Prince Edward Island Getting there & around

Getting there & around

Apart from a couple of shuttle services, there is no intra-island public transportation.

Bus & tram

Bus

Acadian Coach Lines (800-567-5151; www.acadianbus.com; 156 Belvedere Ave, Charlottetown) has service to Charlottetown three times per day from Moncton, New Brunswick ($30 one way, three hours), with stops at Borden-Carleton and Summerside en route. There is one bus per day to Halifax ($53 one way, 5½ hours), with a transfer in Amherst, Nova Scotia.

Advanced Shuttle (877-886-3322; Nasssu St, University Ave; adult/student $50/45) has a convenient service from Charlottetown or Summerside to Halifax or any point along the way. The van has a bicycle carrier.

There is a Beach Shuttle (902-566-5259; www.princeedwardtours.com; Founders’ Hall, 6 Prince St, Charlottetown; one way $15, same-day return $25; Jun-Sep) running between Charlottetown and Cavendish several times per day. The same company makes a daily run from Charlottetown to the evening stage show in Summerside.

East Connection (902-892-6760, 902-393-5132) departs Charlottetown daily around noon for Souris, arriving at 1pm in time for the 2pm ferry. The shuttle van leaves Souris at 1:30pm, arriving at Charlottetown an hour later.

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Air

Charlottetown’s airport is 8km from town and serves all flights entering and leaving the province.

Air Canada has daily flights to Charlottetown from Halifax and Toronto, and from Montréal in the high season (June to September). WestJet offers direct flights to Charlottetown from Toronto and Montréal. From June to September, Northwestern Airlines and Delta Airlines each run one daily direct flight to Charlottetown from Detroit and Boston, respectively.Sunwing (877-786-9464; www.flysunwing.com) flies from Toronto during the summer.

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Car & motorcycle

The Confederation Bridge (902-437-7300, 888-437-6565; www.confederationbridge.com; car/motorcycle $41/16; 24hr) makes getting to the island faster, easier and cheaper than travel by ferry. Unfortunately, the 1.1m-high guardrails rob you of any hoped-for view. The toll is only charged on departure from PEI, and includes all passengers.

If you’re planning to travel one way on the bridge and the other by ferry, it’s cheaper to take the ferry to PEI and return via the bridge.

Regional driving distances:

North Cape to East Point: 273km

Halifax to Charlottetown: 227km

Charlottetown to Montréal: 1199km

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Boat

Northumberland Ferries (902-566-3838, 888-249-7245; www.peiferry.com; car/pedestrian/motorcycle $59/14/37; May-Dec) runs the ferry service that links PEI’s Wood Islands to Caribou, Nova Scotia. There are up to nine daily sailings in each direction during the summer, and five in the fall and spring. Note that vehicle fees include all passengers for the 1¼-hour trip. You only pay as you’re leaving PEI; the trip over from Nova Scotia is free. The ferry operates on a first-come, first-served basis.

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Bicycle

Cyclists and pedestrians are banned from Confederation Bridge and must use the 24-hour, demand-driven shuttle service (bicycle/pedestrian $8/4). On the PEI side, go to the bridge operations building at Gateway Village in Borden-Carleton; on the New Brunswick side, the pick-up is at the Cape Jourimain Nature Centre at Exit 51 on Rte 16.

While your easiest option to get around the island is by car, bicycle is also a fine choice. The flat and well-maintained Confederation Trail runs the length of the island through some beautiful countryside and small towns.

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