An Afternoon in Downtown Dartmouth, Halifax
*POST UPDATED MARCH 2024.
Sweet sweet friends, hello! How are you? We’re having a really productive week in regards to wedding planning, but a pretty meh one in regards to everything else. But I’m hopeful that things will start looking up as we get closer to the weekend. Anyways! I’m here today to share a new Canadian travel guide with you: An Afternoon in Downtown Dartmouth, Halifax. Initially, I’d planned to share my Halifax travel guide with you today, but it’s nowhere near finished. It would appear I have a lot more to say about the Nova Scotia capital than I originally realised! In the meantime, I thought I’d tell you about the afternoon Fiancé & I spent in Dartmouth, a city off the eastern shore of Halifax. Shall we?
An Afternoon in Downtown Dartmouth, Halifax
An Afternoon in Downtown Dartmouth, Halifax
fun facts & before you visit
I’m sorry if my penchant for fun facts irritates you – but not enough to stop sharing them. Fun facts + one little ‘good-to-know’ nugget listed below!
• Dartmouth has two nicknames: City of Lakes and Darkside. As ominous as Darkside sounds, apparently it’s in reference to the fact that, from a distance, the lights in Dartmouth look darker than those in Halifax. Less ominously, City of Lakes refers to the fact that Dartmouth is home to 23 lakes.
• Dartmouth used to be a standalone city in its own right, but technically it no longer is. In 1996, Dartmouth, along with Halifax City + Halifax County and Bedford Town, were all individually dissolved and instead amalgamated to form Halifax Regional Municipality, a larger capital district. Having said that! From what I’ve read online/heard people talk about, the proud Dartmouthians very much see their city as a standalone and totally different city to Halifax.
• from our own personal experience, and a quick Google search now, there are areas of Dartmouth that can be a little dodgy. The downtown area seems to be relatively safe, but the further afield you go, the higher the drug/crime-rate becomes. That reads worse than I mean it to, and we didn’t have any bad experiences per se, it was just a vibe we both became aware of on less populated streets. Better to know than not know!
An Afternoon in Downtown Dartmouth, Halifax
An Afternoon in Downtown Dartmouth, Halifax
getting there
Dartmouth is really actually quite close to Halifax, but there are a few different ways of getting there. Naturally, if you have wheels, you could always drive – but where’s the fun in that? Information on the two main modes of transport listed below!
• we took the ferry from Halifax Ferry Terminal to Alderney Gate Ferry Terminal. The service is super regular, fast -12 minutes! – and pleasingly cheap! We sat upstairs to take in the views of Halifax skyline (pictured at the top of this post) and it was honestly such a nice thing to do! Fun fact: the Halifax-Alderney ferry is the oldest saltwater ferry service in North America, and the second oldest in the whole world! For more info on the ferry + timetables, click here.
• if you don’t want to take a ride on the oldest saltwater ferry service in NA, what’s wrong with you? Kidding, kind of. You can also get to Dartmouth from Halifax by bus, either with HALIFAX TRANSIT or Maritime Bus. However! The journey takes longer than the ferry crossing, and it’s like x4 times the price – just saying! More info on bus timetables here.
An Afternoon in Downtown Dartmouth, Halifax
An Afternoon in Downtown Dartmouth, Halifax
where we had coffee
Two If By Sea // great coffee, bizarre pastries – and not in a good way. Going by the reviews online, I feel like we’re potentially the only people who think this, but the pastries are so bad! The pain au chocolat we shared here was made with pizza dough or similar; it was incredibly tough and chewy, and, save for the warm melted chocolate pumped into the centre, it was almost inedible. It’s a pity, because the space & the coffee were rather nice, but I likely wouldn’t return. Address: 66 Ochterloney St, Dartmouth, NS B2Y 1C2
An Afternoon in Downtown Dartmouth, Halifax
An Afternoon in Downtown Dartmouth, Halifax
where we had lunch
The Canteen on Portland // it seemed like everyone in Dartmouth was eating here when we visited, such a busy little spot! We both opted for the special sandwich of the day: a BLT with fried green tomatoes. Never having had fried green tomatoes before, we both really enjoyed it! It was perfectly saucy, the bacon was great, and it was lovely & pickley – but we both thought it would’ve been better on regular bread rather than in a burger bun. We enjoyed our BLTs with local beers – a Killick Session Lager for me, and Propeller’s Pilsner for Fiancé, both of which went down easy. Overall, nice staff, beautiful space, and fun pineapple wallpaper in the bathrooms. Would recommend. Address: 22 Portland St, Dartmouth, NS B2Y 1G9
An Afternoon in Downtown Dartmouth, Halifax
An Afternoon in Downtown Dartmouth, Halifax
where we shopped
The Trainyard General Store // the cutest little home goods store! We spent a good while looking around at all the lovely locally-made trinkets: clothes, candles, soaps, and fun little souvenir bits & pieces. Eventually we came across a cute wedding card that we simply had to buy for Fiancé’s cousin & new bride; it read: your wedding was so beautiful, I basically cried the entire time, which is incredibly apt for their wedding! Would recommend. Address: 137 Portland St, Dartmouth, NS B2Y 1H9
An Afternoon in Downtown Dartmouth, Halifax
An Afternoon in Downtown Dartmouth, Halifax
where we tourist-ed
Seeing as we were only in Dartmouth for a few short hours, we didn’t really have time to get up to much, but we tried our best! Here are the semi-touristy things we hit up:
Downtown Dartmouth Street Art + Murals // there’s loads of cool street art dotted around Dartmouth! We just accidentally stumbled across a few of these colourful walls and inspiring word murals and thought they were pretty quirky and unusual, no? If you’re into it, exact locations shared here. Would recommend.
Ferry Terminal Park + Harbourwalk Trail // quite a nice spot for a stroll! We followed the trail along to the Cancer Survivor’s Daffodil Garden and it was so beautiful, calm, and serene. It started drizzling slightly as we walked along, so it wasn’t exactly as pleasant as it could have been, but still. Would recommend. Address: 88 Alderney Dr, Dartmouth, NS B2Y 0B4
An Afternoon in Downtown Dartmouth, Halifax
An Afternoon in Downtown Dartmouth, Halifax
And there we have it: An Afternoon in Downtown Dartmouth, Halifax. A short but sweet recap of everything we got up to during our time on the Darkside. What did you think/have you been to Dartmouth before? I’d love to hear any thoughts or comments, just hit me up using the box below!
Hugs,
Vicki & Rob xo
An Afternoon in Downtown Dartmouth, Halifax
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