I've recently returned from a fantastic Atlantic Canada trip to Newfoundland and Labrador and Nova Scotia with First Class Holidays. My journey started from London Gatwick where I flew with WestJet Airlines directly to St. John's, Newfoundland. The flight time is only 5 hours 30 minutes. We landed and we were transferred to downtown St. John's within 15 minutes. Framing the city’s harbour, Downtown St. John’s contains a mix of 19th-century buildings and cultural attractions like The Rooms complex, which includes a provincial art gallery and history museum. Lively bars are clustered along nightlife hub George Street, while the dining scene features seafood restaurants and gastropubs.
As we arrived into St. John’s, we drove through the famous Duckworth Street where we explored Jelly Bean row. This is a street in downtown St. John's full of vibrant, colourful houses. Our tour guide explained how St. John's has been known to get foggy every now and then, which is not necessarily the best condition for seeing your house. So, sailors elected to paint their homes in bright colours to make them more visible against the cool grey backdrop of mist. We then visited the Terry Fox Memorial. Terry Fox set out from St. John's to run across Canada in 1980 to raise money for cancer research, despite having lost his right leg to the disease.
From there, we took a short drive to Signal Hill and Cabot Tower National Historic Site. It's steeped in history and was the site of military battles and technological triumphs, and the famous Guglielmo Marconi made communications history at Signal Hill by receiving the first ever transatlantic wireless signal. The military and communications significance of Signal Hill is well documented and presented at the Visitor Centre. It also has incredible views over St. John's port and I even found a Newfoundland dog! Before heading back to the hotel, we made a stop at Quidi Vidi, a local neighbourhood that's a 10-15 minute drive from St. John's downtown. This is where we sampled the locally brewed Iceberg Beer whilst listening to Irish music overlooking Quidi Vidi Lake. Later this evening after checking into the Jag Hotel, we had an evening meal at the Seafood Exchange, and of course, I had to start the trip with a whole lobster.
We started the day with breakfast at the Jag Hotel before setting off on our 3 hour drive to Trinity. We travelled along the Trans-Canada Highway and the route is very scenic with hundreds of lakes surrounded by beautiful forests. Soon we were met by the charming and colourful town of Trinity. We had a scenic drive through the little roads and had lunch at the Dock Marina which is a restaurant right on the water that serves a wide range of food with many Newfoundland classics.
After having our lunch, we transferred to Sea of Whales Adventures dock to go on a 3 hour whale watching trip on a zodiac boat. Trinity is known to be a great place to go whale watching. If you're lucky you can see gatherings of humpback, minke, fin, sperm, and many other whale species that come through every year. Dolphin pods can also be seen moving through the area in the autumn. On the trip, we saw two eagles, a waterfall, many sea caves, tuna, two puffin chicks and a minke whale.
Ready to freshen up, we were shown to our houses back in the main town of Trinity. I had a delightful 4 bedroom home, perfect for a group, on the waterfront which had decking out the back overlooking the bay of Trinity. There’s also a small lighthouse in the distance to admire. The house had a homely, cosy feel and the area was lovely and peaceful. For pre-dinner drinks we walked 3 minutes to Twine Loft. We sat out on the decking with a blanket and a glass of wine on the famous Canadian Adirondack Chairs. We then had a delicious 3 course meal.
The next morning, we had breakfast at the Twine Loft, followed by a morning of touring around the local museums including the Lester-Garland House and then the Green Family Forge. Following this, we drove to Bonavista which is a 45 minute drive from Trinity where we went for lunch at the Quintal Cafe, visited the Matthew Legacy, Cape Bonavista lighthouse and Dungeon Provincial Park. Cape Bonavista lighthouse was built in 1843. We looked around the lighthouse and climbed up the stone tower which is one of the few in the world where you can still climb and see the same seal oil fuelled catoptric light apparatus that was used in the 1800s. Cape Bonavista lighthouse and its surroundings is one of the most photographed places in Newfoundland and Labrador as it’s a prime location to view whales, icebergs and puffins.
