St. John's

St. John's is the capital of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is the oldest city in North America and is on the Avalon Peninsula in the southeast corner of the island of Newfoundland. The city is the easternmost point on the Trans-Canada Highway, a network of roads leading more than 8000 km westward to Victoria, British Columbia.

With 206,000 residents (2016), the metropolitan area is the second largest in Atlantic Canada, behind Halifax.

Understand
John Cabot was believed to have sailed into the harbour on June 24, 1494 - the feast day of John the Baptist, for whom St. John's Harbour is named. The first year-round settlement was not long after 1630, although a seasonal fishery operated in the region long before then. Sir Humphrey Gilbert claimed the area as England's first overseas colony on 5 August 1583 under Royal Charter of Queen Elizabeth I. Fishermen from England's West Country controlled most of Newfoundland's east coast by 1620. Fortifications were installed from 1670 onward to defend the city, against the Dutch and then against the French&mdash;both of whom had briefly captured the town at one time or another. When Newfoundland became a self-governing dominion within the British Empire in 1907 (a status similar to that of New Zealand), St. John's was its national capital. Confederation with the Dominion of Canada in 1949 demoted the city to provincial capital status; by then, Newfoundland had fought in two world wars.

With a location 2100 km (1339 miles) northeast of Toronto, St. John's is closer to Dublin than Vancouver. It is the most easternly urban settlement in North America and is 3½ hours behind Greenwich Mean Time. Vancouver on the west coast of Canada is 8 hours behind GMT.
 * Destination St. John's tourism website

Airlines
Canadian airlines operating to St John's:

Other airlines:



Ground transportation
You can reach downtown by public bus No. 14 on weekdays only, buses leave roughly hourly from 6:45AM to 7:15PM to the campus of Memorial University, where connections to various downtown buses are available. A single fare costs $2.50.

Taxi to downtown costs about $25.

By car
St John's is the easternmost point on Highway 1 (Trans-Canada Highway), the main road across Newfoundland. If you splash loudly into the Atlantic Ocean, you'll know you've gone past the city.

Traffic arriving from out-of-province normally crosses by ferry from North Sydney (Nova Scotia) to either Port-aux-Basques or Argentia, then follows TCH 1 east to town. (It's also possible to cross from Labrador via a ferry at Blanc-Sablon Québec, but the Trans-Labrador Highway to Quebec Route 389 in Labrador City-Fermont is no easy journey.)

By boat
The island portion of the province is accessible by several ferries leaving North Sydney, Nova Scotia. From there, you can take a 5- to 6-hour ferry ride to Port-aux-Basques, at the southwest corner of Newfoundland, and drive 905 km across the island to St. John’s, near its eastern tip.

From mid-June through September, you can take a 14- to 17-hour ferry ride from North Sydney, Nova Scotia, to Argentia, Newfoundland, which is 131 km from St. John’s. Ferry schedules and reservation information are available from Marine Atlantic. You should make a reservation well in advance, especially if you want a cabin on an overnight crossing. Marine Atlantic ferries offer a wide variety of on-board accommodations and features, including deluxe cabins, dormitory sleepers, full meal and beverage service, live entertainment, movies, and children's activity programs.

By car
St. John's is a driver-dominated city, although the road layout is haphazard and a map or GPS is de rigueur for visitors. Except for the Downtown centre, parking is almost always abundant. Traffic jams are frequently encountered during road maintenance season due to limited transportation corridors to outlying communities. The downtown area contains many one-way streets so it is important to watch for signs.

St. John's International Airport has the following car rental agencies: Hertz, Avis, Thrifty, Budget, and National. In the city you can also find Enterprise, Discount, and Rent-A-Wreck. Executive Car Service is also available for chauffeured car rentals and tours from several providers such as Black Car Service, Corporate Concierge and Jimmy's Sedan Service. If no rentals are available, U-Haul vehicles may be another option.

Book rental cars early for travel during the peak summer months. Rental cars are often totally unavailable during tourist season, so it's recommended to book rentals months in advance.

By foot
The Downtown core can be easily explored by foot if you have full mobility. Take a stroll up Water Street, stop for a drink or take in some live music at a wide range of drinking establishments, a wide range of restaurants, and distinctive shopping. For several weeks during the summer, a section of Water Street is made pedestrian-only, bringing life to the normally car-filled streets.

George Street, just above Water at the west end of the downtown core, near City Hall and the Convention Centre, is a concentration of nightclubs, taverns, restaurants that is typically busy any night of the week, with bar patrons spilling onto many patios and onto the street. Adjacent streets such as Duckworth Street also have interesting shopping and restaurants, and there are a number of (liquor-licensed) billiards halls.

Quidi Vidi Lake, Quidi Vidi Harbour and Signal Hill are popular areas within walking distance of downtown. During the summer, a private free Hop On Hop Off bus service connects downtown, Quidi Vidi, Cape Spear and Signal Hill.

Caution: during the winter, most sidewalks are not cleared, so pedestrians must walk on the streets and climb over icy snowbanks. These dangers make walkers a relatively rare sight - typically only the poor and stubborn walk in St. John's. Stops signs are routinely ignored by drivers, and drivers often run red lights, especially when turning right. Traffic laws are generally not enforced by the police. Pedestrians must be extremely cautious to protect themselves - don't expect your legal right of way to be respected.

