Confederation Trail

A gentle, end-to-end rail trail ride across Prince Edward Island with minimal climbing and easy logistics.

Time to Ride: Most riders plan 4-7 days for an end-to-end trip, depending on daily distance and how often you detour off-trail for beaches and towns.

Best Time to Go: Best in May-Oct for reliable services and comfortable temperatures. Summer is the busiest, with more bookings needed in popular stops.

Getting there: Start at the western end in Tignish and finish at Elmira, or ride the other way. The most common gateway is Charlottetown (airport and main services), with road access to both ends.

Costs: Budget mainly for accommodation, food, and any bike rental or one-way transport/shuttle. Budget mainly for accommodation, food, and any bike rental or one-way transport/shuttle.

Difficulty: Easy - it follows a former railway corridor with little to no grades and a well-drained stone-dust surface.

The Confederation Trail is a 273 kilometre recreational rail trail system spanning Prince Edward Island from Tignish to Elmira. It uses almost the total mileage of the historic Prince Edward Island Railway, giving it a naturally gentle profile and a broad, steady corridor through farmland, woods, and small settlements.

The trail grew out of the end of rail service on the island, after all railway lines were abandoned on December 31, 1989 by Canadian National Railway. Advocacy that began at a meeting in Charlottetown on August 3, 1989 helped shape the vision, and the provincial government purchased the entire railway right-of-way from CN in 1994 after track removal.

Completed end-to-end in 2000, the route is managed by the provincial government and marked with kilometre posts, directional and interpretive signage, benches, shelters, and scenic lookouts. The surface is stone dust over railway ballast, and the trail is crossed frequently by public roads, making it easy to tailor day rides or a full island traverse.

• Stage 1: Tignish to Summerside (55 km) - A quiet western run through agricultural country and sheltering tree sections, staying on the rail corridor with easy gradients.
• Stage 2: Summerside to Kensington (40 km) - Gentle, shaded cruising with frequent road crossings; a good short day if you are settling into the stone-dust surface.
• Stage 3: Kensington to Charlottetown (55 km) - The route trends toward the island’s hub, with steady rail-trail riding and the best access to bike shops and supplies on the whole trip.
• Stage 4: Charlottetown to Morell (45 km) - You leave the city behind quickly, riding a mix of wooded stretches and open farmland as the trail heads east.
• Stage 5: Morell to St. Peters Bay (40 km) - A relaxed rural day on the former railway formation, with long uninterrupted sections between communities.
• Stage 6: St. Peters Bay to Elmira (38 km) - The final push to the eastern end of the island on the same easy-grade corridor, finishing at the official trail terminus.

The main cycling season is May-Oct, when accommodation, food options, and bike services in towns are operating more reliably. Expect the busiest conditions in mid-summer, particularly around Charlottetown.

In winter the trail is leased to the PEI Snowmobile Association from December 1 to March 31 each year, so it is not a dependable through-route for cycling then. Shoulder-season rides can be cooler and quieter, but services between towns may be reduced.

Most international visitors base logistics around Charlottetown, which has the island’s main airport and the densest range of services. From Charlottetown, you can reach the trail at multiple points for a one-way ride, or organise a drop to the west end at Tignish or pick-up from the east end at Elmira.

Riders tackle the trail in both directions, but the classic end-to-end line is Tignish to Elmira because it follows the full completed corridor described as west-to-east across the island.

Check with provincial authorities if you plan organised events, commercial tours, or other uses that might require permission; the trail is generally non-motorized for walkers and cyclists (horses are not allowed). It is a non-motorized path for most of the year (horses are not allowed), with kilometre posts plus directional and interpretive signage.

For touring setup, the riding surface is stone dust over railway crushed rock ballast - comfortable on touring tyres and most hybrids, with wider tyres preferable after rain. Bike rentals and repairs are easiest to arrange in and around Charlottetown; for end-to-end riders, a one-way bike solution or shuttle is often the key piece to plan in advance.

Overnight options are easiest when you plan days that start or end in larger towns such as Summerside and Charlottetown, where you will find the widest choice of inns, hotels, and guesthouses. Smaller communities along the corridor can have limited inventory, especially in peak summer.

If you want flexibility, plan your stages around places with multiple accommodation choices and book ahead for July and August. Campgrounds and simpler lodgings exist in season, but availability varies by area and time of year, so do not assume you can always turn up and find a spot late in the day.