Digby

Digby is a town of 2,000 people (2016) in Nova Scotia.

Understand

Tidal Boatworks, Digby

Digby is a blue collar town that is home to a fleet of sea scallop trawlers. It has a number of dive bars, and waterfront patio restaurants serving the fleet's famous catch. It was named after Admiral Robert Digby.

History

Digby was called Oositookun, meaning "ear of land" by the Mi'kmaq First Nations (Aboriginal) people. A small group of New England Planters settled in the area of the town in the 1760s, naming it Conway. Digby was settled and surveyed as a town in June 1783 by the United Empire Loyalists under the leadership of Sir Robert Digby.

The town developed a sizable shipping fleet in the 19th century. The town became an important regional transportation centre in the 1890s with the arrival of the Dominion Atlantic Railway. Trains connected with a series of steamships such as the City of Monticello and later the SS Princess Helene.

Get in

By car

It is a 220-km drive along Highway 101 from Halifax.

By bus

• Kathleen's Shuttle. Shuttle service from Halifax. (updated Nov 2022)

By ferry

If you're travelling from southern New Brunswick, your best bet is to take Bay Ferries from Saint John. There are two crossings daily from mid-June to mid-October, these take 2½ hours on average. During the rest of the year there is at least one crossing daily and they usually take 2 hr 45 min. $37 per adult passenger and $119 for a car (April 2017). Book online, and check on at the terminal to get your boarding pass when you arrive. Restaurant, cafeteria and wifi on board.

See

• Digby Harbour. 
• 1 Sandy Cove.  
• 2 Admiral Digby Museum, 95 Montague Row, ☏ +1 902 245-6322, admuseum@ns.sympatico.ca. Digby's history is preserved and interpreted by this museum, which faces the harbour in the historic Woodrow/Dakin home, one of the oldest houses in the town. (updated Sep 2016)

The Balancing Column on Long Island

• Balancing Column on Long Island (Drive 46 km S on Rte 217 down the Right Neck to East Ferry, take the ferry across the Petit Passage ($7/car return, every hour at :30) to Tiverton on Long Island, drive another 4 km on 217 to the Balancing Rock Trail). 8:30AM-8PM year-round. A 1.7-km hike on a well-maintained trail to a column of basalt 6.1 m high by 1.2 m wide balancing on its end over the Bay of Fundy. Free. (updated May 2017)

Do

Events

• Scallop Days Festival. Held annually over 3 days in the first week of August, it showcases the town’s history and heritage to visitors. The festival offers a variety of themed activities for all ages, including scallop-shucking contests, a parade, and an exhibition of local artists. (updated May 2019)
• Wharf Rat Rally: . Canada's largest multi-day bikers rally. The town of 2,000 residents grows to 50,000 people, including 25,000 motorcycles. The Wharf Rat Rally event is held the first weekend of September (Labour Day) each year. (date needs fixing)

Buy

Many, but not all, of Digby's shops and restaurants close during the off-season. This is roughly from Canadian Thanksgiving (mid-October) to the beginning of June.

Eat

The town of Digby is well known for its sea scallops, which are celebrated in mid-August every year during the Digby Scallop Days Festival.

Scallops are, however, harvested year-round. Many restaurants are open only during the tourist season beginning in early May.

• Fundy Restaurant, 34 Water St., ☏ +1 902 245-4950, fax: +1 902 245-6680, fundycomplex@eastlink.ca. 11:30AM-8PM. Complex with restaurants, bars, hotel. Scallops and lobster are priced seasonally, e.g. in April 2017, psm-fried scallops were $23.50 for 6 oz (179 g) or $28 for 8 oz (225 g). Mains $10-30. 
• 1 Boardwalk Cafe (Boardwalk Cafe & Suites), 40 Water Street, ☏ +1 902-245-5497, wharvieux@gmail.com. 11AM-2PM. 
• House of Wong Restaurant, 104 Water St.. Daily 11AM-10PM. Chinese restaurant. $10-25. (updated Apr 2017)

Sleep

There are a number of motels and B&Bs in and around the town.

• 1 The Harbourview Inn, 25 Harbourview Road, Smiths Cove, ☏ +1 902 245-5686. 
• 2 Digby Pines Golf Resort & Spa, ☏ +1 902 245-2511, toll-free: +1-800-667-4637, fax: +1 902 245-6133, pines@digbypines.ca. 
• 3 Coastal Inn Digby, 111 Warwick Street, ☏ +1 902 245-4747. 
• Digby Backpackers Inn, 168 Queen St., ☏ +1 902 245-4573, info@digbyhostel.com. Check-in: 4PM-9PM, no arrivals after 10PM. Includes simple breakfast, bedlinen, towel, free WIFI, fully equipped kitchen, large shared living room and outdoor space (including fire pit, bbq and garden area). Pay in cash on arrival. Dorm $30 plus HST per person. Private room with queen bed and bunk beds, shared bath: $65 plus HST per night for up to 2 guests. (updated May 2017)
• Digby Campground and Fun Park, 230 Victoria St. Water-front family camping on the Bay of Fundy. Facilities for tents, trailers and RVs with full hookups. Laundry and pay showers are available on site. Free Wifi. RV dumping station available. $30-50. (updated May 2019)

Go next

Routes through Digby

END ← Yarmouth ←	W  E	→ Jct N S → Wolfville → Halifax
END ← Yarmouth ← Jct S ←	W  E	→ Annapolis Royal → Bedford
Saint John ← ferry ←	N  S	→ END