St. John's 
Credit: Destination St. John’s
If you only have 24 hours to experience a city, you may want to see and do everything possible while you are there. St. John’s has a long history from its start as a fishing village to the capital city today. Here are 24 ways to discover St. John’s in just 24 hours.
1. Dee Jay Charters Boat Tours
If you want to view the magnificent beauty of Newfoundland from the vastness of the North Atlantic Ocean, then a Dee Jay Charter Tour is a definite ‘must do’ while you are in St. John’s. You will have a chance to see marine life like the humpback whale and the infamous puffin, historical landmarks such as Signal Hill and Cape Spear, towering icebergs, and the ancient geological formations that make up Newfoundland’s wonderous coastline.
Price: Adult: $70, Senior: $65, Children 12 & under: $35
Hours: Daily (starting in May) at 9:30 am, 1 pm, and 4 pm. Evening (starting in July) at 7 pm
Address: Pier 7, Harbour Drive, St. John’s
Website
2. Johnson GEO CENTRE
Learn more about Newfoundland and the earth at the Johnson GEO Centre. You can either take a guided tour, or explore the interactive exhibits on your own to see how the forces of nature affect the daily life of Newfoundlanders and learn more about the tragic story of the sinking of the Titanic. The GEO VISTA PARK is right outside, so you can continue to learn about nature.
Price: Adult: $12, Senior (60 +): $9, Students: $9, Youth (5 – 17 Years): $6, Under 5 Years: FREE
Family Pass (2 Adults & 3 Youth Age Children): $32, GEO Members: FREE, MUN Faculty, Staff & Students: FREE
Address: 175 Signal Hill Road
Website
3. Ocean Quest Adventures
If you are looking for excitement while visiting St. John’s, you can book a tour with Ocean Quest. Their Close Encounter Adventures let you kayak in the sea caves of Bell Island & shower under waterfalls near Cape Spear, catch fish and taste beneath the sea, snorkel with humpback whales, dive on WWII Wrecks, and even drink an iceberg! They also offer private boat tours for up to 45, culinary tours, culture, history, and adventure. So, book your tour and you will experience Newfoundland the way that only Ocean Quest can show it!
Price: $183.99 – 275.99 per person depending on tour taken
Address: 40 O’Leary Avenue, St. John’s
Website
4. Memorial University of Newfoundland Botanical Garden
Spend a peaceful hour walking through the beautifully cultivated gardens and well-groomed trails in the boreal forest at the MUN Botanical Garden. There are wonderful displays of traditional and native plants, as well as the beautiful perennial and vegetable gardens. You can also have a snack or lunch in the cafe, before feeding the ducks at the pond.
Price: Adult (19+): $9, Senior (60+): $6, Student (5-18 or with ID): $6, Children (under 5): FREE
Family Day Pass (2 adults & their children): $20
MUN Students (with ID): FREE, MUN Employees (with ID): $6
Hours: From May
Address: 306 Mount Scio Road, St. John’s
Website
5. Quidi Vidi Charters
If you want to experience an intimate boat tour along the craggy cliffs of St. John’s, then book a tour with Quidi Vidi Charters. On the water, you can look for icebergs, whales, Cabot Tower, and Cape Spear while you try your hand at fishing. Then it’s back to the wharf, where you will learn how to clean and gut a fish, then enjoy a feed of fish and chips right on the spot
Address: 57 Barrows Road, St. John’s
Website
6. Cape Spear Lighthouse National Historic Site
Cape Spear’s Lighthouse is an iconic site since it is the oldest surviving lighthouse in Newfoundland. Explore the lighthouse to see what life was like for the lighthouse keepers in the 19th century. From the cliff, you can spot icebergs, Humpback whales and porpoises.
