Historic St. John's Newfoundland and Cape Spear Tour
Overview
Available languages
3 hours 30 minutes
Mobile ticket
Discover Newfoundland, with Newfoundlanders!
Please note that Newfoundland and New Brunswick are different places- there are two towns with similar names- St. John New Brunswick and St. John's Newfoundland. We are in Newfoundland and do not run tours in NB.
Become acquainted with the city of St. John's and its surroundings, including Cape Spear, the most Easterly point in North America. Your local guide will regale you with its steeped history, legends & lore - all flavored with personal anecdotes and good humor for which Newfoundlanders are so famous.
Enjoy the brilliant vistas from Cabot Tower and Signal Hill, one of the most recognizable skylines in Canada. Walk through a cliffside World War II gun battery, watch for whales and seabirds, and visit the oldest standing lighthouse in the province. Other sights include Quidi Vidi Village, Jelly Bean Row, Government House, the Roman Catholic Basilica, and an orientation of the shops and restaurants of the downtown core.
Additional Info
Service animals allowed
Public transportation options are available nearby
Suitable for all physical fitness levels
We require a minimum of four people total booked on a tour in order for it to proceed, and we reserve the right to cancel the tour if we do not receive sufficient people
This tour is located in St. John's Newfoundland, not Saint John New Brunswick- they are different towns in different provinces and not close to one another
Passengers may have to go up and down a couple of steps. We do stop and walk around at the different sites, however if desired they can stay in the vehicle.
The tour lasts 3.5 hours, which includes the driving time to get to the different sites, as well as pickups. We generally spend around 15 minutes at each stop but the driving time to get to each place adds a significant amount of time to the tour
The closest pickup to the Cruise Terminal is the Alt Hotel, roughly 300 Meters Away
Pickup starts prior to tour departure time- please check in the list to see how long before the start time of the tour you should be ready for pickup
Please ensure that you will be in Newfoundland and not New Brunswick
What To Expect
Cape Spear Lighthouse National Historic Site
The most Easterly Point in North America, this spit of land and famous lighthouses are well known the world over for welcoming travelers from across the seas.
Petty Harbour
This quaint fishing village provides visitors with a taste of what small-town Newfoundland is like, outside the hustle-bustle of St. John's. In season keep your eyes peeled for fish coming in on the boats!
Options
Historic St. John's Newfoundland and Cape Spear Tour
Pickup included
What‘s Included
Air-conditioned vehicle
Pickup points
Select a pickup point
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Reviews
296 reviews
Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor
Excellent
Donna S,Jun 29, 2026
- Review from Viator
5.00It was a great way to see st.john’s and surrounding coves . The guide was very knowledgeable and answered all questions asked
Highlight of our trip to St. John’s
Cindy B,Jun 28, 2026
- Review from Viator
5.00What a fantastic tour!! Comfortable van and an amazing, knowledgeable guide!! We were very fortunate to have a sunny day and Shawn gave us lots of time to get out and enjoy exploring the sights. He is clearly proud of his home and gave a detailed account of the history of this area, interspersed with wonderful stories about the locals and personal memories from his childhood. Thanks so much Shawn!! We highly recommend this tour.
A must do when visiting St. John's
Chantal D,Jun 27, 2026
- Review from Viator
4.00We had a great time, Sean was very knowledgeable and we greatly appreciated and enjoyed his story telling, the spots to view the beautiful city and surrounding areas. 10 out of 10 a must do if visiting St. John's.
St. John’s Tour
683janisc,Jun 26, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00It was a very enjoyable and informative tour.
Excellent tour of St John’s
Donna D,Jun 26, 2026
- Review from Viator
5.00Steve was very knowledgeable about Newfoundland and made this tour very enjoyable! His ongoing dialogue was extremely interesting.
A spectacular and fabulous discovery of this part of the country!
claudemaher07,Jun 24, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00A magnificent excursion organized by McCarthy’s Party Tours. An extraordinary guide, congratulations to Mr. Cliff Simms for his patience, kindness, relevant explanations, safe driving, adherence to schedule, allocated time for the places to visit, and his excellent sense of humor. The proposed and respected itinerary: Cape Spear Lighthouse National Historic Park, Petty Harbour, Jellybean Row houses, Signal Hill, and Quidi Vidi. Spectacular discoveries, an extraordinary guide, a remarkably clean and comfortable minibus, a small group, sunshine and blue skies, a perfect excursion! I highly recommend this excursion. Congratulations on your excellent work and long life to your business. Enjoy your visit!
Nice Little Tour
Guy T,Jun 23, 2026
- Review from Viator
4.00Comfortable transportation and very nice tour guide, Leslie Ann(?) - she even sang to us!. Four stops during the tour which was adequate and a good description of each location.
Slow start - what we saw was great, didn’t get to see everything
Ashley D,Jun 23, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
4.00I understand we took this tour the first day a cruise ship was in port for the season so the company was busier than normal. We were actually on the cruise, and I had selected a meeting location close to the cruise port, but the meeting location we were given in an email the day before was two miles away. We decided to walk, and I am glad we did because we saw a lot of the city we would not see on the tour. I should have called the day before to find out if there was a closer pick-up location (there was). So that is on me. But picking up other passengers was equally disorganized. We waited over ten minutes at one location only to pick up guests for a different bus, had to circle back to get the correct guests which took all-in-all about 40 minutes away from the tour. Our tour guide was good, but we only made it to Cape Spear and Signal Hill in the allotted time. Normally, we would have gone from Signal Hill to nearby Quidi Vidi, but due to earlier delays we were running behind schedule and he drove back downtown to accommodate a family that had dinner reservations. He gave people the option to get off downtown or go to Quidi Vidi, but since the tour had already gone over, we knew we didn’t have time to drive back to Quidi Vidi and then back and make our reservations later that evening. If the company had been more organized about pick-up, we would have seen more without going over time. (Also, note to fellow travelers, please be on time and wait in the right spot for pick-up and return to the bus at the designated time - our delays/circle back was caused by one couple who we circled back for and then they failed to return on time at any of the stops. I can’t say that the company/driver should have proceeded without them once they were on the tour, but it would have been a better tour for everyone else if we had not circled back to begin with.)
Bucket List 2026
75saskiaf,Jun 22, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00Our tour guide, Larry Hann, was very knowledgeable and personable. We had some time at each of our stops to take pictures and enjoy the views. Larry is a veritable gem for St. John's.
St. John’s
Q6585FIpeterl,Jun 21, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00We had a great time and the tour guide was very knowledgeable and was accommodating to all of the guests that he had on board. The sites that were visited were amazing.
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Operated by McCarthy's Party Tours & Convention Services