maryann ns

I have been paying attention to the fall colours over the past ten years or and  your best bet for Nova Scotia is the second week of October. For sure September is too early.

I do not have any recent reports about taxis being available for private tours at the pier. It is a long drive to the Fortress and you would likely need the taxi to wait. That would likely be very expensive. It is an easy drive so renting a car is more practical.

https://goo.gl/maps/zDD8bGQXfHeQqJte9

Here is the information posted in the website for Fortress Louisbourg.  So you can tour with a mobile app. 

You can also see things historical by touring the Alexander Graham Bell Museum in Baddeck and the Highland Village Museum in Iona. 

The ships pay for at least one costumed person to give a guided tour but in no way will all the summer animators be there.

Fortress Louisbourg is still interesting but nothing like the way it is in summer. Come back again in summer or come for a land tour. 

http://*****/2nKbbyK Cape Breton

If you insist on a ship's tour I would take the partial Cabot Trail one. If you go on your own you could skip the time consuming lunch at Keltic Lodge and see a bit more of the scenery.

Sydney is not all that interesting. If you go on your own to Baddeck you could have lunch there and a bit more time to explore.

You can go here for lots of information for various options for cruise visitors to Sydney.

I do not know for sure. However in July we were on the boardwalk and I do not recall seeing any.

 And in case you go to Halifax check out The Old Triangle pub.

Here is the link for some  information about Charlottetown.  

You will find taxis at a fixed rate per hour at the dock but renting a car would likely be less expensive. Check out  this document which outlines options for Halifax.

This document  may give you some alternatives for Sydney though on a nice day that would be a lovely sail.

This is the company which is likely doing the sailing tour. See if renting a car and booking direct with them would save any money. https://www.amoebasailingtours.com/

For Saguenay google Tom's Port Guides.

You will need to book in advance for Sydney. More information for Sydney.

In Halifax you can tour on your own in the city. Or you can rent a car and go to Lunenburg OR Peggy's Cove or other places. There may be taxis at the dock in Halifax and group tour busses but these are not the best options. You are unlikely to find vetted private tour operators at the dock.  More information for Halifax.

For Charlottetown I recommend renting a car. There are also a couple private tour operators which you would need to book ahead. Some information for Charlottetown.

You can also do a google search and find Tom's Port Guides.

I agree with martincath.  Here is a document with information for Sydney.    

You arrive right in the port of Halifax and can walk the waterfront, etc. from there. Here is a link to more information.

If you are on a beach in the Upper Bay of Fundy say Driftwood Beach or Red Rock Beach in the Advocate Harbour area, you can put a marker on the beach and watch the water moving either in or out. It can be relatively fast. Visiting the fossil beach in Joggins you have to be careful not to be caught by the high tide which can come up to the cliffs, leaving no beach. You can also watch this happening at Hopewell Rocks.

The tidal bore, as mentioned, is the wave of the incoming high tide entering and going up a tidal river. At certain times of the month this can be several feet high. One great place to see that is in the Shubenacadie River in the South Maitland area of Nova Scotia. You can go rafting on the tidal bore or just stand on the bridge and watch it. See post#7 above for a link to more information.

You can find some good information in Tom's Port Guides.

The most dramatic tide changes are in the upper Bay of Fundy where the change can be up to fifty feet.  

The best way to get to Peggy's Cove and then get back to Halifax in time to see other things is to rent a car or (expensive) hire a taxi. This document has more information about Halifax for cruise ship visitors, including a waterfront map, attractions, tour options are rental car information.

There is no pass for visiting multiple attractions. 

It is the amazing movement of water and the difference between tides which is so special so only seeing one tide cannot give you the understanding of this. Many people who do not live near the ocean write about wanting to "walk on the ocean floor" which is just walking on the exposed land during a low tide. That may be of some interest to you so in that way low tide is better. However without seeing the extreme movement of the water over a period of six hours you are not experiencing what makes the Bay of Fundy and its tides so interesting.

A bit over an hour should get you there.

Check out these links and please come back with feedback if you have any so we can update our information:

https://www.tripadvisor.ca/ShowTopic-g154973-i2203-k7525311-I_m_a_Cape_Breton_Music_fan_only_in_during_day_on_a_cruise-Sydney_Cape_Breton_Island_Nova_S.html

https://www.tripadvisor.ca/ShowTopic-g154972-i830-k11914146-Daytime_fiddling_around_Sydney_on_9_12-Cape_Breton_Island_Nova_Scotia.html

 sorry!

Here's a start for you.

If you have not been to downtown Dartmouth for 20 years you will not recognize it. There are quite a few really good restaurants along with brewpubs.

Are you talking about Saint John, New Brunswick or St. John's, Newfoundland?

Here is the web site. It makes for a great little cruise. It is a fair way along the waterfront but a lovely walk along the waterfront.

The Woodside ferry is less frequent but is a bit more interesting.