Antigonish is a small Nova Scotia town on the Northumberland Shore, best known for St. Francis Xavier University and the Highland Games that take over the town each July. The rest of the year it is quieter, but the campus, cathedral, and Main Street give it more shape than a simple highway stop.
The town has a strong Scottish and Catholic thread, mixed with the energy of a university community. It is also tied to the Antigonish Movement, the cooperative and adult-education movement that grew from StFX and spread through the Maritimes.
Antigonish is not a full-day blockbuster outside festival time, but it is a good, human-scaled stop if you are crossing northern Nova Scotia or heading toward Cape Breton.