In this series, I’ll put myself in a visitor’s shoes and explore what’s fun to do in my own hometown of St. John’s, Newfoundland.
Newfoundland is full of great road trips. The Baccalieu Trail on the Avalon peninsula is perfect for a two or three day getaway from St. John’s. I spent a weekend driving the loop to explore the area of the province my family calls home.
When you’ve lived in Newfoundland for almost 20 years and you tell people you’ve never been on an ATV you get some funny looks. What can I say? I’m a city girl. So it was a good thing that Adventure Central added a backcountry ATV excursion to my epic Central Newfoundland summer itinerary.
Whitewater rafting on the Exploits River sounded like the perfect way to end my Central Newfoundland road trip. Except for one thing… getting dunked underwater makes me panic. How would this go?
I hadn’t done much hiking this summer and so I knew the 8.6km of the Alexander Murray Hiking Trail in King’s Point was going to be a bit of a challenge but what had me shaking in my hiking boots was the 2200 stairs and the 1200’ of elevation change. Yep, you heard right, two thousand, two hundred stairs.
One of the city’s most hotly anticipated weeks is here. The ticket booths are setup. The stage is dusted off. The speed bars are gearing up. Over 50,000 people will party on the “biggest little street in North America” for 7 straight days. It’s George Street Festival time.
Want to get into nature on your next vacation but don’t want to haul gear or sleep on the ground? Love waking up to the sounds of birds chirping but also hate not being able to charge your phone? Then glamping, my friend, is what you need. Glamping is right up my alley as someone who loves her creature comforts and so I wanted to help you plan an amazing glamping vacation in my backyard of Newfoundland.
If you’re looking for the perfect remote tenting site in Newfoundland that’s still accessible by car, look no further than Chance Cove Provincial Park on the southern shore of the Avalon Peninsula.
If you’ve got a Canada bucket list, I bet road tripping through Newfoundland is on it. If not, what are you doing? If chasing icebergs, making friends with whales and puffins, hiking inland fjords, and eating the freshest seafood, spotting sea stacks and stunning coastal landscapes, and partying on the street with the most pubs per mile in Canada is your kind of vacation, then you need to road trip through Canada’s easternmost province.
I like a hiking trail with a good name. I also like when that name has a good story behind it. The Damnable Trail of the Eastport Peninsula in Central Newfoundland ticks both of those boxes for me.
Pandemic gardening, with its wholesome hominess and its promise of food independence, was the thing to do, in those weird early days of the pandemic. I was there for it. We would do it on the cheap and if we grew enough for a salad, it would be a win.
If you only have limited time in Newfoundland but still want to experience as much as you can, then head to Twillingate. The communities spread out over the New World Islands are like Newfoundland condensed. They have breathtaking coastal landscapes, icebergs, whales, fishing, theatre, hiking, good food, and even a new craft brewery. Really, what more could you want?
Newfoundland might be a bit late to the microbrewery game but we’re starting to catch up in a big and tasty way. While our oldest brewery opened in 1996, it didn’t have a lot of company until 2008. Now we have 19 breweries right across the province.
Tibb’s Eve. Tipp’s Eve. Tip’s Eve. Even Tipsy Eve. It doesn’t matter what you call it – it’s December 23rd in Newfoundland and it’s time to have a drink.
Catching capelin is a Newfoundland food experience you won’t soon forget. Find out when’s the best time to see capelin roll in Newfoundland and what we do with them after we catch them.
This past fall I was invited to Trinity to experience just how much the area had to offer in the fall. Drinks! Hiking! Fine Dining! Find out just exactly what I got up to.
Come From Away is piquing people’s interest in visiting Gander for themselves so I’ve decided to put together a guide to help you have an amazing visit to Central Newfoundland’s Broadway famous town.
It’s no secret that me and winter in Newfoundland don’t always get along. It can be wet, cold, sloppy, and grey. Days are short. Sidewalks disappear. But there are also a ton of awesome things to do in Newfoundland in winter. So in my effort to embrace more positivity in 2019 I’m putting together a winter bucket list of outdoor adventures which will hopefully shift my winter attitude from barely tolerable to downright enjoyable.
Blowing things up and setting a huge fire to celebrate the thwarting of a plot to do just that? Sure, why not! That’s how we roll here in Newfoundland. Guy Fawkes/Bonfire Night celebrations began in England back in 1605 and every year on November 5th we carry on the tradition.
Without a doubt, one of the other staples of any St. Johns’ summer is the annual Newfoundland and Labrador Folk Festival. It typically follows on the heels of the George Street Festival, but it couldn’t be more different, including what people wear.
Over the past two summers the Bonavista Peninsula has seen a surge in tourism. The town of Trinity has been popular for quite awhile with its photogenic streets and excellent theatre, but in recent years there’s been a surge in new businesses opening up and down the peninsula that’s breathing new life into the rural area.
What’s the best way to get the feeling of travel without having to hop on a plane or train? Book yourself a staycation in your hometown. I recently spent a relaxing, but stormy, weekend in downtown St. John’s checking out the brand new Alt Hotel.
