The following sample itineraries provides you with the basis for developing your tour and incentive programs to the province.
For province wide itineraries, the Trans-Island itinerary listed below provides the foundation for your itinerary which can then be combined with one or more of the regional itineraries to provide a more extensive tour or incentive program.
Please consult Receptive Tour Operators and / or Regional Tourism Industry Contacts listed below for customized itineraries.
Newfoundland Trans-Island Tour
8 Days/7 Nights - In Newfoundland and Labrador, the extraordinary is commonplace. Unique photo opportunities include humpback whales, puffins, caribou, icebergs, fjords, Vikings, and historic villages.
Day 1
Take the Marine Atlantic ferry from North Sydney, Nova Scotia, to Port aux Basques. (Depending on the crossing time, you may want to overnight in Port aux Basques, Stephenville or on board the ferry). Before departing Port aux Basques for Stephenville en route Corner Brook, visit the Rose Blanche Lighthouse at Rose Blanche and the Railway Museum at Port aux Basques. Stephenville, site of the former US Harmon Air Force Base, hosts the annual Stephenville Theatre Festival each year in July and August. Take in a play or musical. Our tour continues north to Corner Brook, a city of just over 20,000 people where the main industry is the pulp and paper mill that was built in the 1920s.
Overnight: Corner Brook
Day 2
This morning we will tour the Corner Brook. Highlights include Margaret Bowater Park, Marble Mountain Ski Area, Captain James Cook Monument National Historic Site, Railway Society of Newfoundland and the "Old Man in the Mountain." Craft and antique shopping is a must.
Along the south side of Humber Arm in the Bay of Islands you will pass through Mount Moriah, Benoit's Cove, Frenchman's Cove, York Harbour, Lark Harbour and Bottle Cove. The mountains surrounding Corner Brook are often snow-capped in early summer.
Overnight: Corner Brook
Day 3
Depart Corner Brook for Gros Morne National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Our first stop will be the Visitor Centre at Rocky Harbour where we will see a short video on the park and have an opportunity to ask questions of the park's interpretative staff. Our next stop is Lobster Cove Head Lighthouse, a great vantage point to view Bonne Bay and the surrounding mountains.
Our next destination is Grand Falls-Windsor and our final stop will be the Mary March Regional Museum to learn about these now-extinct aboriginal people of Newfoundland.
Overnight: Grand Falls-Windsor
Day 4
Our first adventure will begin at Logger's Life Provincial Museum where we will learn of the logging past of the region. The Salmonid Interpretation Centre is our next stop. This is a fabulous place to watch Atlantic salmon as they migrate to their spawning grounds. We will now drive to Twillingate via Lewisporte, Campbelton, Birchy Bay, Boyd's Cove and Summerford along a portion of the Kittiwake Coast called "The Road to the Isles." At Boyd's Cove visit the Beothuk Interpretation Centre and learn more about the Beothuks. In Twillingate we will visit the Twillingate Museum to see artifacts dating back to the 19th and early 20th centuries. While in Twillingate, visit Long Point Lighthouse built in 1876. It's a great place to view icebergs in June and July.
We will continue our drive and return to Gander where we will overnight tonight. Gander, often called the "Crossroads of the World," has been an aviation town since the 1930s. The North Atlantic Aviation Museum tells that story.
Overnight: Gander
Day 5
Today we will depart Gander for Salvage on the Eastport Peninsula, the oldest settlement in the Eastport region
Visit Gambo, the birthplace of Joseph R Smallwood, the first Premier of the province and one of the original "Fathers of Confederation" & visit the Smallwood Interpretation & Kittiwake Coast Information Centre at Gambo. Salvage is a photographer's dream, so don't forget your camera. Terra Nova National Park is a great place to stop for a picnic lunch, to take a stroll near Newman Sound or visit the Salton's Marine Interpretation Centre to take a boat tour or visit the interpretation centre to learn about the marine habitat of the area.
