Day 1
When you think about Canada, I’m sure that just like myself, you would immediately think of the Rockies, Vancouver, Toronto, Quebec and Niagara Falls. Lots of people forget about Atlantic Canada, and I was lucky enough to travel to the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador. This area of Canada is very unusual in terms of what the area must offer and would be perfect for those of you who have travelled to Canada before of even for those looking for a relaxed or even active holiday.
I flew with WestJet for the first time and with a flight time of 5 hours, we went from being in a hot and sticky London Gatwick to a more moderate temperature of St John’s. WestJet offer four services a week from London Gatwick and go straight to the heart of Newfoundland. We were greeted at the airport by our tour guide Jeanette and our driver Steve who visits close family in the UK. Until we visited a museum and were working with our hosts, I had not realised the strong connection there was between Ireland and St John’s.
We were taken to our hotel for where we were to spend the next two nights, the Sheraton Hotel in St John’s. We had a seamless check in and our room was ready as soon as we arrived. We were upgraded to a club room, which comes with extra benefits such as the club lounge, which providers a quieter breakfast setting, and snacks and drinks throughout the day. My room was incredibly spacious, and we had views straight out to the harbour.
We freshened up and were ready to start our afternoon exploring. We did a drive through St John’s with Steve informing us about the tourist attractions and places of interest when we were passing from museums to the lost soldier memorial.
We went to the opposite side of St John’s Harbour, where Steve explained about the fishing trade and how it was once a huge business. It is still busy especially with lobster and crab season. Plus, their cod fishing. From this side of the harbour, we were able to appreciate it. We then went up Signal Hill and walked around. Of course, as we were always visiting in whale season, we had one eye on the sea to see if we might spot one. Unfortunately, it wasn’t our day, however we might have been lucky further on our trip.
That evening we ate in a beautiful located local restaurant called Vu Resto. Being in Newfoundland, I would have been silly to have anything but fish that evening, as it’s freshly prepared on the island. I had the most superb tuna tartare, and this was recommended to have on fish and chips, served in Newfoundland’s traditional way with gravy and dressing.
The dressing to me makes me think of a vinaigrette or something else you would drizzle on your salad. So, I had no idea what to expect. What did turn up was a huge fresh fish and chips portion with some gravy and a breadcrumb dressing. The traditional way is pouring the gravy and the dressing on top of the fish, which after all when in Newfoundland. I would certainly highly recommend this restaurant and this dish.
That evening due to it having been a longer day we all headed back to the hotel for a good night’s sleep. I would recommend upgrading your room at the Sheraton, so you can have a harbour view.
Day 2
On our second day, we awoke to Canada Day. We donned our Canada themed accessories and headed on a 25 minute scenic drive to Bay Bulls. This was where we were going to do our first whale watching and puffin boat trip. We were met at the dock of Gatherall’s where we obtained our tickets for our 90 minute boat trip. We were hoping to see some whales and sail around an island, which is home to thousands of puffins each year where they raise their family. On this boat trip, we were lucky enough to learn about the local area and we saw our first sightings of minke and humpback whales; as well as a whole host of puffins. This boat trip is something I would highly recommend, however I would say as you are going out in the Atlantic Sea, it can be a little rough and you should wear more layers as it can be a little chilly!
After our exciting boat trip, we headed for lunch to a local independent restaurant called Arbour Restaurant & Lounge. The one thing to say about the food is that they use fresh, local ingredients as much as possible. There are plenty of options and they cater for all dietary requirements. As we headed back to St John’s we then had some free time where we visited one of the towns museums called the Rooms which talks about background and history of St John’s.
A quick change at the hotel then meant we were back out and ready to visit the downtown area of St John’s which was filled with live music and festivities for Canada day. Unfortunately, due to the fog, the firework display had been cancelled for the evening; however, this didn’t dampen any spirits. We ate that evening at the One Eared Goat, where I tried moose for the first time. This is probably the only time that I did not eat fish or shellfish on this journey.
Day 3
We checked out of the Sheraton and picked up a lunchbox from The Postmaster’s Bakery, ready for our journey up the coast to Trinity. The journey to Trinity is just under 3 hours and mainly on the Trans-Canada highway.
We arrived at Trinity, which is a quaint and peaceful area which some beautiful buildings and gorgeous scenery. After we had stopped to have a lunch, we then continued to Princeton to board our zodiac for our second trip with Sea of Whales Adventures. Now if you are going to do a whale watching trip, there is no better way than donning a survival suit and boarding a zodiac which will take you on an exhilarating ride to find whales. And we were not disappointed.
Our first sighting was another humpback whale whilst we travelled a little further out to where Chris, our captain, had seen sperm whales earlier that day. We were joined by a pod of dolphins jumping and playing around us. They were so close that you could almost touch them. On the horizon as our captain shouted there, she blows we sped off to where he had seen the spirit from a whale and this is where we heard and saw our first and not our only sperm whale and within a few minutes we saw him take a deep dive and saw his huge tail. Honestly, I cannot really put into words how amazing this experience was, it is certainly my highlight of the trip and is not something I will ever forget.
We then headed back to Trinity to explore the town and its historical sights. We then headed to a family owned hotel for the evening the Fishers Loft Inn. This stunning property boasts 33 rooms a garden where they grow their own produce and stunning views out to the Atlantic. We were then treated to a lobster dinner, caught and prepped on the same day. It was a real sea to table experience.
Day 4
For our final day in Canada, we woke up to a foggy start, but knew it was forecasted to be a warm and sunny day. After breakfast, we were then back on the road to do some more sightseeing.
Our first stop was in Elliston to a puffin viewing site and root cellars. This was my favourite area to see the puffins; this site is the closest view to get, from the land, in all of North America. Puffins fly close to viewers and often land on the cliffs just several feet away. Elliston is the “Root Cellar Capital of the World”, with 133 documented root cellar structures to preserve vegetables and perishables.
After saying goodbye to the puffins and seeing whales in the distance as well, we then headed to Cape Bonavista Lighthouse Provincial Historic site; to have a look around again. We were lucky enough to see a humpback whale in the bay with her baby. We stopped in a small, independent coffee shop for lunch where they served vegan and vegetarian. On our way back to St Johns, we then visited Cape Spear National Historic site which is the easternmost point in North America. Back in St Johns we went for a stunning steak dinner at the “Key Steakhouse and Bar” to end our last day in Canada. We then headed back to the airport to catch our early morning flight back to London Gatwick.
No matter where you are in St John’s and Newfoundland, you are always a few feet away from a walking trail around the coastline and it’s perfect to those who want to be a little more active on holiday. I found we were truly lucky to have seen so many whales in Newfoundland and pictures cannot truly show the beauty of this stunning province of Canada.
