The Cheticamp Area

A traditional fishing village in northern Nova Scotia, Cheticamp is recognized as a worldwide leader in preserving Acadian culture. The residents are known for their hospitality and friendliness and for its hooked rugs and folk art.

Whether you love history and culture or nature and wildlife, this tiny community of fewer than 4,000 people has plenty for you to enjoy.

Chéticamp is located in the northwestern corner of Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia. It is nestled between the Gulf of St Lawrence and the highlands of Cape Breton at the entrance of the Cape Breton Highland National Park.

The community is a 2-hour drive from the JA Douglas McCurdy Sydney Airport in Reserve Mines and about 4 hours from The Halifax Stanfield International Airport, where most major international flights arrive. There is no public transportation to Cheticamp -- in order to reach the community, you’ll have to have your own transportation.

Our Acadian Culture

The Acadians are the descendants of French settlers who first came to North America in the early 1600s. They made their homes in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and on Prince Edward Island, as well as in parts of Quebec and Maine. The Acadian community was distinct from the French colony of Canada (now modern-day Quebec) in terms of customs, culture, and dialect.

Eventually, the violent struggle to control North America found its way to the Acadians. A simplified explanation is that while the Acadians were neutral during the war between the French and the Biritish for the control of North America, the British feared that the Acadians would eventually support the French. The Acadians refused to sign an oath of allegiance to the British, in part because they feared they’d be forced to fight the French and also because it would have hurt their friendship with the Mi’kmaq people.

From 1755 to 1764, the British carried out the Great Expulsion of the Acadian people. An estimated 11,500 Acadians were displaced and deported, and up to a third died from drowning and disease. Many of those who survived eventually returned to the area, while some settled in Louisiana and helped establish Cajun culture there.

The story of the Acadians has a happy ending. Their culture is thriving in New Brunswick, in many areas of Nova Scotia -- including Cheticamp, which is considered an Acadian “capital” of sorts -- and elsewhere in the region.