Have lunch at the nearby hotel or maybe even play a round of golf at the Terra Nova Golf Resort, which has an 18-hole golf course and a 9-holer. We will continue our journey to Bonavista and Trinity via Clarenville.
(See description in the Far East of the Western World Tour.)
Overnight: Clarenville.
Day 6
Depart Clarenville. Today we travel to the oldest settlement in North America, St. John's, the capital city of the province. Lunch in St. John's.
This afternoon we will take a tour of the city including Signal Hill National Historic Site, Cape Spear National Historic Site, Government House Provincial Historic Site, the Anglican Cathedral, Basilica of St. John the Baptist, and the Fluvarium.
Overnight: St. John's.
Day 7
Morning tour of Marine Drive.
Free time for shopping in afternoon and free evening.
Overnight: St. John's.
Day 8
Morning departure.
The Far East of the Western World
The Avalon & Bonavista Peninsulas
4 Days - The Avalon Peninsula is where Newfoundland & Labrador - and North America - begin. It's a place where you can photograph herds of caribou or seabird colonies, icebergs or whales by day, and spend your nights fine dining or raising a cheer in a pub.
Day 1
Arrive St. John's, one of the oldest European settlements in North America and the capital city of Newfoundland and Labrador.
Overnight: St. John's
Day 2
AM-Option 1:
Tour St. John's. Highlights include: Signal Hill National Historic Site, Quidi Vidi Village, the Anglican Cathedral of St. John the Baptist, and the Basilica of St. John the Baptist, Commissariat House Provincial Historic Site, Government House Provincial Historic Site, the Fluvarium, Memorial University Botanical Garden, and Cape Spear National Historic Site.
AM-Option 2:
Morning boat tour from either St. John's or Bay Bulls to the Witless Bay Ecological Reserve.
Lunch at a local restaurant offers an opportunity to sample cod tongues, mussels, fish and brewis.
PM-Option 1:
This afternoon we will explore Marine Drive. This is one of the most scenic spots in eastern Newfoundland with sheer cliffs towering over small fishing boats bobbing at anchor. Our tour continues through Torbay and Flatrock, site of Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto which was blessed by Pope John Paul II in 1984, and then returns to St. John's.
PM-Option 2:
Depart for Ferryland and visit the Colony of Avalon, founded in the early 17th century by Lord Baltimore. Tour the ongoing archaeological dig, interpretation centre and gift shop.
Overnight: St. John's
Day 3
Journey west to Clarenville via route 60 through Kelligrews, Holyrood and Carbonear. Visit Brigus, the birthplace of Captain Bob Bartlett, a pioneer polar navigator and a part of the 1909 expedition to the North Pole led by Commodore Peary. In nearby Cupids watch archaeologists uncover the foundations of John Guy's old colony, the first English colony in Canada founded in 1610. Harbour Grace was the headquarters of Peter Easton, a famous pirate of the early 17th century, and departure point for many early attempts to fly the Atlantic, including Amelia Earhart's successful solo crossing in 1932.
This afternoon visit the Heart's Content Cable Station Provincial Historic Site, which was the landing site for the first successful transatlantic telegraph cable in 1866. From Heart's Content we'll travel south to Whitbourne and pass through the communities of Heart's Desire, Heart's Delight and Dildo. Our journey will proceed west from Whitbourne to Clarenville.
Overnight: Clarenville
Day 4
Today we go back into history to the voyage of John Cabot. A Genoese adventurer known in his home town as Giovanni Caboto, he sailed from England to Newfoundland landing at Cape Bonavista in 1497. But our first stop will be in Port Union, former home of Sir William Coaker who founded the Fisherman's Union Trading Co. and the Fisherman's Protective Union in the early 20th century. Bonavista is on the northern tip of the Bonavista Peninsula. One of the "must-sees" is the Cape Bonavista Lighthouse Provincial Historic Site which has been restored to its original 1843 condition. Other stops on your tour should include the monument to John Cabot located near the lighthouse, the Mockbeggar Plantation Provincial Historic Site, Ryan Premises National Historic Site - which includes the Bonavista Museum - a replica of Cabot's ship "Matthew" and the Matthew Interpretation Centre, and the Dungeon Provincial Park, a collapsed sea cave.
