Renting a car from Sydney to tour Louisbourg- now where to stop along the way?

[LakelandCat]

My husband and I, along with our one year old son, will be in Sydney in October via the NCL Dawn. We have finally decided to rent a car and drive to Fort Louisbourg for the day. I have read there are several rental car agencies in the area near the port and am going to reserve a car ahead of time. Budget has a van service to pick you up as does Hertz (does this sound correct for those who have done this)? A search on driving directions states it will be about a 30 minute drive from Sydney to Louisbourg. The Fort Louisbourg site states the bakery will be closed when we are there in October.....so for those of you who have gone before us, any recommended sites along the way or local restaurants you have enjoyed for lunch in Louisbourg? Is the town easy to get around and tour from the Fort area? Can you leave the park to take a "lunch" break and return? Thanks for any suggestions.

Happy cruising to all!

[BCHappyGal]

Fort Louisburg is not in town but quite a ways out and off by itself. Make sure it is open on your dates as the season there usually ends in September.

[LakelandCat]

Thanks BCHappygal. The website does mention that in early/mid October many of the Fort presentations/exhibits are closed. I think we are going right before the main season ends. IS this the end of tourist season and when the weather gets chilly? Also, I was not aware the Fort is a little ways out of town- how long drive time wise? I will do some more research about this. Anyone been there the first two weeks of October?

[Capebreton]

The fortress is located at the end of town where you can park your car and go in to the fortress on the shuttle they have its really no big deal. I lunch stop i would suggest would be The Station house located almost directly behind rhe fire station in town , its agood place clean freindly people and great food. have fun:)

[Snorkel_Girl]

I visited Fort Louisbourg just last week and it was fantastic. The fort is located just outside of the town of Louisbourg, and it took us about 45 minutes to drive there from Sydney. There are lots of road signs along the way so you will have no difficulty finding it. From the visitor centre you take a 5-minute shuttle bus (included in price of admission) to the actual fort. We ate lunch at the fort, they have a restaurant where you can get an 18th century meal, and also a "snack bar" where they sell wraps, drinks, soup, etc.

 

We passed lots of restaurants in the town of Louisbourg, you will have no difficulty finding a place to eat.

 

Have fun! -Snorkel_Girl

[Capebreton]

just a note to you that hertiz rental cars are not operating in sydney anymore your best bet would be budget rent a car located on welton street call them and Heidi the owner will send you a driver to pick you up any way have fun:)

[LakelandCat]

Thanks to all for the detailed answers. I will check with Budget. I mentioned in an earlier post that we will be there during the second week in October. It is in the final weeks the Fort is opened for the season. I think the rate to get into the Fort is discounted so I suppose that means that some buildings will be closed or there will be less live presentations/re-enactments. My husband is a history enthusiast and we definately wanted to visit the Fort. The Parks service still has not emailed me back. Do you think that even if the facilities are not fully open and functional, as in the earlier months, that a trip there is still worthwhile? We have some guidebooks and history info for the Fort and area so can learn on our own! We will be in port in Sydney just one day so wanted to make sure this would be a worthwhile trip. Thank you again and this is exactly the info I needed! We are very excited.

[judynorth]

We rented a car in Sydney and drove to Ft. Louisbourg last October. We rented from Budget. You will need to call to be picked up at the pier. We found that they will make the call for you in the visitor center. That was a great help to us and I suggest that you do that. Just go inside the building at the pier and find the tourist office. There are also maps and information there. Be sure that you allow time to get back to the ship when you return. We had to wait a while before someone was free to take us back to the ship. We found that there is very little on the drive to the fort until you get to Louisbourg but there are lots of restaurants in the town itself. We selected one at random and had a nice lunch after touring the fort. It was a very nice day with perfect weather. I have pictures on Webshots if you would like a peek at what you will be seeing. It is a wonderful restoration and well worth your time to visit.