Eastern Newfoundland
Eastern Newfoundland is the region of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador that includes the Avalon Peninsula, which extends farther east than any part of North America except Greenland, and the Bonavista Peninsula, which was the site of the arrival of the first European colonists to North America, in 1497.
Cities
Avalon Peninsula
- 🌍 St. John's – the capital
- 🌍 Conception Bay South
- 🌍 Mount Pearl
- 🌍
Branch
- 🌍 Carbonear
- 🌍 Dildo
- 🌍
Saint Shott's
- 🌍 Placentia
Other destinations
- 🌍
Trepassey and the Irish Loop – a large rural area on the southern portion of the Avalon Peninsula includes a string of tiny seaside villages, a
- 🌍 Terra Nova National Park
Understand
Get in
- Marine Atlantic runs a ferry from North Sydney, Cape Breton to Argentia, near Placentia; crossing time is about 14 hours. Another option is to cross by ferry to Port-aux-Basques (about six hours) and take the Trans-Canada Highway across all of Newfoundland island.
- St. John's has an international airport.
- There is intercity bus service on the Trans-Canada Highway. There is no train; the rails were removed from the Rock in the 1980s.
Get around
See
Signal Hill, overlooking the harbour in St. John's, was the site of Marconi's early experimentation with trans-Atlantic communication. Cape Spear, just south of St. John's, is the easternmost point in Canada. There's a national historic site with a lighthouse. St. John's also has a small old town with colourful wooden buildings and narrow streets on a steep hillside leading down to Water Street, the local commercial district. Quidi Vidi looks like a charming, small seaside village on a small lake... but it's almost in the heart of St. John's, the capital and largest city of Newfoundland.
In Placentia, Castle Hill National Historic Site preserves what's left of the various fortifications in the area, many of them dating back to the era of French rule. The adjacent town of Argentia was demolished during World War II to clear way for a military base which is now largely abandoned.
There are two museums covering the Marconi radiotelegraph stations which once dotted the coastline; the Admiralty House Museum in Mount Pearl and the Myrick Wireless Interpretation Centre on Cape Race.
Bonavista is best known for its historic buildings, its lighthouse is a distinctive landmark.
Mistaken Point Ecological Reserve, near Cape Race and Portugal Cove South, is a UNESCO world heritage listed wilderness area and archeological fossil site. The area is named "Mistaken Point" as ships mistakenly turning here instead of at Cape Race were at risk of being run aground.
Do
Whale watching aboard the "Heritage Explorer", a tour boat with local guide in Dildo; view icebergs, dolphins, nesting bald eagles, seabirds and historic Dildo Island.