The Red-Cliff Canadian Island That Inspired Anne of Green Gables
5 Reasons to Visit® · Prince Edward Island
The Red-Cliff Canadian Island That Inspired Anne of Green Gables
Rust-red cliffs, green farm fields, and the real Green Gables farmhouse — Prince Edward Island is the gentle Canadian island that gave the world Anne, and it's every bit as storybook as she promised.
Advertisement
Prince Edward Island is the kind of place that seems almost too charming to be real — which is exactly why it inspired one of the most beloved stories in the world. Canada's smallest province, a crescent of rolling green farmland edged by rust-red sandstone cliffs and white-sand beaches in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, PEI is where author Lucy Maud Montgomery set "Anne of Green Gables." More than a century later, the island remains as gentle, pastoral, and storybook-beautiful as the novel promised, drawing visitors from around the globe — many of them lifelong Anne fans making a genuine pilgrimage.
Advertisement
Anne is everywhere, and the pilgrimage is real. In Cavendish, on the island's north shore, you can visit Green Gables Heritage Place — the actual farmhouse that inspired the fictional home — along with the site of Montgomery's own home and the woodland trails ("Lover's Lane," the "Haunted Wood") that shaped her imagination. For readers who grew up with Anne Shirley, standing in the green-gabled farmhouse is a moving, bucket-list experience, and the island embraces its most famous daughter with pride rather than kitsch.
The island's beauty needs no fiction, though. PEI's signature is color: iron-rich red soil and cliffs against green fields and blue sea, a palette found almost nowhere else. Prince Edward Island National Park protects miles of that coastline — dramatic red bluffs, rolling dunes, and gentle beaches with some of the warmest saltwater north of the Carolinas — and lighthouses dot the shore. Cycling the Confederation Trail across the island or driving its coastal routes reveals a landscape of postcard farms and fishing harbors at every turn.
Red-sand cliffs, the real Green Gables, and world-famous seafood on Canada's storybook island.
Advertisement
The food is a genuine draw. Surrounded by cold Atlantic water, PEI is famous for its seafood — above all its lobster (lobster suppers are an island institution) and its Malpeque oysters, considered among the best in the world — along with the potatoes that carpet its red fields. Farm-to-table restaurants, oyster shacks, seafood festivals, and roadside lobster rolls make eating your way around the island one of its great pleasures.
Getting there is half the fun. Since 1997, the soaring eight-mile Confederation Bridge — one of the longest in the world over ice-covered water — has linked PEI to the mainland, a genuine engineering marvel and a dramatic arrival, while a seasonal ferry offers another scenic route. Beyond Cavendish, the tidy capital of Charlottetown (birthplace of Canadian Confederation), the fishing villages, and the quiet eastern and western shores reward slow exploration.
Prince Edward Island is honest about being seasonal — it comes alive in summer and quiets dramatically in the long Maritime winter, and Anne-related sites draw crowds in July and August. But its gentle beauty is timeless and genuine. Red-sand cliffs, the real Green Gables, world-famous seafood, and pastoral island calm have made PEI one of the most enchanting destinations in Canada. For the visitor it offers a storybook come to life — an island as warm, wholesome, and beautiful as the character it gave the world.
Prince Edward Island, Prince Edward Island: FAQ
Is Prince Edward Island worth visiting?
Yes. Prince Edward Island offers the Anne of Green Gables sites at Cavendish (including the real Green Gables farmhouse), the red cliffs, dunes, and warm beaches of PEI National Park, scenic lighthouse coastlines, world-famous lobster and Malpeque oysters, the historic capital of Charlottetown, and the dramatic Confederation Bridge. It's a gentle, storybook island and one of the most charming destinations in Canada.
What is Prince Edward Island known for?
Prince Edward Island is known as the setting and inspiration for 'Anne of Green Gables,' with author L.M. Montgomery's Cavendish landmarks drawing fans worldwide. It's also famous for its distinctive red-sand cliffs and soil, warm-water beaches, lighthouses, world-class seafood (lobster and Malpeque oysters), potatoes, the capital Charlottetown, and the eight-mile Confederation Bridge.
How do you get to Prince Edward Island?
Prince Edward Island is connected to mainland Canada by the Confederation Bridge, an eight-mile span (one of the world's longest over ice-covered water) from New Brunswick, opened in 1997. A seasonal car ferry also runs from Nova Scotia, and the island has an airport at Charlottetown with connections to major Canadian cities.
Where is Green Gables on Prince Edward Island?
Green Gables Heritage Place — the farmhouse that inspired 'Anne of Green Gables' — is in Cavendish, on PEI's north shore, within the Prince Edward Island National Park area. It's part of a cluster of L.M. Montgomery sites, including the author's home site and the woodland trails that inspired her writing, and it's the island's most visited attraction.
Advertisement