Price: Adult:$3.90, Senior:$3.40, Youth (under 17):Free, Commercial Group, per person:$3.40
Hours: May to October
Address: Blackhead Road, Cape Spear
Website
7. Speciality Fishing Tours
Fish for world-class sea run brown trout, Atlantic salmon, eastern brook trout and deep-sea species including codfish with experienced and cordial licensed guides. There are Record brown trout within close proximity of city, as a well as Atlantic salmon on the Avalon Peninsula, central, west, south coast and Labrador. Deep-sea species including shark from Jun to Oct.
Hours: Late May to October
Address: 120 Regent Street, St. John’s
Website
8. Quidi Vidi Brewing Company
If you are a beer ‘connoisseur’ who likes to enjoy learning about or drinking beer, then a tour of Newfoundland & Labrador’s largest craft brewery in the historic fishing village of Quidi Vidi is a great way to spend an hour. Their tour and tasting happens once a day at 11:00 am.
Price: $12 ($6 for the tour, $6 for 4 samples)
Address: 35 Barrows Road, St. John’s
Website
9. Iceberg Quest Ocean Tours
Take a tour with Iceberq Quest and relax on their brand new state of the art vessel, the Capo de Espera. You can breathe in the salty ocean air and view majestic icebergs carved from the glaciers of Greenland. On the water, you will see whales, porpoises and sea birds while you have a cold and refreshing iceberg beer, if you like!
Price: Adult: $70, Senior (65 yrs +): $65, Child (2-12 years): $30, INFANT Under 2 yrs: Free
Hours: May to September
Address: 135 Harbour Drive, Pier 6, St. John’s
Website
10. Ches’s Famous Fish and Chips
Ches’s is the place to go if you are looking to enjoy a feed of Newfoundland & Labrador’s finest fish and chips. If you want to eat like the locals, you can ask to have stuffing and gravy added to the fries that come with the fish. They are a licensed restaurant that also has delicious desserts.
Price: A La Carte Pricing
Address: 9 Freshwater Rd, St. John’s
Website
11. Boyle’s Historic Walking Tours
If you want to learn about St. John’s incredible culture and interesting history, take a tour with Boyle’s. Mr. Boyle is an actor, historian and an entertainer who makes St. John’s history come alive. There are 5 different Tours you can choose from, which are the Where Once They Stood Tour, Harbour Tour, Aly O’Brien Tour, Cruise Ship Passengers, and the General Tudor Walking Tour.
Address: Multiple locations in Downtown St. John’s
Website
12. The Grounds Café
The Grounds Café is a farm to fork café that celebrates what Newfoundland can grow on the rock. The Café is located in the Murray’s Garden Centre in Portugal Cove, which is just a short drive from St. John’s. The menu regularly changes, as new produce comes into season and others go out of season.
Price: A La Carte Pricing
Address: 1525 Portugal Cove Road, Portugal Cove
Website
13. Nature Minded
Spend some time reconnecting with nature in St. John’s on one of Nature Minded tours. Their Guided Forest Bathing Walks are offered in a variety of locations, year round and celebrate the beauty of Newfoundland’s forests. Kids will love the Fairy Door Tours that take place in Pippy Park because there are opportunities for wish-making, writing letters to leave in the fairy mail box and much more.
Price: Prices vary depending on tour
Address: Pippy Park, Portugal Cove-St. Phillips and Tors Cove, St. John’s
Website
14. The Rooms
Celebrate Newfoundland’s culture at the province’s largest public cultural space. The Rooms are home to the most extensive collection of artifacts, art and archival records, which makes it the place to visit if you are looking to learn about this unique province and city. Make sure to head to Level 4 and visit The Rooms Café for traditional fare.
Address: 9 Bonaventure Avenue, St. John’s
Website
15. Newfoundland Chocolate Company
If you have a sweet tooth, then you definitely ‘must’ visit the Newfoundland Chocolate Company’s main Chocolaterie. They have Chocolate Tastings for chocolate lovers who would like to further their love and appreciation of chocolate while learning delicious insider knowledge and tasting tips.