Next we visit the community of Trinity. Most of the old town is a national heritage district, and there are several provincial historic sites such as Hiscock House Provincial Historic Site where guides dressed in period costume escort you on your tour. Lester Garland Premises Provincial Historic Site, Lester Garland House/Wessex Learning Centre and St. Paul's Anglican Church are other stops. While in Trinity stop by the Green Family Forge Blacksmith Museum, Trinity Arts Centre and the Trinity Museum and Archives as well as the Trinity Interpretation Centre.
Overnight: St. John's
The Irish Loop
1-Day Tour
Depart St. John's for Cape Spear National Historic Site, the most easterly point in North America. Have your picture taken in the Far East of the Western World. Visit nearby Petty Harbour, a traditional Irish Newfoundland fishing community. Next we will visit the Bay Bulls-Witless Bay area where you will set sail for the Witless Bay Ecological Reserve, a protected sanctuary for kittiwakes, murres, puffins and other seabirds. Watch for humpback and minke whales as you cruise the coastal waters.
After lunch depart for Ferryland which was founded by Lord Baltimore in the early 1600s. The colonists later moved to Maryland and its warmer climate. Visit the Colony of Avalon and discover the many artifacts found on the site of the original colony.
Near Trepassey & St. Shotts you may see the most southerly woodland caribou herd in the world that numbers about 5,000 animals. Have lunch in Trepassey, a small community on the southern tip of the Avalon which was a stop over point for Amelia Earhart when she became the first woman to fly the Atlantic.
Our return drive will take us along the eastern shore of St. Mary's Bay. You will be delighted by the vividly coloured houses. In St. Vincent's view whales from the beach . Visit Salmonier Nature Park and view over 30 species of birds and animals which can be found in the province.
Overnight: St. John's.
The Cape Shore
1-Day Tour
Depart St. John's for Whitbourne via Route 1. Visit Markland Cottage Winery and learn how local wild blueberries, partridge berries and bakeapples are transformed into exotic wines. In Placentia tour Castle Hill National Historic Site, which was the French capital of Newfoundland in the 17th & 18th centuries, and watch the historical drama "Faces of Fort Royal" which brings the French colonial era to life. At nearby Argentia visit the Museum of Atlantic Allies. Argentia was a major American naval base during World War II, and now serves as the eastern terminus for the Marine Atlantic Ferry from Nova Scotia during the summer months.
Proceed south along Route 100 as you tour the communities of Point Verde, Gooseberry Cove and St. Bride's. Near St. Bride's is the Cape St. Mary's Ecological Reserve, the most accessible sea bird colony in the province with the largest colony of gannets in Newfoundland and the third largest in North America. Return to St. John's via 100 north along St. Mary's Bay and via Routes 92, 90 & 1.
Overnight: St. John's
Conception Bay & Baccalieu Trail
1-Day Tour
Our day will begin in Conception Bay. Our drive along the shore will take us through Topsail and Manuels where you can hike the Manuels River Linear Park in search for fossils over 620 million years old. Kelligrews is the site celebrated in the folk song "The Kelligrews Soiree." Then it's on to Holyrood, Avondale, Carbonear, Heart's Content and Heart's Desire.
Our next stop will be in the small village of Brigus, the birthplace of Captain Bob Bartlett, an outstanding pioneer of northern navigation and a member of Commodore Peary's 1909 Expedition to the North Pole. Don't forget to visit the craft store or the Olde Stone Barn Museum. Carbonear, the next stop on our itinerary, once had its own royalty: nearby Bristol's Hope was home for Sheila NaGeira, an Irish Princess who married Gilbert Pike, a former member of Peter Easton's pirate band.
