Tourists visiting one of Prince Edward Island’s most iconic homes are walking away disappointed, after finding nobody home.
Parks Canada has decided to restrict operating hours at Green Gables, closing on Sunday and Monday during the month of June.
“It’s supposed to be a national treasure and they were here and they wanted to see it on a Sunday and they couldn’t see it on a Sunday,” says tour guide Harry Moreland.
Tourists from every corner of the globe come to see the Cavendish home, made famous by the island’s red-haired heroine, Anne of Green Gables.
“Definitely don’t think it is of any advantage to tourism on this island, for the Green Gables house to be closed up so early,” says Moreland. “We need to prolong the shoulder seasons on the island.”
Green Gables Heritage Place is owned by Parks Canada, which reduced their national budget this year by over $29 million. They also reduced the number of days some sites are open.
“To better reflect those periods of visitations, for those times when we have the most visitors in our parks and our sites, we focused our investments there and we minimized our off-season shoulder requirements,” says Parks Canada spokesperson Karen Jams.
Cavendish storeowner Grace Gallant says she has had tourists come into her shop who were confused by the hours of operation at Green Gables.
“They were checking on the handbook, the guide and it says it is open daily, but then when they went there, it is closed,” says Gallant. “They seen a bus, a tour bus and they said it’s only for the tour bus.”
Tourist Sheila Baker says she has also had to wait to visit the site.
“We had an idea that it might be closed on Sunday, but certainly not Monday,” says Baker.
The grounds will be open seven days a week starting in July.
With files from CTV Atlantic's Martin Poirier
