Newfoundland and Labrador Travel Guide

Travel Notes: North America: Canada: Newfoundland and Labrador

Newfoundland tourist information with details about travel to and around Newfoundland.

Where to stay and what to see is made easier with insider tips and hand-selected Newfoundland links, by dedicated editors and visitors to TravelNotes.org - The Online Guide to Travel.

About Newfoundland and Labrador

The capital of Newfoundland and Labrador is St. John's.

Newfoundland Background Information

Located on Canada's Atlantic coast, Newfoundland and Labrador consists of the island of Newfoundland, where St. John's is situated, and the mainland of Labrador; east of Quebec.

Canada's most easterly province is also its newest; having joined the Confederation in 1949.

Government of Newfoundland and Labrador:
The province lies between the 46th and 61st parallels with the bulk of the island portion being below the 50th parallel.

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Newfoundland Accommodation

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Accommodation in Newfoundland

Hotels in Newfoundland:
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Ramada St. John's: 102 Kenmount Road, St. John's.
Conveniently located minutes from the historic and cosmopolitan downtown core, St. John's International Airport and several tourist destinations, the Ramada St. John's offers the charm and sophistication distinctive of many boutique-style hotels.

Hotels in St. John's.

Holiday Rentals in Newfoundland

Humber Valley Resort (located between Deer Lake and Corner Brook) offers 150 self-contained, three to five bedroom uniquely-configured chalets for rent.

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Newfoundland Attractions

What to See in Newfoundland

The oldest known European settlement anywhere in The New World is located at L'Anse aux Meadows, where the reconstruction of three Norse buildings form the focal point of the archaeological site - located on the tip of the Great Northern Peninsula; 433km north of Deer Lake, along the Viking Trail (route 430) and onto route 436.

St. John's

St. John's is home to the Marine Institute and is an ideal place to go for some iceberg viewing.

OZ FM Skycam:
The most easterly livecam in North America overlooks Newfoundland's St. John's Harbour. If the fog is bad, you'll see absolutely nothing.

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Newfoundland and Labrador Tourism

Official Newfoundland Tourist Information

The largest urban areas in Newfoundland and Labrador are St. John's, Corner Brook, Grand Falls-Windsor, Bay Roberts, Gander, Labrador City, Carbonear, Happy Valley-Goose Bay, Stephenville and the Goulds (now a part of the City of St. John's).

Newfoundland Tourism:
Activities and attractions to keep you amused on your visit to Newfoundland and Labrador.

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Newfoundland Tours

What to Do in Newfoundland

Newfoundland Bicycle Tour:
This tour of Newfoundland's Great Northern Peninsula will not be an everyday bike trip. It will be an excursion of rugged landscape, basic amenities, and occasionally challenging elements.

Newfoundland Hunting and Fishing:
If you're looking for moose, barren ground or woodland caribou, black bear or some of the worlds best salmon fishing, Newfoundland is the place for you.

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Newfoundland Transportation

Getting To and Around Newfoundland and Labrador

If you want to avoid the notorious black flies in Labrador, the best time to visit might be in early June; when the snow melts and the flies have yet to hatch. The days are still quite cool and the nights can get cold though, so wrap up warm.

Newfoundland and Labrador by Air

St. John's International Airport is the main entry point into Newfoundland although flights to Stephenville International Airport (YJT) are operated by Sunwing Airlines, from Toronto, during the summer months.

Newfoundland also has regional airports at Deer Lake (YDF) and St. Anthony.

Established in 1948, as Newfoundland Airways, Air Labrador is now based at Labrador's Goose Bay; flying all along the coast of Labrador and Quebec, and across to Deer Lake and St. John's.

Provincial Airlines, based in St John's, connects 13 communities in Newfoundland and Labrador (Churchill Falls, Deer Lake, Goose Bay, Hopedale, Makkovik, Nain, Natuashish, Postville, Rigolet, St. Anthony, St. John's, Stephenville and Wabush - for Labrador City) and three in Quebec (Blanc-Sablon, Montreal and Sept Iles).

Air Canada Jazz operate flights from Halifax (Nova Scotia) to Deer Lake, Gander, Goose Bay and St. John's; and to Wabush from Quebec, via Sept-Iles. Online reservations are made through Air Canada, which in turn opens up connections to the world.