We will now travel west to Trinity Bay and tour the Cable Station at Heart's Content Provincial Historic Site, where the first successful transatlantic telegraph cable was landed in 1866. Our return trip to St. John's will take us through the communities of Heart's Delight, Heart's Desire, Dildo and Whitbourne.
Overnight: St. John's
The Heritage Run - Burin Peninsula
3-Day Tour
Day 1
We begin our tour at Goobies, located at the intersection of Route 1 & 220. As we travel south along the Burin Peninsula highway, the deep green barrens contrasted against regal rock outcroppings and the vast Atlantic Ocean provide a visual adventure
Enroute tour the Placentia West Heritage House and Craft Shop at Boat Harbour and enjoy a traditional "mug up" at one of the local tea houses. Also visit the tiny fishing outports of Parkers Cove, Baine Harbour and Petit Forte. From Red Harbour view humpback whales and seabirds. In Burin tour the Heritage House and Tidal Wave Exhibit, which tells the story of the 1929 disaster, walk the waterfront boardwalk to the Oldest Colony Trust building and view the hand painted murals.
In Winterland, view the Eco Museum, a four km boardwalk trail with interactive exhibits & observation towers. In Grand Bank learn of the long fishing history of the area by touring the Southern Newfoundland Seaman's Museum, and view Atlantic Canada's largest outdoor mural. In the evening, experience one of the Heritage Society of Grand Bank's theatrical productions.
Overnight: Grand Bank/Fortune
Day 2
Today we visit France as we depart via ferry for the islands of St. Pierre and Miquelon, France's only territory in North America. Enjoy a traditional meal and stroll through the historic streets. Return to Fortune via ferry late afternoon
Overnight: Grand Bank/Fortune
Day 3
Continue east via Route 220 and visit the communities of Point May and Point au Gaul before heading to St. Lawrence. In St. Lawrence tour the Miner's Museum, which tells the history of the fluorspar mine in the area; the Echoes of Valour monument which is a tribute dedicated to the victums of the mining industry and the sailors who died in the U.S.S. Truxtun and U.S.S. Pollux disaster in 1942. In Marystown the economic centre of the Burin Peninsula visit the Marystown Museum. In Little Bay visit the Jerome Walsh fishing premises
Optional 1-Day Side Tour: Depart Garden Cove via ferry for Woody Island and experience what life was like prior to the resettlement of many remote communities to larger centres in Newfoundland. Enjoy a traditional Scoff & Scuff.
Return to Goobies and continue your tour.
Kittiwake Coast Tour
2-3 Days - The Kittiwake Coast offers a kaleidocope of history and adventure for those who dare to get off the beaten track on the Road to the Isles and Road to the Shore.
Day 1
Arrive Gander, "Crossroads of the World," important in WW II as the western terminus for the Royal Air Force Ferry Command. Now it's a major fuel and tech stop for commercial aviation, and the air traffic control centre for the Northwest Atlantic.
Optional activities include golf, a stroll around the boardwalk at Cobb's Pond Rotary Park, Gill's Trail, or the woodlands at the Thomas Howe Demonstration Forest.
Overnight: Gander
Day 2
AM - Tour the North Atlantic Aviation Museum, Gander International Airport, Gander Oceanic Air Traffic Control Centre, and The Silent Witness Memorial, dedicated to the 256 soldiers of the 101st Airborne division who lost their lives in the 1995 Arrow Air Crash, and the only Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery in North America.
PM - There is outdoor adventure in the afternoon with a trip on the Gander River in traditional Gander River boats. Angling opportunities could be arranged.
Overnight: Gander
Day 3
AM - Depart for the "Road to the Shore." Exit Route 1 at Gambo, the birth place of Joseph .R. Smallwood, the first premier and one of the original "Fathers of Confederation." Visit the Smallwood Interpretation & Kittwake Coast Information Centre. Along Route 320 and 330 watch for icebergs and whales. Don't miss historic Greenspond Courthouse and the architectural gem of the region - The Barbour Living Heritage Village in Newtown, New-Wes-Valley.