At the very tip of the Bonavista Peninsula, you will find Dungeon Provincial Park. This is a massive, heart-shaped crater with two separate openings to the sea. From the viewing area we witnessed the ocean waves crashing in; the same waves that carved out this breathtaking sea cave, which eventually collapsed forming a natural archway. For dinner this evening, we went to the Fishers Loft Inn at Port Rexton. This is a 10 minute drive from Trinity and is perched on the hillside overlooking Trinity Bay. It's a top-rated dining room with gardens that grow produce for the Inn’s kitchen. To start, I had the cauliflower and blue cheese soup, followed by pork belly with parsnip puree, green beans and jus, then a brownie with partridgeberry coulis.
On day 4, we ate at the Twine Lodge again for breakfast in readiness to start our journey back to St. John's and onwards to Cape Spear. Cape Spear is the most easterly point in North America and only a 20 minute drive from St. John's. Here you can spot icebergs floating by, Humpback whales breach and porpoises send misty spouts into the air. We started at Fort Cape Spear and then walked up the short coastal path to the lighthouses. Cape Spear is the oldest surviving lighthouse in Newfoundland and Labrador, and you can enter the lighthouse to learn more about the lives of 19th century lighthouse keepers and their families.
After exploring Cape Spear, we headed back to downtown St. John's for lunch at the YellowBelly Brewery. This building was re-constructed after a fire in 1846 and was one of few such mercantile buildings to survive the Great St. John’s fire of 1892. At the YellowBelly Brewery, they serve things like wood-fired pizzas, gourmet burgers, fresh local seafood and gastropub appetizers and entrées which can be paired with their locally brewed craft beers. We then experienced a screeching ceremony which consists of an initiation to become an honorary Newfoundlander. They teach us their local phrases and then you eat a piece of bologna, take a shot of screech rum, and kiss a cod! That evening we checked in at the Courtyard by Marriott St. John's and had a lovely dinner at Vu Resto next door.
On day 5, we ate breakfast at the hotel and were transferred back to St. John's airport to fly 1 hour 45 minutes to Halifax, Nova Scotia. Once we landed, we had a 40 minute transfer to downtown Halifax and we checked in to the Moxy Hotel. We then had a free afternoon to explore the area of downtown Halifax. We walked down to the waterfront, grabbed some lunch and explored the local area. Here you can find museums including the Maritime Museum, bars, restaurants, food stalls, shops and much more.
This evening, we walked back down to a restaurant on the waterfront called the Cable Wharf where I tried oysters for the first time and for my main, I had seared Atlantic Salmon, almond graham lemon crumb, lobster velouté, cilantro oil and kale walnut salad. We then celebrated our last night in Canada together in an authentic Irish pub on Argyle Street.
Day 6 was our last day in Halifax, but it didn't stop us from seeing more of the beautiful city. We started the day with a 50 minute tour on the Harbour Hopper, an amphibious vehicle, which toured us around downtown Halifax. We started on the waterfront and made our way through the hilly, winding roads of Halifax. We then made our way up to the top of Halifax Citadel National Historic site which has sweeping views of downtown Halifax and the harbour. After this we headed back down to the waterfront where we splashed into Halifax Harbour and saw the city from a whole different angle (sit at the back if you want to stay dry!).
Following the Harbour Hopper, we headed back up to Halifax Citadel National Historic Site, a 19th-century fort where we watched the noon day gun fire. The firing of the noon day gun was timed for vessels in the harbour to set their chronometers by sight of the puff of smoke rather than the noise of the report, which took time to carry. They continue to fire the noon day gun as a tradition. Following this, we made our way back down to the waterfront where we did a perfume making experience at The 7 Virtues, and explored the Maritime Museum where we viewed a selection of artifacts from the Titanic. After a fantastic last day of sightseeing, we started our journey home.
My highlight of the trip was staying in Trinity and going whale watching and seeing the Minke whale. As we went out of season, we didn’t see icebergs or puffins, however I can only imagine how incredible it would be to go to Bonavista Lighthouse and see the puffin colony sat on the big rock with icebergs floating in the background. If you would like to find out more about Atlantic Canada, please pop in to see me in Wells!