Humber Valley Resort launched its inaugural direct charter flight from London Gatwick to Deer Lake Airport in March 2004. This has now become a weekly service with Astraeus; from December to April and June to September.

Air St-Pierre also flies from St. John's to the nearby islands of St-Pierre and Miquelon, a part of France in North America; with connections to Halifax and Sydney (Nova Scotia), Moncton (New Brunswick) and Montreal (Quebec).

Newfoundland and Labrador by Road

Labrador is accessible by following Route 389 north, from Baie-Comeau in Quebec to Labrador City. The road then becomes the Route 500 (Trans Labrador Highway), as it travels in an easterly direction; through Churchill Falls to Happy Valley-Goose Bay.

To continue driving, you'll need to take the ferry.

Labrador's other driving route (also called the Trans Labrador Highway) is south from Cartwright, on Route 510, to Blanc-Sablon (Quebec); via Mary's Harbour, Red Bay and L'Anse-Au-Loup.

From Blanc-Sablon there's a ferry across to Newfoundland island.

The main road on Newfoundland is the Canada 1; from St. John's to Port aux Basques, travelling around the north of the island.

Newfoundland and Labrador by Ship

The Goose Bay-Cartwright ferry connects Labrador's two main driving routes; along the Trans Labrador Highway. There may also be passenger services down to Lewisporte (Island of Newfoundland), but read the dates.

From Blanc-Sablon to St Barbe (Black Dove Cove), the crossing time is approximately one hour, forty-five minutes; subject to change due to weather and ice conditions.

Car Ferry Services on Island of Newfoundland (northern):

Bell Island - Portugal Cove.

St. Brendan's - Burnside.

Fogo Island - Farewell.

Change Islands - Farewell.

Long Island - Pilley's Island.

Little Bay Islands - Shoal Arm.

Passenger-only services Labrador:

Goose Bay - Rigolet - Cartwright - Black Tickle - Ports North to Nain.

Charlottetown - Norman Bay - Pinsent's Arm - Williams Harbour - Port Hope Simpson.

Passenger-only services on Island of Newfoundland (southern):

LaPoile - Grand Bruit - Rose Blanche.

Francois - Grey River - Burgeo.

Gaultois - McCallum - Hermitage.

Rencontre East - Bay L'Argent - Pool's Cove.

South East Bight - Petit Forte.

Newfoundland to Nova Scotia:

The Port aux Basques ferry crosses the Cabot Strait to North Sydney, on Cape Breton (Nova Scotia) and takes between 5.5 to 7 hours, depending on the weather.

Nearer to St. John's, another ferry leaves for North Sydney from Argentia (Jerseyside). This crossing takes around 14 hours though.

Ferry services between Nova Scotia and the Island of Newfoundland are operated by Marine Atlantic.

Newfoundland and Labrador by Train

Train lines in Newfoundland and Labrador were mostly constructed for iron ore transportation so there's little of interest for travellers seeking to get around the province by rail. For real train buffs, it's a different story.

T'Railway Provincial Park:
The Newfoundland T'Railway Provincial Park follows the route of the former Canadian National Railway; from Port aux Basques, in the west of Newfoundland Island, to St. John's in the east.

Quebec, North Shore and Labrador Railways linked western Labrador with Quebec's Schefferville, to the north, and the port of Sept-Iles in the south.

Again constructed to get iron ore to the port, the line also operated a weekly passenger service; departing Sept-Iles on Thursday and returning the following day.

Passenger service on the Quebec North Shore and Labrador Railway is now operated by Tshiuetin Rail Transportation (TRT).

TRT operates two return trips per week between Sept-Iles and Emeril Junction, on the Trans Labrador Highway, and from Emeril Junction to Schefferville.

Tshiuetin Rail Transportation:
Call 1-866-960-0988.

Quebec North Shore & Labrador Railway:
Call 1-709-944-2490.

On 28th January, 2008 Transport Canada announced that it would continue to support passenger rail operation between Schefferville and Sept-Iles, until the end of 2009. Tshiuetin Rail Transportation, the first Canadian railway operator to be owned and operated by First Nations communities, would be provided with up to $12 million in federal funding.

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