PM - In Musgrave Harbour visit artist David Blackwood's Gallery, and the Sir Frederick Banting Interpretation Centre. Banting, the co-discoverer of insulin, was killed in a plane crash near Musgrave Harbour during WW II.
This afternoon we reach the "Road to the Isles" at Gander Bay, and visit the Boyd's Cove Beothuk Interpretation Centre. At Twillingate we can visit the Twillingate Museum, craft shops, the Long Point Lighthouse and avail of boat tours.
Overnight: Twillingate
For a unique Islands Experience plan for at least another day or two, to explore both Fogo Island and Change Islands.
Special itineraries can be arranged for anglers, snowmobilers and other sportsmen with local guides and outfitters at Indian Bay, Musgrave Harbour, Gander Bay, Glenwood, Appleton and other communities that have easy access to rivers, lakes, ponds and hundreds of miles of forestry access roads.
Exploits Wild and Free
Central Heartland
2-3 Days - "Exploits - Wild And Free" in the interior of the province provides a change from the traditional coastal experience that is often associated with Newfoundland. The lifeline of the region today, as it was when the Beothuks populated the area, is the Exploits River.
Day 1
Arrive Grand Falls- Windsor, a forestry community built on the banks of the Exploits River where a newsprint mill provides rthe main economic stimulus to the region. Depending upon time of arrival, you could relax with a round of golf or a stroll around Church Road Day Park.
Overnight:Grand Falls - Windsor
Day 2
"The Great Canadian Paper Chase" is a unique guided tour which explores the various elements of the paper-making process at the Abitibi Colsolidated Paper Mill. Other "must see" attractions at Grand Falls-Windsor include the Loggers Life Provincial Museum, a full scale reconstruction of an old-time logging camp complete with bunk houses, forepeak, filing shack, privy and barn; the Mary March Regional Museum, a window to the culture of the now extinct Beothuks; and the Salmonid Interpretation Centre where you can see salmon as they migrate upstream. All these attractions provide guided tours.
Overnight: Grand Falls - Windsor
Day 3
Depart Grand Falls-Windsor heading east and driving through Bishop's Falls to Botwood. Spend the morning at the Botwood Heritage Centre, a former airbase which displays a PBY Catalina, other aviation exhibits, WW II bunker community history and craft shop. Visit the WW II gunsites at Phillip's Head.
After lunch we depart Botwood for Fortune Harbour to see one of the North America's largest aquaculture operations of "cultured" mussels. Here we will be treated to a beach "boil up" of freshly cooked mussels.
Overnight: Grand Falls - Windsor.
For the outdoor adventurists, special itineraries can be arranged with local guides and outfitters as many of the communities such as Millertown, Buchans, Leading Tickles, Bishop's Falls and Grand Falls-Windsor also serve as gateways into the vast wilderness of the interior.
The Viking Trail
5 Days/4 Nights (With optional Labrador Straits Tour) - Five hundred years before Columbus set sail, Vikings from Greenland and Iceland founded the first European settlement in the New World at what is now L'Anse aux Meadows National Historic Site, the first cultural attraction in the world to receive recognition as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. (Gros Morne National Park is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its exceptional beauty and unique geological features.)
Day 1
Arrive Deer Lake Airport. Deer Lake, a logging community, was first settled in the 1860s. The hydroelectric station was originally built to power the mill at Corner Brook. Today, the town is a distribution centre for the Viking Trail.
Overnight: Deer Lake
Or:
Arrive Port aux Basques via the Marine Atlantic ferry from North Sydney, Nova Scotia. Visit J.T. Cheeseman Provincial Park for birdwatching, including possibly the Piping Plover, an endangered shorebird. Explore farmland in Codroy Valley settled by Scots. Tour the Port au Port Peninsula, home of Newfoundland's French-speaking community.
