Summerside can be explored through a wide range of themes: from the history of fox farming on Prince Edward Island to historic homes, touring productions and cycling along the waterfront. To help you choose, consider the different formats: museums tell stories through exhibitions and objects, tours focus on specific themes, and the theatre offers a different cultural programme. The Confederation Trail, several urban trails and a large city park also appeal to different interests.
Museums and Historic Themes
The PEI Fox Museum presents the history of the people who made fox farming a globally significant industry on Prince Edward Island through exhibits, artefacts and authentic stories. An interactive, self-guided tour explores the history of the island’s silver fox industry. This lets you encounter the subject both through the stories of the people involved and through a tour you can take independently. Before visiting, check the booking information that applies during the season or off-season.
The Lefurgey Cultural Centre at 205 Prince Street is a designated heritage property. It is protected by the municipality and listed on the provincial and national heritage registers. At the MacNaught History Centre, the focus is on a single object: a small exhibition room houses a gold pocket watch that belonged to Canada’s first prime minister, Sir John A. MacDonald. The historic sites therefore offer different perspectives: at Lefurgey, the building’s heritage status takes centre stage, while the MacNaught features a specific keepsake. Since exhibition content can change, it is worth checking before your visit.
The Wyatt House Museum was built in 1867 and was the home of the prominent Wyatt family. The museum offers a one-hour tour covering people, places, ghost stories and artefacts. The tour takes you from the historic house to the stories and objects it features. Check tour times for the season in which you plan to visit.
Theatre, Lessons and Events
The Harbourfront Theatre in Summerside is open year-round and has more than 500 seats. Touring productions of comedy, music, dance, drama and family entertainment are staged there. The programme’s range offers a different cultural experience from the history-focused museums: the theatre puts a variety of performing arts centre stage.
The College of Piping offers lessons in bagpiping, Scottish snare drumming, step dancing and Highland dancing in Summerside. These four disciplines combine music lessons with dance and show the variety of subjects covered by the programme.
The Historic Ghostwalk is an annual, one-day tour through Summerside’s historic district. Topics include Halloween stories and the island’s dark history. If you’re planning to take the tour on a future trip, check the dates and ticketing for that year.
Cycling and Parks
The Confederation Trail runs through the centre of Summerside. It includes a pavilion marking the birthplace of the Trans Canada Trail. Visitors can also cycle along the waterfront and on several urban trails. These offer two different points of orientation: the trail is associated with a named pavilion, while the waterfront and urban trails are described as cycling options.
At 53 acres, Rotary Friendship Park is Summerside’s largest city park. Its size makes it a clearly identifiable park destination within the city. Alongside the cultural attractions, this gives you a choice of exhibitions, tours, stage performances, cycling and a city park, without having to combine these activities into a fixed itinerary.
Discover More Destinations
Bedeque, Tignish, Kensington, Miscouche, Borden-Carleton, O'leary, Prince Edward
For the broader travel overview: Prince County.
