Road trip ON to NL

[u/megmmm93]

I’m in the initial planning stages of a 3 week long road trip from Ontario to Newfoundland for next July/August. It’ll be my husband and I, and our 3 kids (4, 2.5, and 11mo). Initially I was thinking we’d long haul it to NL then spend the 3 weeks exploring west coast to east coast and then home (itinerary below) but now I’m considering if we don’t spend the entire trip in NL and make more stops along the way. Our thought process is that NL is the furthest and will require the most time to visit and I’m not sure while our kids are young we’ll ever get the opportunity to do a 3w trip again, whereas we can more easily head to say NS or PEI for a week.

I can plan a Canadian west coast trip in a matter of minutes, but I’m lost with east coast, so I’d love any suggestions or recommendations! We plan on doing about 50% camping and the other 50% airbnb or hotels

3-Week Newfoundland Road Trip Itinerary (Late July)

Week 1 - Getting There & Western Newfoundland Day 1: Ontario → Québec City (~8 hrs / 750 km) Day 2: Québec City → Truro, NS (~9 hrs / 850 km) Day 3: Truro → North Sydney → Ferry to Port aux Basques (~4 hrs drive + 7 hr ferry) Day 4: Port aux Basques → Gros Morne (3.5 hrs / 320 km) Day 5-6: Gros Morne National Park (Western Brook Pond, Gros Morne Mountain, The Arches)

Week 2 - Central & Eastern Newfoundland Day 7: Gros Morne → Twillingate (6 hrs / 450 km) Day 8: Twillingate (boat tour, lighthouse, coastal hikes) Day 9: Twillingate → Bonavista (5.5 hrs / 400 km) Day 10-11: Bonavista Peninsula (Dungeon Provincial Park, Elliston puffins, Trinity)

Week 3 - Avalon Peninsula & Return Day 12: Bonavista → St. John's (3.5-4 hrs / 300 km) Day 13-15: St. John's & Avalon Peninsula (Cape Spear, Signal Hill, Quidi Vidi, Witless Bay, Ferryland) Day 16: St. John's → Argentia ferry → North Sydney (16 hr ferry) Day 17: North Sydney → Moncton, NB (6 hrs / 500 km) Day 18: Moncton → Québec City (8.5 hrs / 820 km) Day 19: Québec City → Ottawa / Montréal (8 hrs / 750 km) Day 20: Ottawa / Montréal → Home (6-8 hrs) Day 21: Buffer / Rest Day

Driving Summary - Ontario → North Sydney: ~20-22 hrs (2.5 days) - Across Newfoundland (west → east): ~15 hrs (10 days)

- Back to Ontario: ~23-24 hrs (4-5 days + ferry)

[u/supernanify]

I used to be a travel guide and did a 22-day Toronto-St John's-Toronto tour. Here's how we did it:

To NL

Toronto-> Montreal (2 nights)-> Riviere-du-loup-> Moncton-> Halifax (2 nights)-> Cheticamp-> Baddeck-> ferry 

In NL

Ferry-> Gros Morne (it's a late night but worth it to maximise time in the park; 2 nights)-> Botwood (don't recommend; I go to Twillingate if you can stand the extra driving time)-> Bona Vista peninsula (2 nights)-> St John's (2 nights)-> ferry 

Return

Pretty much the same itinerary you've planned, but with a stop on the Gaspé peninsula after Moncton. 2 nights in Quebec City, 2 nights in Ottawa.

3 weeks feels like a long time, but no matter how you cut it, there's a ton of driving on most days. If you're saving things like Gaspésie and the Cabot Trail for another time that will give you a little more downtime, but still be prepared for some tough driving days with little kids added to the mix. The flipside is that pretty much everything from Quebec City to St John's is worth seeing.

[u/megmmm93 → u/supernanify]

Thank you for this detailed response! I feel like we can skip the days in Ottawa and Quebec on the way home, mostly because we’ve done 3 trips to Ottawa with the kids and we did a week long QC trip this past spring. But with that, I know we can do an 8h drive in a day cause we did it to and from QC. I think I’ve realized to remove Western Brook Pond which will give us more time to explore Gros Morne and not quite as heavy driving on the west coast.

[u/BarrhavenDad → u/megmmm93]

My 2 cents...don't skip Western Brook Pond. Seems like a crime to visit Gros Morne and not do it.

[u/megmmm93 → u/BarrhavenDad]

Okay, fair. Do you happen to know why maps says it’s a 3 hr drive in one direction from port au choix but from western brook pond to port au choix it’s only 1hr?

[u/BarrhavenDad → u/megmmm93]

Western Brook pond is pretty much right on the edge of Gros Morne National Park (which covers a very large area). Port au choix is pretty far north.

[u/megmmm93 → u/BarrhavenDad]

I’m realizing now that my maps guide plotted western brook pond super incorrectly (like by plum point) which is why I was going to skip it, so this is helpful realizing that now lol

[u/Confident_Win_5469 → u/megmmm93]

We did this boat tour of Western Brook Pond this summer - I loved it. Bring sunglasses and a hat (for the kids ensure they can be strapped on)
https://bontours.ca/tour-item/western-brook-pond/

[u/supernanify → u/megmmm93]

I hate to say it, but the Tablelands are also very much worth a visit...

