You CAN Get Here From There

Or how to get to Halifax
From anywhere in the

First, for no other reason than I like it and it approximates the view of the Harbour from our deck, I'm providing a link to the Halifax Harbour Cam.  24 Hour Virtual travel...like I'm already here ;-)
(BTW...if you hate background muzak, turn your speakers down. I never have mine on so I wasn't aware this site had music until Cendare found it on the beta page)

Next, I think it's important to know where you are going:

Maps by
www.expediamaps.com

This map was generated using the Place Finder option.  If you generate it yourself at the site, the map is fully clickable.    You can get the Halifax Regional Municipality's take on where we are (Ryan, stop laughing) by clicking here.

Another thing I'd like to know if I was travelling to Halifax is what the weather is. In August, it's usually quite balmy (as are we) but if you want to check the weather in Halifax, and anywhere else in the world, go to USA Today's Weather. You can get the current temperatures, a five day forecast, and such weather arcana as the dewpoint and windchills (don't look...it's not always this cold).

Now you need to decide how you are coming to BareIt's.

Planes	Trains
Automobiles	Boats
Buses	Carpools

Planes

Halifax has an international airport, melodiously called Halifax International Airport and operating 24 hours per day, and providing more than 120 departures daily from Halifax to 30 destinations in North America and Europe.  If you're flying to Halifax, this is where you will be coming in. Several major airlines fly here direct, including Air Canada, Canadian Airlines, Air Nova, Air Atlantic, and Icelandair with other airlines like Delta offering seasonal flights. There are non-stop flights from Newark, NJ, and Boston, MA and it's about an 18 hour flight sans delays from San Francisco, California. You can check with your local travel agent or you can look around on-line. Halifax International Airport is 35 km (21 miles) from downtown Halifax along Highway 102, and about 30 km (18 miles) from downtown Dartmouth. To get to Halifax proper, you can get a bus or rent a car.

Trains

Via Rail provides passenger train service from the rest of Canada, connecting with US Amtrak services in many cities. There is one train per day departing at 1:30pm every day except Tuesday (I don't know why...the buses don't run to Halifax in the mornings on Wednesday..they just don't.)  The train station is located in the south end of peninsular Halifax. For more information from Via Rail, call: 1-800-561-3952 (not sure if the number works outside of Canada...if someone tries it and it doesn't, let me know.) For Amtrak, call 1-800-USA-RAIL.

Automobiles

Expedia Maps, mentioned above, also has a great service where you enter your starting point and your destination and it gives you driving directions, including estimated travel times.  We do not recommend RAPpers from outside of the Americas drive (that Atlantic Ocean thing tends to make the trip a little wet!). Good News: Your AAA works here. We have the CAA and they have an agreement that covers you here.  

From the north and the airport, Route 102 (Bicentennial Drive) brings you into downtown Halifax via Bayers Road. Route 118 from Route 102 connects with Route 107 to the Eastern Shore and Route 111 (the Circumferential Highway circling Dartmouth). This route then leads to downtown Halifax via the Mackay Bridge. Routes 3 and 103 come from the South Shore. Route 101 comes from the Annapolis Valley and Yarmouth. If you're coming from the USA, you can reach Nova Scotia by driving through New Brunswick or you can take one of the ferry services listed below.

Boats

You can almost get to Halifax via a number of ferry services. Probably the most famous is the high-speed Cat, which make it in 2.5 hours from Bar Harbor to Yarmouth, Nova Scotia. The catch is that the bus service to Halifax was just discontinued and we don't know yet if someone else is taking it over. Car rentals are still available for those who don't bring their car over on the ferry or lose it in the on board casino (hopefully a joke).

Bar Harbor, Maine, to Yarmouth, Nova Scotia
(seasonal, June 1 to October 15)
1-888-249-7245

Saint John, New Brunswick, to Digby, Nova Scotia
(year round)
1-888-249-7245

Portland, Maine, to Yarmouth, NS
(seasonal, May to October)
1-207-775-5616

Buses

Acadian Lines provides bus service to Halifax from points throughout Nova Scotia There are connections with SMT Eastern from the neighbouring province of New Brunswick, Voyager from Quebec and Ontario, and Greyhound from the United States.

Once you're in Halifax, you can get around on the Metro Transit. Basically, #1 Spring Garden to Dartmouth either takes you there or takes you to a place that takes you there, besides taking you to my house.  I can't read the schedule to save my life but I know the buses I take regularly fairly well. The good news is that it's really hard to get lost here since we have the Citadel in the center of town.

Carpools

Being environmentally conscious types, we suggest carpooling for a roadtrip to BareIt's. What better than a roadtrip with another poet as a prelude to the picnic? This is your chance to be "on the road".   You can either post on rec.arts.poems that you're looking to carpool or email Ryan or me and we'll see if we know of anyone wanting to play Dean Moriarty to your Sal.

by Joy