about the menu. We ordered a variety of items including fish and chips, fish tacos, seafood chowder, broiled haddock, and bacon wrapped scallops. Do you notice a theme? If seafood isn’t your thing, don’t worry. There are sandwiches, burgers, and salads on the menu, too.
For drinks and appetizers later in the day, we headed to the rooftop at Fishbones Oyster Bar & Grill. The nachos were amazing and devoured in mere minutes. It was then on to The Gahan House with a brewery in the basement and plenty of options on tap in the upstairs restaurant. For dinner, we tried out the fish and chips, poutine, chicken quesadilla, and macaroni and cheese. When the waiter came back to clear our plates, there was no need to ask us if we liked it, as all of the plates were bare.
One place that I wish we’d gone (but ran out of time) was Founders’ Food Hall & Market. From what I’ve read, heard, and seen on Instagram, this place is a foodie’s dream. There’s a little something for everyone from pizza shops and oyster bars to doughnuts and rolled ice cream. It’s one of the many reasons why we’ll have to go back to the island!
Where to stay?
The Hotel on Pownal offers a bit of sophistication while not being too fancy for families with kids. Not far from the water, the hotel-motel (there are some external hallways) has 45 guest rooms and suites, which include traditional rooms, family rooms, one-bedroom units and suites. The family room had two double beds and one queen bed in adjoining rooms with one bathroom. My kids love their own room
The hotel has a happy hour in the afternoon and complimentary breakfast in the morning. We skipped the happy hour but made sure to be there for breakfast where we were treated to a nice selection of cereals, muffins, breads, yogurt, and fruit along with coffee, tea, and juices.
A red sand beach? You can find that here, too. That’s where Day 5 of our adventure leads.