By bicycle
There are a handful of steep hills in St. John's, although they can often be avoided by taking more gradually sloped routes. Be warned: although the hills are frequently cited as a reason for the lack of cyclists, the reckless drivers and poor infrastructure are the most significant barriers to active transportation. Few cycling lanes are available, and most are placed in dangerous door zones beside parking areas. Cycle lanes are only designated by a faded stripe of paint - there are no separate protected cycling lanes. Cyclists are officially banned from the network of gravel paths, the Grand Concourse, which is mostly treated as a recreational activity for drivers rather than a legitimate transportation option. This ban on cycling is frequently ignored by cyclists who are terrified of the dangers imposed by car-centric culture. There are very limited bicycle rental options in the city.

By taxi
Many of the cab drivers are quite knowledgeable and eager to help visitors find out about local attractions. If you want to see something but aren't sure what or where, ask a cabbie for a tour of the city or Cape Spear, the easternmost point in Canada. Note that if you are flying in to the airport, taxis may not be available, so you may be stranded at the airport. Taxi drivers are often reckless drivers, so pedestrians and cyclists should be wary, and should not expect them to stop at stop signs or red lights.



Learn
The only university in Newfoundland and Labrador is Memorial University, located on the northwest side of the city. There is also College of the North Atlantic, which is the province's community college.

Buy
St. John's has two modern shopping centres. The Avalon Mall, the largest shopping centre in Newfoundland, has 140 stores (including Winners/HomeSense, Sport Chek, H&M, Old Navy, a 12-screen Cineplex movie theatre (Scotiabank Theatre), and The Rec Room) and is on Kenmount Road. The Village Shopping Centre is in the West End on Topsail Road. St. John's also has several big box centres; Stavanger Drive in the east end; Kelsey Drive (off Kenmount Road); and Pearlgate located in the suburb of Mount Pearl. Also near Pearlgate is The Shoppes at Galway, which is the home of St. John's Costco store.

Downtown St. John's boasts a wide array of shops and boutiques, most notably Water Street. Everything from unique souvenirs to designer clothing.

Unlike most provinces in Canada, cold beer can be purchased in convenience stores. Liquor and wine are only available at NLC locations. Cannabis products can be purchased from several retail locations by adults (max 30 grams), including pre-rolls and beverages.

Eat
St. John's is the hometown of Canadian fried chicken chain Mary Brown's Chicken. The first location opened in 1969 in St. John's at the Avalon Mall, where there is still a branch. Many of their locations are available in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Budget
Newfoundlanders will tell you that you can't leave St. John's without having fish and chips at either Ches's or the Big R (known to locals as "the Big Arse"). Local favourite dishes include "chips, dressing and gravy" (french fries and stuffing covered in thick gravy), "fish-and-brewis" (a sort of hard bread), and "cod cheeks" (the cheeks of cod fish, really).



Drink
George Street, in the heart of downtown, is a prime location for nightlife. Water Street, said to be the oldest street in North America, also contains several pubs, usually of a more relaxing atmosphere.



Cope
Visitors should have clothing for highly variable weather in Saint John's. For example, the high for July 5, 2017 was but was more than  on the next day.

Stay safe
While St. John's is generally regarded as a safe city, increases in the crime rate have been reported. Panhandling is very common in downtown, however simply replying "no" or ignoring those individuals usually does the trick, while a few more may be more persistent. Very rarely will these people become violent, and are usually not a problem.

As in any other city of comparable size, use caution when travelling after dark. Common areas to avoid after dark include Buckmaster Circle, Old and New Penneywell Road, areas immediately around Hamlyn Road, Livingstone Street, Water Street west (Springdale Street west to the beginning of Waterford Bridge Road including Victoria Park) and Shea Heights. Most of these places are not areas which tourists would normally be in, and shouldn't be a huge problem.

Caution should be used when on George Street, especially on Friday and Saturday nights. With excessive drinking and drug use, there is a high tendency for people to turn violent. However, it's unlikely that you'll fall victim to assault if you keep out of trouble. Take caution at 24-hour restaurants and convenience stores across town, especially in the downtown area. Patrons from George Street often stagger into such restaurants after last call and can be violent, sometimes attacking unsuspecting individuals. As well, a rise in armed robberies in the metropolitan area have left 24-hour convenience an easy target for criminals.

However, with crime rates much lower than the national average, little is to fear about walking around St. John's at most times of day or night. With some basic caution, there is no reason why your visit to the city can't be a safe one.

Go next

 * Bonavista and its famous lighthouse are further north
 * Dildo - quiet little fishing town is less than an hour's drive away - go whale watching or check out the archaeological remains of early Indian settlement
 * Irish Loop - 7- to 8-hour scenic drive following the southern 'cape' shore (route 10) back to the Trans-Canada Highway. Bay Bulls, one of the closest points to town, is a small bay east on route 10 which is home to various boat tour companies offering whale, puffin, and iceberg watching.