Guests often ask about the oddly shaped boxes located at the head of nearly every driveway that intersect the highways and byways here in Newfoundland. As is often the case with guest’s queries, I could provide an answer with just two simple words, but as everyone knows, we Newfoundlanders rarely forego an opportunity to “spin…

My brother Mark and I were looking for a new venue for the ‘Taste of Newfoundland’ experience we offer to convention planners here in the capitol city of St. John’s. We currently visit the ‘Quidi Vidi Brewery’ to sample their many varieties of craft beer – most especially the ‘Iceberg Beer’ that is actually brewed…

A post from Linda: Hi to everyone, Hope all is well. Wish I could be home for the guides’ trip. Intercession started this week, so I’m in the home stretch now and will be flying home in late June.     I went to Cyprus for Easter break and boy there’s something about islanders. What…

For those who read my blogs on a regular basis, you may notice a running theme in many of my stories as I attempt to explain the beauty and diversity of Newfoundland’s weather. Like I often suggest, “You don’t come to Newfoundland for the weather – unless you really like weather!”     This past…

When most people think of winter tourism it usually conjures up images of sporting and recreation activities like skiing, ice skating, snow shoeing and perhaps snowmobiling. We also tend to think of well known winter destinations like Aspen, CO, Whistler, BC or the Swiss Alps. Thus, when Newfoundland talks about expanding our tourism season to…

This is the first day of Spring and surprise, surprise – we are in the “throws” of yet another snowstorm here in Newfoundland. Thankfully, while the remainder of North American’s look forward to April showers and the hope of May flowers, we remain unperturbed, for Newfoundland’s spring season promises a very different celebration.     While we…

The old man (Gert) placed an order for one hamburger, French fries and a drink. Gert unwrapped the plain hamburger and carefully cut it in half, placing one half in front of Stella. Gert then carefully counted out the French fries, dividing them into two piles and neatly placed one pile in front of Stella.…

There are many reasons to explain why Newfoundland has become such a popular tourism destination of late. Our provincial television / video advertisements have effectively impressed our country’s natural beauty on a travel demographic who appreciate everything from our magnificent coastal ‘landwash’ to our deeply rooted culture. The people of Newfoundland are spectacular hosts who…

Our fishing crew recently hired out as a service boat to assist a drilling crew that were taking soil samples for the new wharves they plan to build in the east end of St. John’s harbour. Basically, we were using our boat’s powerful engine to move the heavy cement blocks used to moor the rig…

I recently shared a photograph of a beautiful painting my cousin Jacqui posted on her Facebook page. It was truly exquisite and I was especially proud of her efforts.     Though I stated as much in my comments on her post, I don’t believe any amount of verbiage could effectively express my awe and…

In most parts of North America February 2nd is Groundhog Day. Groundhogs are not native to the island of Newfoundland, so people used the weather conditions on Febuary 2nd, which is known as Candlemas Day, to determine future weather conditions. “If Candlemas Day be clear and fine, the rest of winter is left behind; If…

I love when guests ask about the brightly painted homes they see in St. John’s and how we came to choose such a wonderful palette of colours. Years ago we had no historical references to explain our preference for paint, so we used our heads and applied some good old fashioned Newfoundland logic to create…

A post by Linda: Cindy Leder sent me this pic. We’re friends on Facebook. She was on my tour a few years ago.     On another note, Vietnam is a tad bit different. Tipping all guides and servers well as this is a poor country trying desperately to get tourism right. Sometimes I’ll tell…

I landed a job with a film production crew on the very first day I arrived in Vancouver back in 2005. It was a quick, rather impromptu interview so I hadn’t received any details about the position and didn’t know what to expect when I arrived on set. I heard the boys worked in the…

One of the especially interesting characteristics guests will discover on a visit to Newfoundland are the many quaint, and sometimes bizarre place names found throughout the province. From ‘Come by Chance’ to ‘Heart’s Content’, ‘Quidi Vidi‘, ‘Brigus’, ‘Cape Freels’ and ‘Bareneed’ – we’ve had a great bit of fun with the labels we’ve provided throughout…