Overnight: Stephenville.
Day 2
Our journey will take us north along the Viking Trail. Near the start are U-Pick strawberry farms and fresh fruit and vegetable stands where you can sample bakeapples, partridgeberries, blueberries or rhubarb. Not far from Deer Lake is Wiltondale, where we will visit Wiltondale Pioneer Village, a reconstruction of an early 20th century community. Here we enter Gros Morne National Park, and you'll marvel at the spectacular ocean scenery, mountains and fjords.
Optional side route to Trout River
This route will take you down the south side of Bonne Bay. Communities such as Glenburnie, Woody Point and Trout River hug the coast under the watchful eye of the Tablelands. The Tablelands is a 600 metre high plateau of mantle rock, a rare example of rock from the earth's interior. Visit the Discovery Centre at Woody Point, and at Trout River Pond take a boat tour to learn more about the geological history of the park and perhaps see a moose graze on the shore.
Our next stop is the Gros Morne National Park Visitor Centre at Rocky Harbour. There you will be able to view several videos on the history of the park. Park interpretative staff are available to answer any questions. Lobster Cove Head Lighthouse, only 10 minutes from the interpretation centre, is a great spot for a picnic lunch. Don't forget to see the museum inside the lighthouse. Visit Broom Point and chat with fishermen at the restored fishing premises. If sailing on a freshwater fjord sounds romantic, take the boat tour at Western Brook Pond. Our next site is The Arches Provincial Park where caves carved by undersea wave action have been thrust above the surface over the eons.
As you travel north you will notice the landscape changing as you pass through the communities of Portland Creek, Daniel's Harbour, and Hawke's Bay. At Port au Choix National Historic Site you can view the artifacts of the Maritime Archaic people who occupied the area 3,200 to 3,700 years ago. An ongoing dig of an ancient community takes place nearby.
Overnight: Port au Choix or Plum Point
Day 3
Continuing north, we next visit the Bird Cove Archaeology Project where tours of prehistoric and early European sites are available.
Our next stop will be L'Anse aux Meadows National Historic Site. At the Visitor Centre, chat with the interpretative staff, see the short video which explains how the site was discovered and as a highlight, tour the reconstructed sod huts as animators recreate daily life at the site. Explore the replica Viking village of Norstead and sail aboard a replica of an eleventh-century Viking boat.
As you drive to St. Anthony, stop by one of the local craft stores to pick up specialty jams and jellies. In St. Anthony one stop will be the Charles S. Curtis Memorial Hospital to see the Jordi Bonet Murals which tell the story of the Grenfell Mission. The Grenfell Properties, including Grenfell House, Grenfell Interpretation Centre, and Grenfell Handicrafts, is a popular stop for groups. Also experience a Viking Feast at St. Anthony.
Book lovers will want to take along a copy of E. Annie Proulx's The Shipping News. The settings in this Pulitzer Prize winning novel are based on the communities and people of Newfoundland's northern tip. Enjoy a cruise on a local boat tour.
Overnight: St. Anthony or Plum Point
Day 4
Today we return to Deer Lake. On our way back, why not stop in St. Pauls and take a boat tour to see seals (maximum per trip 12 people).
Overnight: Deer Lake
Day 5
Depart Deer Lake Airport.
Labrador Straits
Day 1
Labrador's Basque History
Sail Iceberg Alley aboard the ferry "Apollo." Stroll the ship's deck and enjoy the refreshing sea air. You will likely have an opportunity to marvel at the sight of majestic icebergs and breaching whales. Because this body of water separates Newfoundland from Labrador, it'sa also a good place to see migrating birds. Arrival in Blanc Sablon marks the beginning of your Labrador experience. While in Labrador enjoy pastries made with partridgeberries, bakeapples and blueberries that grow wild on the Labrador barrens.
