North America > Canada > New Brunswick > Fredericton
Fredericton is the capital of New Brunswick, sitting on a wide bend of the Saint John River well inland from the Bay of Fundy coast. It's a compact city of about 65,000 people — the smallest provincial capital in Canada, perhaps, but a surprisingly pleasant one. The downtown is walkable and handsome, with the green riverbank, Victorian public buildings, and the military heritage of the old Garrison District giving it more character than its modest size would suggest.
The city owes much of its cultural infrastructure to Max Aitken, Lord Beaverbrook, the New Brunswick-born press baron who made his fortune in Britain and spent some of it on his hometown. He funded the Beaverbrook Art Gallery, the Fredericton Playhouse, and various other institutions in a fit of hometown loyalty that was slightly improbable given how thoroughly he had escaped the place. The result is that Fredericton has better arts facilities than a city of its size has any right to.
The riverfront trail and the old Historic Garrison District form the natural focus of a visit. The Boyce Farmers Market on Saturday mornings is genuinely excellent — one of the best in the Maritimes — and Christ Church Cathedral is worth a visit for its architecture. The Fredericton Region Museum in the old Officers' Barracks has some wonderfully eccentric exhibits, including the famous Coleman Frog.
Fredericton works well as a base for exploring central New Brunswick. The Trans-Canada Highway passes nearby, and the city is roughly equidistant from Moncton and Saint John. In October the surrounding countryside puts on a memorable autumn foliage show.