Contact New Brunswick’s Department of Investment and Transport for travel information (800-561-0123) or go to www.tourismnbcanada.com . Air Nova, a subsidiary of Air Canada, flies into New Brunswick’s main cities. According to tourism officials, most people think of New Brunswick more as a “pass-through” destination to nearby Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island than as a goal in itself. They hope to counter this by exploiting the popularity of “adventure travel,” with a series of one-day programs offering sailing, hiking, whale watching, horseback riding, or kayaking. This last is especially rewarding along the Bay of Fundy’s dramatic coastline, where the tides rise nearly 50 feet twice a day. Another natural wonder worth exploring is the seven-mile length of protected sand dune near the Acadian community of Bouctouche, run by the Irving Eco-Centre. It is one of the few remaining extensive stretches of dune in North America, and you can trek much of its length on a boardwalk raised above the sand.

In Moncton I found a curiously memorable place to stay, though not for old-world charm—which the bustling city, Acadia’s intellectual and commercial center, is short on. This was the grandly named Best Western Crystal Palace, a modern structure set on a commercial strip that any American would recognize. The Crystal Palace offered more than seemed at all likely. For one thing, it is attached to a large indoor amusement park—merry-go-round, bumper cars, roller coaster, and all—which is accessible to hotel guests by use of their room keys. Also, it has a dozen themed suites, decorated with cheerful lunacy. The focal point of my Victorian Suite was not the four-poster bed or the coy prints on the wall but the columned, marble Jacuzzi that took up half the room. The Western Suite’s Jacuzzi was edged by waves of plaster desert; maybe best of all, the Rock ’n’ Roll Suite had a bed fashioned out of a 1959 pink Cadillac.