See what Islanders by choice
are saying about the Island Effect. See what "Islander by Choice" Dr.
Elizabeth Epperly, world-renowned expert on Lucy Maud Montgomery
and Anne of Green Gables, has to say about Prince Edward Island.
Day One
Drive to Cavendish through the beautiful pastoral farmlands that L.M. Montgomery made
so famous in her books. Your first stop will no doubt be Green
Gables in Prince
Edward Island National Park. Here you will find
preserved the gabled house that inspired the setting of Montgomery's
story of the red-haired orphan. Allow lots of time to explore the
house and grounds with the Haunted Woods, Lovers Lane, interpretive
programs, films on L.M. Montgomery along with gift shops and a
snack counter. Not to be missed in Cavendish is the Lucy
Maud Montgomery's Cavendish Homestead where relatives of the author, John and Jennie
Macneill, still reside and offer guided tours of the grounds and
the opportunity to purchase books from their bookstore. Avonlea
Village has recreated the type of rural community where Anne
lived (music, wagon rides, candy shop and animators in heritage
buildings). Keep your eyes peeled in the Cavendish area, as Anne
and Diana are often seen greeting tourists and performing small
vignettes.
Day Two
Today, you can follow in
Montgomery's footsteps, visiting the charming little home in New
London that was her birthplace displaying her wedding dress and
personal scrapbooks.
Continue on until you come to the Lucy Maud
Montgomery Heritage Museum in Park
Corner. Visit with the Montgomerys,
relatives of the author and see many artifacts from Montgomery's
time spent at this home. Here also, create your own "Anne" memorabilia
with Anne's Perfectly Scrumptious Wild-Rose Tea-Party. As well
in the Park
Corner area visit the Anne
of Green Gables Museum where
you will find artifacts from L.M. Montgomery's time spent with
at this home of her relatives, the Campbells. Allow time for tea
and shopping while on this property at the Shining Waters Craft
Shop & Tea
Room, which also offers special wedding packages arranged in the
parlour where L.M. Montgomery herself was married. Here also, you
can enjoy Matthew's Carriage ride around the Silver Bush property,
down by the Lake of Shining Waters or overlooking pastoral farmland
on the way to a beach. At Gateway
Village in Borden-Carleton you
can fulfill a lifelong urge to have long red braids, as Cavendish
Figurines invites you to have your photo taken while dressed as
Anne. In Lower
Bedeque visit the Lower Bedeque Schoolhouse where
L.M. Montgomery taught school. Look around at the old furnishings,
books and written materials. And in Bideford the local community
has restored the Parsonage and opened it as a museum. Montgomery
lived there in the late 1800s and the site is also a fund of information
on the lifestyle of the era and the Island's shipbuilding industry.
Day
Three
Plan to finish your tour in Charlottetown and
spend the day touring the craft and gift shops looking for the
perfect Anne memorabilia. (Watch for the tags that confirm the
product has been officially authorized by the Anne
of Green Gables Licensing Authority.) The
Anne of Green Gables Store probably has a the most complete selection
of Anne-related goods, including chocolates! Purchase tickets to Anne
of Green Gables - the Musical™ presented at the Confederation
Centre of the Arts. Now in its 42nd season, it is Canada's
longest running family musical and never fails to draw large and
appreciative audiences from mid-June to mid-September. Or why not
drive to Summerside to
the Harbourfront
Jubilee Theatre and attend Anne
and Gilbert which continues the story of Anne
of Green Gables - the Musical™ through
powerful song, dance and comedy. Starring some of Canada’s
finest musical comedy actors, Anne and Gilbert follows Anne into
young adulthood and her tumultuous romance with Gilbert Blythe,
her childhood friend and rival.
Best Anne Buys
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