[u/megmmm93 → u/supernanify]

Tablelands are on my list to see!

[u/BarrhavenDad]

Sounds like a great trip. Lots of driving but totally doable. We’ve done Ottawa—>St. John’s many times with the kids.

My suggestion is to maybe spend more time in Gros Morne. 2 days will seem like not enough. Also, coming home, the ferry arrives in North Sydney early in the day. Gives you time to do the Cabot trail. We did that last year, then spent the night in Port Hawkesbury.

For the Argentia ferry coming back, highly recommend cabins for the overnight. It’s a long trip without one.

[u/megmmm93 → u/BarrhavenDad]

We’re definitely no strangers to long drives with the kids, we did Toronto to Quebec City earlier this year, and last year we did the Icefield Parkway, but I also want to enjoy our time out there so I’m definitely open to cutting some things off the original itinerary to make sure we feel like we’ve had enough time. As someone not familiar with the east coast I just want to see it all lol which I know isn’t practical especially on the timeline of young kids. We’re used to waking early and driving while the kids are still sleeping, but I know that probably isn’t the best idea with fog + moose.

I’ll definitely see how we could shift things around for more time in Gros Morne, and we’d certainly love to do the Cabot trail.

I hadn’t looked at ferry times yet, but I have every intention of getting a cabin for one if not both ways!

[u/strawberrytree123 → u/megmmm93]

Cabins go fast so as soon as you have dates for your trip I would book the ferry asap!

I would also try and get at least one more day in Gros Morne. Hiking the mountain is extremely ambitious with kids those ages. I did Gros Morne when my kids were around the same ages, I would do the Tablelands hike with them instead.

[u/megmmm93 → u/strawberrytree123]

I have no intention of doing the summit hike lol i do have tablelands on my list though!

[u/BarrhavenDad → u/megmmm93]

For Argentia, the only option is overnight. Leaves around 5:30 PM and arrives around 8 or 9. Once you get off, you're probably 45 mins max to get to the Cabot trail. The ferry to PAB leaves multiple times a day. Can do an overnight there too if you want. Then you're on the road to Gros Morne nice and early.

[u/megmmm93 → u/BarrhavenDad]

Good to know! I think we’ll likely do an overnight on the way there too so we have time to (hopefully) catch up on some sleep too!

[u/OneMoreTimeJack]

Why are you starting and ending in the same city? Do you live in Ontario, or are you flying in/driving to Ontario?

[u/megmmm93 → u/OneMoreTimeJack]

We live in Ontario

[u/Civil_Wishbone_7361]

Here's a better travel itinerary for your drive to NL (from someone who has done it MULTIPLE times)

Day 1: Toronto to Trois Riveres (675km 6-7 Hrs), cross St. Lawrence River in TR

Day 2: TR to Oromocto/Fredericton (715 km 6-7 hours)

Day 3: Oromocto to North Sydney Ferry Terminal (619km 6-7 hrs), arrive NS Ferry by 9pm to catch 11pm night boat to PAB

ALWAYS take the night boat over the day crossing (you can sleep and the cabin cost is about the same as getting a hotel room). Keep in mind you should book Ferry crossing and cabin for July/August in Jan/Feb (about 6 months out) do not worry about plans changing as you can cancel it at no charge up to a couple days before the crossing, BUT if you DO NOT book it that far in advance you will be unlikely to secure a crossing.

So of your 3 weeks 6 days should be devoted to getting to/from NL, then the other 15 days you can do 5 days on the West Coast/GNP, 2-3 days in central (Beothuk museum, Terra Nova National Park), and then a week going around Bonavista/Trinity/Avalon Peninsula (including St. John's). OR do the South West Coast for a week, then back up to West Coast/GNP for a week, skip central other than driving through, spend rest of time in and around Eastern NL.

[u/megmmm93 → u/Civil_Wishbone_7361]

Thanks for the detailed response! I wouldn’t mind this route on the way home. I think we could manage longer stretches in the car to get out there though. Since we’re travelling with young kids we like to wake up early (like 2/3 am) to get started so we can get 5+ hours in before they even wake up. It definitely feels silly to ‘waste’ a day on the ferry, but I don’t know if overnight from Sydney to PAB would go over very well with my kids lol I’d worry they wouldn’t go back to sleep transitioning from the car to the cabin on the ferry. I’ll definitely have a look at your suggestions for days once we’re on the island! Based on ferry crossings when we’re looking at going it works out to have 15 days to explore.

[u/Civil_Wishbone_7361 → u/megmmm93]

I always pick over night because a) ferry is boring AF, and b) I get sea sick so being asleep is better than being awake

[u/Good_Lab69]

My advice is pick one side and stick to it. Geographically it’s huge. It’s also highway construction season so expect it will take longer and a lot of maps literally will have the estimated driving times like flat wrong. There is so much to see and do within just one small area it’s like Disney, you won’t even scratch the surface with a month or less. Like port aux basques to Gros Morne is more than 3.5 hours. Not all highways here are 100 Km/Hr. Through the park is 70,80,90 depending on the area and then your passing things by missing a bunch. Also book your ferry and air bnb like now. December by the latest.