Sydney: Alexander Graham Bell museum or Miners Museum

[30scruiser]

My husband and I spent a few days in Cape Breton a few years back on a road trip. We mostly were hiking near Cheticamp, but we also spent some time driving the Cabot Trail and went to the Fortress of Louisbourg and the Highlands Museum. Since our ship has a day in Sydney (9AM-5PM). We were thinking of doing either the ship's shore excursion to the Alexander Graham Bell Museum and Baddeck or taking the ship's excursion or the public bus (I read in a few posts that someone did that, and it seems very doable) to the Miner's Museum in Glace Bay since we didn't do either of these things on our last trip. My husband definitely does not want to rent a car, so it would either be one of the shore excursions or taking the public bus.

Has anyone gone to either of these places? Any thoughts on which would be a better pick?

Also has anyone taken the public bus to Glace Bay from Sydney? My husband is anxious that we will get lost or not be able to get back in time and miss the ship.

 

Thanks for any advice!

[Jade13]

I am trying to decide between the museum and Louisburg.

 

Someone I know said they rented a car but missed the entrance time for the Fort. I would like more information as I would have thought it was someplace where you just paid an entrance fee and than walked around. How can you miss an entry time?

[30scruiser]

When I was at the Fortress in the middle of the summer, there were no specific entry times. My guess about the person who missed the time, was that maybe they went in the fall? I think in September or October they stop having everything open all the time and don't have costumed staff reenacting things.

When is your cruise?

I haven't been to the museum as I said, but I would strongly recommend the Fortress if you will be there at a time when everything is fully open.

[Jade13]

When I was at the Fortress in the middle of the summer, there were no specific entry times. My guess about the person who missed the time, was that maybe they went in the fall? I think in September or October they stop having everything open all the time and don't have costumed staff reenacting things.

When is your cruise?

I haven't been to the museum as I said, but I would strongly recommend the Fortress if you will be there at a time when everything is fully open.

 

Thanks for the info. Our cruise is the last week in August/first week of September.

[30scruiser]

Then you'll definitely be fine for Louisbourg (if you decide to go). It will be fully open.

[donaldsc]

We did the Alexander Graham Bell Museum on a land trip. You could spend hours there without a problem. It was great.

 

We also went to the fortress. If you really want to do either of them right, I do not see how you could do them in a day. We spent 4 or 5 hours in the museum alone.

 

DON

[Jade13]

We did the Alexander Graham Bell Museum on a land trip. You could spend hours there without a problem. It was great.

 

We also went to the fortress. If you really want to do either of them right, I do not see how you could do them in a day. We spent 4 or 5 hours in the museum alone.

 

DON

 

Don, 4 or 5 hours in the museum? Is it that large? We would be looking for a shorter 1.5 hour stop and on to Louisburg if possible, How far apart are they?

 

If we hired a private driver could we do both? Thanks.

[jba2]

We went to the Miner's Museum three years ago. We really enjoyed the tour. I do recommend that you take the shore excursion through the cruise as we went to the museum one afternoon and all the tours in the mine were booked for the day. We returned the next day and went on the tour first thing in the morning. The tours are led by retired miners. It was very interesting to learn and see the conditions in which the miners worked.