Port Hood Beach

Quick Facts

About Port Hood Beach

Port Hood Beach is a kilometre of fine sand on Cape Breton's Sunset Coast, about 310 km — roughly three and a quarter hours — from Halifax, sitting below the town of Port Hood inside Port Hood Station Provincial Park. The shallow water over the sandy bottom warms to around 18°C in July and 20°C in August — often the warmest ocean swimming on the island — and the surf stays gentle enough that families with young children make this their base for the week. The town fronts five distinct beach areas along its shoreline; the provincial park beach is the best-appointed, with free parking, washrooms, change rooms, and picnic tables. There is no lifeguard supervision. Crowd levels are medium in July and August, and the sand is broad enough that it never feels full. Wheelchair access is partial, and dogs are welcome on leash. Port Hood itself is small and unhurried — a beach town in the honest sense, with a harbour, an island swim-gap, and the waterfront views that give the coast its name. Come for the day and stay for the light: the beach faces due west across the gulf, and evening swims here happen in the glow of the best sunsets on Cape Breton's west coast.

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Location & Directions

GPS: 46.014400, -61.537500

Region: Cape Breton | County: Inverness | Near: Port Hood

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