Arrive Red Bay National Historic Site, World Whaling Capital, A.D.1550-1600. At the Visitor Centre, experienced guides will interpret the Basque whaling activity in the area during the 16th century, highlighted by the results of over 15 years of land-based and underwater archaeological research. The whale oil refinery at Red Bay is considered to be the first industrial site in the New World.
Optional Side Tour: Continue via Route 510 to Mary's Harbour and take short boat ride to visit Battle Harbour, a restored historic fishing community. If you choose this option, overnight will be in Battle Harbour in an historic building. Some of the building here date to the late 18th century.
Photo stop at the scenic Pinware River, as famous for its natural beauty as it is for its abundant salmon.
Overnight: L'Anse au Clair or Forteau
Day 2
Try a traditional Labrador Breakfast of "flummies," fish cakes and more. Arrive at the Labrador Straits Museum, located on the main highway near Point Amour. The exhibits here cover the last 150 years. Discover the artifacts of a past century, the tools, weapons, and household goods with which people made a life for themselves in the Labrador Straits.
At Point Amour Lighthouse Provincial Historic Site, if you're up to the challenge, climb the 122 steps to the top of this castle-like structure which is the tallest lighthouse in Atlantic Canada. Examine the mechanism of a major navigational beacon. On a clear day the Island of Newfoundland may be seen across the Strait of Belle Isle.
Tour Labrador's "French Connection." Drive along the Lower North Shore of Quebec. Visit the Scheffer Museum, see Bradore Falls, and experience an active archaeological dig.
Overnight: L'Anse au Clair or Forteau
Day 3
Depart Labrador Straits via ferry
Central Labrador
1 Day
Morning
Arrive at Goose Bay and tour the town of Happy Valley-Goose Bay and environs. Goose Bay was developed as an air base in 1939 by the Americans. Today the base hosts multi-national forces for low level jet flight training. Visit several shops which display creations of Labradorian artisans - carvings, crafts, paintings and wildlife photography. See archival photographs of Labrador's indigenous people and their lifestyles.
Tour North West River, 40 kilometres along the only highway north of Goose Bay. Trapping was one of the subsistence industries of the early days of Labrador. Visit with a trapper who will explain various tools of his trade and exhibit the lifestyle that was necessary to carry out this work in the wilderness.
Have afternoon tea with local seniors and share stories about life in Labrador today and yesteryear.
After tea, take a short drive to the summit of Sunday Hill to enjoy a vast panorama in all directions. Across the river lies the village of Sheshatshui where the Innu live. Depart for driving tour through Sheshatshui.
Labrador West
2 Days - Departures by train are available on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday only from Sept Îsles, Quebec, to Labrador City.
Day 1
A day-long train odyssey through the spectacular scenery of the Moisie River Valley. Arrive Labrador West where you will be met by a local tour guide who will assist with transfer to your hotel.
Overnight: Labrador City or Wabush
Day 2
Depart for Lac Grand Hermine Wilderness Park. Enjoy an easy 3 km stroll along an historic pathway lined with ice-age eskers, erratics and an emerald glacial pool, and ending at the beautiful, natural garden of caribou moss - formerly a rest area along the migration route of the George River Caribou Herd, the largest barren-ground herd in the world.
Tour of Labrador City - one of the twin mining towns comprising Labrador West. Both Labrador City and Wabush are contemporary communities set in the heart of a great wilderness. Modern amenities and recreational activities abound.
Tour Wabush.
Optional Tour (Day 3)
Depart for tour of Fermont, Quebec, Labrador West's `French connection.' Explore the `windscreen,' a boomerang- shaped, kilometre-long building built to protect the community from the prevailing northwest winds. It is one of only three such structures in the world.
Hike to Crystal Falls near Labrador City along an easy ascent on a newly constructed 1 km trail. Enjoy the variety and abundance of flora and geology along the route: dwarf balsam, indigenous wild berries, diverse species of mosses and lichens, interesting fungi, pink and black granite, and at the top, a cascading waterfall and a panoramic view of the surrounding landscape. Your camera is a must.
