Run your fingers along the cold granite as you climb twisting narrow staircases to the top of mammoth stone and wood towers. From this rugged point, you can experience the power of the North Atlantic unleashing its fury with every wave crashing against the rocks below. Be a witness to this entire natural splendour as you explore the beautiful lighthouses of Newfoundland and Labrador.

With over 29,000 km of twisting coastline, laden with submerged rocks, inlets, icebergs, and fog, it is no wonder that Newfoundland and Labrador has several hundred navigational lights clinging to its shoreline. Long before electricity, motor boats, and coast guards, fishermen and sailors relied on lighthouses, along with their keepers and fog-horns to keep them safe from peril.

This place was no stranger to shipwrecks before lighthouses were constructed along our shores. Hundreds of stories of rescues have been passed down through our families for centuries. One well-known tale, transcribed into a novel by author Kevin Major, is that of Ann Harvey and her family in Isles aux Morts. In 1828, an Irish immigrant ship ran aground and broke apart on the rocky coast in the midst of a raging storm. For three full days, 17 year old Ann saved passengers and crew by getting them to land in a twelve foot skiff - waves, fog, and terrible wind lashing out at them at every point. It is in this area that the granite Rose Blanche lighthouse was constructed in 1871.

Newfoundland and Labrador established its first permanent lighthouse in 1813 at Fort Amherst, the entrance to St. John’s harbour. Since then, hundreds of lighthouses and small beacons have been established along our shores. The majority of these lighthouses are still in operation, with the implementation of new technology, and many of those that were destroyed or damaged have been rebuilt to their original splendour. As a result, we have the ability to explore the history and majesty of our province’s lighthouses. Some have even been remodelled into restaurants and bed and breakfasts.

Come and learn about the lighthouse keepers, their families, and their way of life. Stand in the rooms where they spent their time, and sit in the light towers where they feverishly guarded their beacons. Hike along the rocky trails looking out over the shoreline where ships, missing the lighthouses’ warning, wrecked against the rocks. Experience all this and more at any of the lighthouses standing guard like soldiers around our shorelines. Whether it’s history, adventure or scenery you seek, a visit to one of our historic lighthouses is the perfect addition to your travels in Newfoundland and Labrador.