Address: 166 Duckworth Street
Website
16. BirdTheRock Bird & Nature Tours
Newfoundland is home to many species of birds that you cannot find anywhere else. BirdTheRock Bird & Nature Tours leaves from St. John’s and will take you to where you can watch the seabird colonies, northern songbirds and more. You may also spot some whales in the Atlantic while you are bird watching.
Address: Around St. John’s
Website
17. Richard Steele Studio and Galley
Spend a relaxing hour or two at Richard Steele’s Gallery, which has a large and diverse repertoire of artwork that represents Newfoundland’s Heritage. They carry paintings, gicless’s, prints, small matted images as well as note cards. The gallery is located in the Historical district across from the Rooms.
Hours: Monday: 10 am to 2 pm, Tuesday to Thursday: 10 am to 5:30 pm
Friday: 10 am to 4 pm, Saturday: 10 am to 5 pm, Sunday: Closed
Address: 63 Harvey Road, St. John’s
Website
18. The Screech Room
If you like Rum, then the Screech Room is a ‘must visit’ place for you, so you can be “Screeched In”. It is the official home of Screech Rum and all things Screech, like the official rum cake of Newfoundland and Labrador, along with a large selection of Newfoundland Products including bottled Screech Rum. There are also daily Family Friendly Screech-Ins at 2:30 pm and 4 pm each day.
Price: A La Carte Pricing
Address: The Masonic Temple, 6 Cathedral Street, St. John’s
Website
19. The St. John’s Haunted Hike
If you are looking for the darker side of St. John’s history, then going on the St. John’s Haunted Hike is for you. A ghostly guide will take you through the streets of St. John’s to the most haunted places. Just be sure to wear your most comfortable walking shoes.
Price: $10 per person, Bookings are required for large groups
Hours: Sunday to Thursday nights
Address: Anglican Cathedral, Church Hill, St. John’s
Website
20. So-Full Food Tours
Enjoy a taste of historic downtown St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador when you take the So-Full Food Tour. This 3-hour guided walking food tour will take you around Downtown St. John’s to a variety of locally-owned restaurants and cafes, where you get to sample parts of the menu at each stop.
Price: $75 per person
Hours: Saturdays and Sundays from June 8, 2019 to October 12, 2019 at 12 pm
Address: Meeting place is 166 Duckworth St, St. John’s
Website
21. Oceanview Crafts & Souvenirs
Being open for over 25 years, the Oceanview Craft & Souvenirs is a staple for those looking for Cape Spear and Newfoundland crafts and souvenirs, along with local snacks, soda and water. From the shop windows, you can view Blackhead’s bay and possibly spot icebergs floating by.
Address: Route 11, Blackhead
Website
22. Harbourside Park
Harbourside Park is the place to be in St. John’s during the spring and summer. On Fridays starting in June, the park hosts the Free Music at Harbourside lunchtime concert series including folk, blues, jazz, pop and more.. The park is the absolute perfect place to relax with your family or just take a break from the rush of the city.
Hours: Every Friday and Sunday from June 7, 2019 to Sept 27, 2019, times vary
Address: Water Street East, St. John’s
Website
23. Commissariat Provincial Historic Site
Travel back in time to the 19th century at Commissariat Provincial Historic Site. This multi-media experience recreates what life was like when St. John’s was starting to take control of their own government and how the power struggle effected daily life.
Price: Adults: $6, Seniors (+60): $4, Students (Valid student ID): $4, Children & Youth (16 & under): Free
Hours: Daily from 9:30 am to 5 pm
Address: 11 – 13 King’s Bridge Road, St. John’s
Website
24. Railway Coastal Museum
Boats and trains have played a huge part in the island history since they were once the province’s only life line. The Railway Coastal Museum is home to models of the trains and boats that helped Newfoundland become the beautiful province it is today.
Price: Adult: $7.00 (plus tax), Senior (60+)/ Student: $6.00 (plus tax), Youth (5-17 yrs): $5.00 (plus tax)
Child (4 yrs & younger): Free, Family Pass (2 Adults & 3 Youth): $20.00 (plus tax)
Address: 495 Water Street West, St. John’s
Website