Tour of the Iron Ore Company of Canada at Labrador City- the largest mining operation of its kind in North America. The larger than life 12-foot diameter truck tires and the moonscape aspect of the site indicate that mining is the economic lifeblood of Labrador West. Local guides will wow you with facts about this operation which supplies raw product to steel-making industries across North America.
Optional Day Trip - Churchill Falls Hydro Electric Facility
The site of the largest hydroelectric facility in the western hemisphere, and once touted as the "eighth wonder of the world."
Depart Labrador City for Baie Comeau.
Archaeology Tour
Day 1
Arrive Deer Lake and transfer to Gros Morne National Park.
Overnight: Gros Morne National Park area
Day 2
Visit Gros Morne National Park Interpretation Centre at Rocky Harbour or the Discovery Centre in Woody Point to learn about the unique geology which gives Gros Morne National Park its UNESCO World Heritage Site status. Depart for Port au Choix National Historic Site and tour the site where 4,500 years ago the Maritime Archaic people, Dorset and Groswater Palaeoeskimos, and more recent aboriginals once lived.
In Bird Cove an ongoing archaeological dig reveals traces of the Maritime Archaic people as well as the Groswater, Dorset Palaeoeskimos, recent aboriginals, Europeans and possibly Inuit.
Overnight: St. Anthony area
Day 3
Tour the Town of St. Anthony including the Grenfell Historical Properties. Later we visit L'Anse aux Meadows National Historic Site, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This is the only authenticated Viking settlement in North America and was inhabited 1000 years ago.
To further explore the European influence, we depart L'Anse aux Meadows for the Labrador Straits via ferry from St. Barbe to Blanc Sablon where we will visit Red Bay National Historic Site and learn of the Basque whaling operation which was established in Red Bay in the late 16th century.
Overnight: Labrador Straits
Day 4
Depart Labrador Straits via ferry from Blanc Sablon to St. Barbe, then proceed south to Deer Lake then east to Fleur de Lys where we explore the Dorest Palaeoeskimo Soapstone Quarry. It was here that the Dorsets, and possible other aboriginals, carved cooking pots and oil lamps from a soapstone outcrop.
Overnight: Lewisporte or Grand Falls
Day 5
Depart for the Boyd's Cove Beothuk Interpretation Centre. Visit the excavated site which dates back to 1650-1720. The Interpretation Centre features displays on Beothuk cultural history.
From Boyd's Cove we depart for Burnside, near Terra Nova National Park. There we will visit the Interpretation Centre and take a boat tour to the multi-component aboriginal site at The Beaches which was occupied almost 5,000 years ago by Maritime Archaic people, and more recently by the Beothuks. Visit other sites including the rhyolite quarry in Bloody Bay Cove where stone was collected for tools.
Overnight: Clarenville area
Day 6
Depart Clarenville for the Avalon Peninsula. Our first stop is in Trinity Bay at Anderson's Cove where Maritime Archaic people lived 3000-1200 B.C. There's also Dorset site on nearby Dildo Island, and a Beothuk site at Russell's Point. In Cupids there's an ongoing dig where the first English colony in Canada was established in 1610.
We continue east and visit Ferryland to the Colony of Avalon, founded in 1621 by Lord Baltimore, a.k.a.George Calvert, more than a decade before his better known Maryland colony. Visitors can view the ongoing archaeological dig, preservation work in the lab as well as the recreations and displays at the interpretation centre.
Overnight: St. John's
Day 7
Explore old St. John's. The Rooms, which houses the provincial museum, archives and art gallery, provides an excellent overview of the cultures that are found in the province. Maritime Archaic Indian, Dorset, Thule, Inuit, Beothuk, Mi'kmaq, Innu and the early European settlements are all represented in the Muse