10 Best Places To See In Newfoundland and Labrador

During a two week visit to Newfoundland and Labrador last summer I had so many thrilling experiences: seeing my first iceberg, watching moose eat tender grass shoots, visiting a salmon ladder, and visiting a fjord, to name a few. However, there were 10 outstanding places that everyone should plan to visit when they travel to Newfoundland and Labrador. I felt each of these places, alone, made the trip worthwhile.

I recommend that you fly into Deer Lake (on the west half of Newfoundland) and fly out of St. John's (or the opposite) to minimize backtracking. The places we visited that are discussed in this lens are marked on the map below.

This module will show you the locations in Newfoundland that we visited. Click on each marker to get a description of the location.

Take a tour boat cruise of the fjord.

The Western Brook Pond is a fjord located in Gros Morne National Park on the west coast of Newfoundland. The pond is accessible by a 3 km hiking trail over coastal bogs and low limestone ridges. The lake is surrounded by steep rock walls 600 m high. Two tour boats cruise the lake from June to mid-October. Pissing Mare Falls, at the extreme eastern end of the pond, is 350 m high and is one of the highest in eastern North America.

Because of wind, mist and cool temperatures warm water-proof clothes are a must.

Gunner's Cove is located at the northern tip of the northern peninsula of Newfoundland. Our bed & breakfast, the Valhalla Inn, was on a hill overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. There is a resident moose at the Valhalla Inn that visited each morning, afternoon and evening. During our two night stay we ate at the Norseman Restaurant. The food is excellent and, several nights a week, Wade Hillier provides Newfoundland music and song. Gunner's Cove is also near Norstead, a Viking village, and L'Anse aux Meadows. These are also among the top 10 attractions.

During the era called the Viking Age (c. AD 800 to 1050) people from modern-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden traveled westward to Iceland, Greenland, and North America. The Norse settled in north Newfoundland at L'Anse aux Meadows for a brief period in c. AD 1000. Norstead, just to the north is a reconstruction of a Viking village based on archeological findings at the original settlement site. There, modern-day Vikings demonstrated the Norse lifestyle and shared their knowledge with us. This was the BEST reenactment that we ever have experienced. Do not miss!

During our trip to Newfoundland and Labrador we heard about an altruistic man who devoted his life to his ministry and provided some of the first medical services to 29,000 men, women, and children along the coast of Labrador and northern Newfoundland. Wilfred lectured in Canada and the United States to raise funds for medical care and social improvements. He founded a network of hospitals, hospital ships, nursing stations, and schools.

After visiting the Grenfell Hospital, and the Grenfell home and museum in St. Anthony, Newfoundland we left uplifted in spirit and thankful to have learned about his life and work.

Learning about Wilfred Grenfell's altruistic work was a life changer for me.

The Salmoid Interpretation Centre in Grand Falls-Windsor exhibits the history, biology and habitat of the Atlantic Salmon. Large windows let us have a close look at the Atlantic Salmon as the fish jump up the fish ladder.

The Prime Berth Living Heritage Museum is located just across the bridge from Twillingate Island. The museum includes an original fish station where cod were split and squid were dried. Other displays include an assembled whale skeleton, a craft studio, a blacksmith store, sea aquarium and fishing museum. There is also a collection of antique tools used by cod fisherman. Cod splitting demonstrations are performed each morning.

Again, this living museum was a life changer for me. It really demonstrated the hard life of the fishermen and their families.

Parsons Pond is a small fishing community on the west coast of the northern peninsula of Newfoundland. It is just north of Gros Morne National Park.

The colorful fishing stages and boats lends to wonderful photographic opportunities.

Located about 200 km southwest of St. John's, Cape St. Mary's Ecological Reserve, also known as "The Cape", is one of Newfoundland and Labrador's major seabird colonies. During the breeding season, it is home to 24,000 Northern Gannet, 20,000 Black-legged Kittiwake, 20,000 Common Murre, and 2,000 Thickbilled Murre. The Cape St. Mary's Lighthouse is located at the east entrance to St. Mary's Bay and at the entry to the seabird ecological reserve.

The movie set was constructed near New Bonaventure in 2000 for the filming of the international TV mini-series "Random Passage". It offers visitors the opportunity to imagine the life of our forebears in a typical fishing outpost in the early 1800's. The site includes various sod roof houses, church,

schoolroom, fishing stage & fish flakes, sheep grazing and a traditional vegetable garden.

A well versed guide, dressed in period clothes, gives a wonderful tour and explanation of the TV mini-series set.

Taking the ferry to Labrador was an experience in itself. The one hour and forty-five minute ferry across the Straits of Labrador runs between St. Barbe, Newfoundland and Blanc Sablon, Quebec. L'Anse au Clair, Labrador is only a 2 or 3 km drive. We sighted many whales as we approached Blanc Sablon.

Labrador did not have any roads until the 1960s. It still has only a few highways. The land is raw and beautiful. L'Anse au Clair, Labrador has a wonderful stretch of sand beach. The Point Amour Lighthouse is close by.

Let me know if you have already experienced the "Top 10" or if you are planning a trip to Newfoundland and Labrador.