Hotels in Sydney, Nova Scotia

A little about Sydney...

Sydney (2001 population: 24,115) is an urban community in Nova Scotia's Cape Breton Regional Municipality.

Sydney was incorporated in 1904 and dissolved on August 1, 1995 when it was merged into the regional municipality. Sydney is the largest urban centre on Cape Breton Island. Together with Sydney Mines, North Sydney, New Waterford and Glace Bay it forms the Industrial Cape Breton region.

In recent decades, Cape Breton Island has become home to a significant tourism?industry, with Sydney as the island's largest urban centre, being a prime beneficiary. Until the early 2000s when its economy was tied to the steel industry, Sydney had been overlooked as a tourist destination, with the more centrally-located scenic village of Baddeck being a preferred location for tourists transiting the Cabot Trail, however Sydney has recently witnessed a revival as a result of signficant government investment in cruise ship facilities and a waterfront revitalization plan which has seen a boardwalk and marinas constructed. This funding is part of the post-industrial adjustment package offerred by the federal and provincial governments.

Sydney's tourism draw is increasingly linked to its cultural asset as being the urban heart of Cape Breton Island. Its population is a diverse mixture of nationalities which contributes to various Scottish, Acadian, African Canadian and eastern European cultural events being held throughout the year. Sydney's accomodation sector is centrally located to attractions in Louisbourg (home of the Fortress of Louisbourg), Glace Bay (home of the Glace Bay Miners Museum), Baddeck (home of the Alexander Graham Bell Museum), as well as popular touring destinations such as the Cabot Trail, Cape Breton Highlands National Park, and Bras d'Or Lake.

Port Facility:
Sydney's marine terminal welcomes dozens of cruise ships every year, with the majority visiting in late summer or early fall to take in fall foliage tours. The port is currently underutilized industrially but holds potential as a logistics base for future offshore petroleum and natural gas exploration in the Laurentian Basin, southeast of Cape Breton Island; an area that has been touted as a potential economic catalyst for Industrial Cape Breton.

Cape Breton University and the Nova Scotia Community College's Marconi Campus are located immediately east of Sydney along Highway 4.