The Keltic Lodge has 32 guest rooms and two luxury suites in the Main Lodge, 40 guest rooms at the Inn at Keltic, five two-bedroom cottages and five four-bedroom cottages with fireplaces and verandahs. Several executive cottages with private cliff-side backyards are also available. Recreation facilities on the property or in the surrounding area include a heated outdoor pool, nearby Ingonish Beach, hiking wilderness trails, lawn games, whale watching, Aveda Spa, and boat cruises. Adjacent to the resort is a highlight of Cape Breton golf—the 18-hole championship Highlands Links Golf Course, ranked by Score Golf Magazine as Atlantic Canada's Top Public Course in 2009. The Keltic Lodge operates from June to October annually and has been in business since July 1940. It is owned by the Nova ScotiaProvincial Government and is managed and operated by Gold North Holdings Ltd.
History
In 1936, the land was expropriated by the Nova Scotia government from Henry and Julia Corson of Akron, Ohio. The Middlehead Peninsula, on which the Corson's land was situated, was highly desired after the federal government created the Cape Breton Highlands National Park. The Keltic Lodge was in operation for two seasons, but because of wartime shortages and overseas fighting, the government closed the hotel in 1942. 1943–44, with the abandoned luxury and nearby protected harbour, Keltic Lodge was a favorite shore leave destination for U-boat crews. In 1946, after the end of the war, the hotel reopened. In November 1997, an electrical fire claimed the gift shop and coffee complex. The blaze erupted on a stormy evening and local firefighters had to battle high winds and snow to save the nearby structures from harm. In 1999, the Atlantic Restaurant and Birch Tree Shop opened on the site of the original complex. The Keltic Lodge continues to play a major role in the community of Ingonish as a source of employment and as a major attraction, drawing tourists to the area. The resort has been included on the prestigious Gold List ofConde Nast Traveller, where it had been recognized as one of the most desirable destinations in the world. The mystique of the Keltic Lodge is enhanced by its prime location on the famous Cabot Trail, within Cape Breton Highlands National Park and by its proximity to Highlands Links, the number one golf course in Canada.
