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Voykit pocket guide · Canada
Bonavista
Give Bonavista 2 nights: one full day for the cape, lighthouse and town, one for Elliston and the trails. Skip it Nov–April, when most businesses close.
Bonavista sits at the tip of its own peninsula, about 3.5 h by car from St. John's, and is where Cabot is said to have made landfall in 1497. It is a small outport town of roughly 3,500 people with a lighthouse you can enter, 19th-century harbour architecture, puffins at Elliston and icebergs offshore in late spring. Nearly everything tourist-facing shuts from November to April, so the trip is a summer one.
- Country
- Canada
- Best months
- Jun–Sep; May–Jun for icebergs, mid-Apr–mid-Aug for puffins
- Avoid
- Nov–Apr (most businesses closed), and any trip built around a single boat tour in shoulder season
- Stay
- 2 nights
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- CAD
- Money
- Currency is the Canadian dollar (CAD, $). Cards and tap-to-pay are accepted almost everywhere.
- Daily spend
- Budget C$90–140 excl. bed · Mid C$150–230 excl. bed · High C$250+ excl. bed (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- Rogers, Bell and Telus plus cheaper brands (Fido, Koodo, Public Mobile); prepaid SIMs in malls and stores. Canadian data is expensive — an eSIM is often cheaper.
- Emergency
- Police, fire and ambulance 911 · Health advice line (NL, 24 h) 811
- Plugs
- Types A, B · 120 V · 60 Hz · Same as the US.
- Tipping
- Restaurant: 15–20% of the pre-tax bill.; Bar: CAD 1–2 per drink.; Taxi: 10–15%.; Housekeeping: CAD 3–5 a night.; Guide: 10–20% of the tour price.
- Water
- Tap water is drinkable; treat water from lakes and streams (giardia).
- Toilets
- Free in malls, Tim Hortons, stations and park visitor centres.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Coffee | C$2.50–4.50 |
| Diner main (fish and chips, seafood) | C$12–22 |
| Restaurant main, Boreal-style | C$12–20 |
| Beer: draught in a bar / can at a gas station | C$7–9 / C$2.50–4 |
| Lighthouse and Mockbeggar combined entry, adult | C$6 |
| Whale and puffin boat tour, adult | C$65–90 |
| Shirran's taxi or shuttle, Bonavista to St. John's, one way | C$40 |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- YYT · St. John's International
- About 3.5 h by car; the usual arrival point for the peninsula.
- YQX · Gander International
- About 3 h by car; a few regional flights.
Typical fares
- Shirran's shuttle, Bonavista to St. John's
- about C$40 one way, departs Bonavista around 07:00, from St. John's around 14:00 (check)about C$40 one way, departs Bonavista around 7:00 AM, from St. John's around 2:00 PM (check)
- Whale and puffin boat tour, adult
- C$65–90 for about 2.5–3 h (check)
- Lighthouse and Mockbeggar combined entry
- about C$6 adult, C$4 senior, C$3 child 5–15 (check)
Get around
The town is flat, traffic is light and the centre is walkable, so most people park once and walk Church Street and the harbour. A car is needed for the lighthouse, The Dungeon, White Rock and Elliston; the distances are short but there is no local bus. Bicycles work well on the quiet roads.
See and do
Known for
- Cape Bonavista Lighthouse
- Cabot's 1497 landfall story
- Puffins at Elliston
- Icebergs in May and June
- Outport architecture and fishing flakes
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Elliston and the puffin viewing point | Drive Route 238 south about 15 min, then follow signs through the town to the cape | About 30 min |
| Trinity and Port Union | Drive Route 230 west, then Route 239 north to Trinity | About 1.5 h |
| The Dungeon Provincial Park | Drive the cape road past the lighthouse turn-off | About 20 min |
| St. John's | Drive Route 230 to the Trans-Canada, then east | About 3.5 h |
Sleep
- Church Street and the Harbour
- The walkable core: restaurants, shops, the bridge over the inlet, and the historic churches. Best base without a car.
- Roper Street and the inner harbour
- Waterfront inns and the Matthew Legacy; a few minutes' walk from Church Street.
- Cape Shore Road and the north end
- Quieter, closer to the lighthouse road and the Cape Shore Trail; you will want a car.
- Elliston
- About 15 min south; the base for the puffin viewing point and the Klondike Trail.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Thank you | Thank you |
| How much is it? | How much is that? |
| Can I pay by card? | Do you take card? |
| Where is the toilet? | Where's the washroom? |
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: Handshake; 'Bonjour' first in Québec; avoid: Assuming everyone speaks English
- Queues: Line up and wait your turn; avoid: Pushing in
- Apologising: 'Sorry' is politeness, not admission of fault; avoid: Loud confrontation
- Canada vs US: Treat Canada as its own country; avoid: Calling Canadians American
- Indigenous culture: Buy from Indigenous-owned businesses and ask before photos at ceremonies; avoid: Wearing headdresses as costume
Scams and watch-outs
- Most restaurants, shops and attractions close November–April or longer; check opening dates before booking a shoulder-season trip.
- Boat tours and whale sightings depend on weather and season: confirm departure the day before, and expect cancellations in wind.
- Cell coverage is patchy on the cape and along the trails; download offline maps before you leave town.
- Cliff edges and the puffin colony are unprotected in places: stay back from the edge and keep to paths.
- Fuel up in Clarenville or Bonavista before driving the peninsula; stations are sparse in between.
Bonavista is a small, low-crime town and feels safe on foot after dark. The real risks are weather, cliff edges, patchy cell coverage and long drives on moose roads at dusk.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Bonavista yet. Suggested stay: 2 nights. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- Cape Bonavista Lighthouse
- Cabot's 1497 landfall story
- Puffins at Elliston
- Icebergs in May and June
- Outport architecture and fishing flakes
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- Town of Bonavista: www.townofbonavista.com/
- Parks Canada — Ryan Premises National Historic Site: parks.canada.ca/lhn-nhs/nl/ryan
- Town of Elliston — puffin viewing: www.townofelliston.ca/visitor-guide/puffins
- Wikivoyage: Bonavista, revision 5081818 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=5081818
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
Bonavista
To this address, please
To this address, please
My hotel (write the name and address in the local script)
No embassies in Bonavista. The US consulate general is in Halifax; most other countries' embassies are in Ottawa, with consulates in Toronto, Montréal or Halifax.
English is the everyday language here; Newfoundland English has its own words and a fast accent, so ask again if you miss something.
Voykit · checked 2026-09
Printed from Voykit (/bonavista). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.