The year 2008 marks the 100th anniversary of the publishing of L.M. Montgomery’s landmark first novel, Anne of Green Gables. Set in Prince Edward Island, the novel about a red-haired orphan put the little island of red soil on the international map. P.E.I. hasn’t forgotten and the province’s tourism supporters are gearing up already for the centennial year of festivities. Here’s the Top 10 “Love to Love Anne” sights in P.E.I. to visit.
1. Avonlea Village
Located in Cavendish, the interactive village offers visitors the chance to live the Anne story taking them back to 1908 through song and sets. Costumed actors guide your way around the miniature houses and they will have you singing for ice cream in no time.Call: 902-963-3050, or visit the website.
2. Anne and Gilbert Live
Want to see what happens when Anne grows up and Gilbert comes a courting? Anne and Gilbert is the musical version of this love story based on - you guessed it - L.M Montgomery’s characters of the same name. Watch the title characters romantically sing their way to adulthood at the Harbourfront Jubilee Theatre in Summerside July to September.Call: 1-800-708-6505, or visit the website.
3. Anne the Musical
This is the original Anne-based musical that’s given Charlottetown mega-musical street credibility. The year 2006 marks its 42nd season and an estimated 1.5 million people have seen the show since it opened on July 27, 1965.Ticket information: Confederation Centre, Charlottetown, 1-800-565-0278, or visit the website.
4. The Anne Tea Party
Dine on raspberry cordial and slices of pound cake at the Delta Prince Edward Hotel. By special arrangement, guests of two or more can book an Anne Party for $60 per person. The lucky participants get treated tea party style to sweets and a live musical performance by an Anne impersonator. At the end, don a period costume and take your photo with Anne, or as Anne if you put on the wig and hat.Call 902-894-1208, or visit the website.
5. Green Gables Original Site
Every summer about 2,000 people per day flood through the gates of this Prince Edward Island National Park to enjoy the wooded hills and walking trails. But this site, acquired by Parks Canada in 1937, offers a twist. Here, fact and fiction blur. The farm house preserved on the property was the home of Montgomery’s relatives and is apparently the inspiration for Green Gables of novel fame. The surrounding forest is the haunted woods that inspired Anne’s imagination.Call 902-963-7874.
6. L.M. Montgomery Grave
Anne of Green Gable’s author was born in PEI in 1874 and raised in Cavendish by her maternal grandparents after her mother’s death 21 months after L.M.’s birth. She moved to Ontario after marrying at the age of 36 but returned to her final resting place in Cavendish after she died in 1942. She’s buried in a simple grave in her home town and occasionally visitors stop to pay respects.7. Lucy Maud Montgomery Birthplace
If you’re going to stop to see where she’s buried, it’s worth stopping at the corner of Routes 6 and 20 to see where she was born. In a cramped white and green farm house decorated with Victorian furnishings the exact room of the author’s birth is preserved, along with a replica of her wedding dress and several personal scrapbooks containing early drafts of poems.Call 902-886-2099 for hours.
8. Sliver Bush Farms
Also known as the Anne of Green Gables Museum at Park Corner, this farm house is owned and lived in by George Campbell and his sister who are great-grandchildren of L.M. They opened the site, where Montgomery was married by the Lake of the Shining Waters, as a museum in 1972. An added bonus is the horse-drawn carriage rides around the lake while George spins a few tales in true Mathew Cuthbert style.Call 1-800-665-2663, or visit the website.
9. Anne Store
The Green Gables Store in downtown Charlottetown is the place to stop for all your Anne-related souvenirs. From preserves with her smiling face on the label to watches, to mugs to china sets to dolls of all sizes, it’s here. If there’s an Anne lover on your holiday present list, stock up. You’ll also want to drop into the Anne of Green Gables Chocolate store next door.Victoria Row, Charlottetown, 902-368-2663, or visit the website.
10. Lucy Maud Dining Room
Ok, this doesn’t have much to do with the famed Anne author or her books, but the namesake dining room offers the best view of the Charlottetown Harbour in the capital city. Plus, it’s run by the students and staff of The Culinary Institute of Canada so you’ll be one of the first to experience the creations of up-and-coming East Coast chefs.Call 902-894-6868.
