Newfoundland

A few years ago, before Little E., we took a five week road trip across North America. The minute I begin telling this story to people they interrupt and say "this was before the baby... right?" Well, yes, it was before the baby, but the thing is, my husband and I love taking road trips and most people assume that it's not something you can do once you have kids because they create these nightmare scenarios of the kids screaming and crying the whole time. Well, my answer to that is "Get them used to it". If your kids are used to being in the car for half an hour at the tops, of course anything longer than that will seem never ending, but if you get them used to it, it's been my experience that it's fine for the most part.

Last year we drove to Newfoundland and spent 3 weeks there. It took us about 3 days to get there (and back) so we had about 2.5 weeks to explore and drive around. At the time E. was just over a year old, and yes, we did find many things to do which kept her entertained and us interested.

Over and above everything else, E. favorite place we visited on the trip was Terra Nova Park and it's incredible visitors centre. They have a "Touch Tank" which is basically an open aquarium which anyone can take the animals out of and touch them, look at them and see how they interact. E. loved this. We spent hours here, and really it was quite interesting and some of the most hands-on learning I've seen.

E discovering the Touch Tank at Terra Nova Park

Another great thing you can do at the park is take a private jet boat tour. Ocean Quest Adventures will do custom tours for you. They are absolutely amazing people! At first we were thinking of doing some snorkeling, but in the end decided against it, so a photo tour was what we opted for. (However, if you are interested in snorkeling, they have some amazing packages.) We got to see some incredible landscapes and because the boat is small and much quieter that usual tour boats, we got to see some great birds and animals without interrupting them. E being on the boat and so close to the water. Even the speed, she absolutely adored having the wind blowing in her face!!

On the private jet boat tour courtesy of Ocean Quest Adventures

Another great place we visited was Grand Falls-Windsor, which is home to the Salmonid Interpretation Centre, the largest of its kind in North America. Basically this is where the salmon swim upstream and return to every year. You're in this great beautiful, scenic park and you can see salmon swimming. A guide will tell you all about the salmon's cycles and tell you all about the area. You also get to see a film explaining how the centre came to be. A great partnership between industry and nature.

Salmon swimming upstream

E and me at the Salmonid Interpretation Centre

Gros Morne National Park is easily one of the most amazing places on earth. Take a boat tour and take in the majestic beauty. E. loved this and so did the other children she met on the boat.

Newfoundland & Labrador also have a pass the call the Viking Trail Pass which will get you in to all of the National Parks & Historic sites on the west coast of Newfoundland, including Red Bay in Labrador. L'Anse aux Meadows, in Northern Newfoundland is an amazing place where you can learn all about how the vikings who came to North America lived and explore the sod houses they lived in.

The town of Tilting, located on the north-eastern tip of Fogo Island is an amazing place. It's a Provincial Heritage District and National Historic Site of Canada and accessible by ferry from Twillingate which is also a great place to visit where you can take boat tours and see whales and icebergs depending on the season. If you go to Tilting, you must stop at Nicole's Café in Joe Batt's Arm, a small nearby town on Fogo Island. This was probably the best restaurant we went to in all of Newfoundland, and possibly in the top ten ever, hands down. They also have a great kids menu.

Newfoundland overall offered great things to do for a family. Be prepared to do alot of driving if you will be visiting both sides of the island. That being said, be prepared to be completely fed up of your child's favorite music. However, if your child enjoys napping in the car, which most do, it's easy to get a 5 hour-drive if they can handle 1.5 hour before the nap and 1.5 hours after.

Everything Newfoundland has to offer though makes driving absolutely worth it!