Cruising the Mediterranean and Northern Europe offers some of the most exciting and historic ports of call anywhere. Make your European port visits more worthwhile by adding our port guides to your cruise planning.
Planning A Cruise? Start With The Intentional Travelers Port Guides
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Cruising the Mediterranean and Northern Europe offers some of the most exciting and historic ports of call anywhere. Make your European port visits more worthwhile by adding our port guides to your cruise planning.
Planning A Cruise? Start With The Intentional Travelers Port Guides
Approaching St. Johns, Newfoundland from the sea..
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CRUISE PORT ST. JOHN, NEWFOUNDLAND CANADA
St. John’s, Newfoundland, Canada, is considered one of North America’s oldest European settlements, founded around 1497. While its status as the absolute “oldest” is debated due to varying definitions of “city” and “settlement,” it holds the record as the oldest English-founded city in North America and has been a significant port for centuries.
Where Your Ship Docks
There is a well developed area where cruise ships dock. It’s a short walk into town and there are facilities not far from the pier.
Wheelchair Accessibility
Disembarking – This port has a developed cruise ship pier but the ease of disembarking varies by the individual ships gangway designs. The St. Johns pier disembarks right near town. For passengers using wheelchairs there can be a moderate inclines to deal with both at the port and in town..
Transportation
St. John’s is very walkable and has all the transportation options you need to get you to your destination. Bus, Bicycle, Drive, Taxis, and walk.
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Currency
The local currency is the Canadian Dollar and credit cards are usually welcome with ATMs being common.
Tipping
Tipping in Newfoundland follows Canadian customs, similar to the United States, with 15% to 20% being a standard tip for seated restaurant service, with higher amounts for exceptional service. Other services like, taxi drivers, and boat tours also typically receive tips.
Attractions
Bannerman Park in St John is a perfect example of 19th-century public park design! Here you will find a well-maintained atmosphere, beautiful surroundings, fantastic greenery.
Colonial Building Provincial Historic Site is definitely a must-see! Visit and immerse yourself in very important history and impressive neoclassical architecture.
Visit the National War Memorial and admire the majestic architecture, impressive details, and remarkable history.
Harbourside Park is a beautiful place located in downtown St. John. It is a well-maintained park with two striking statues of a Newfoundland dog and a Labrador that represent the St. John’s water dog, an ancestor of both the Newfoundland and various retrievers, and honor their loyalty, strength, and importance to the maritime heritage of the province.
Jelly Bean Row – Here you will find a lively row of colorful houses, a unique series of homes shop and gallery.
The Anglican Cathedral of St. John the Baptist is one of the best examples of Gothic architecture in North America! Here you will discover beautiful architecture, rich history and heritage of St. Johns.
Visit Water Street and immerse yourself in the vibrant local atmosphere, lovely restaurants, cafes, and unique shops full of artwork, jewelry, woodwork, and much more.
St. John’s, also offers a variety of stunning hiking trails that cater to all skill levels and preferences. Major trails include the North Head Trail Loop, Silver Mine Head Path, and the Quidi Vidi Lake Loop, which are particularly popular. The North Head Trail Loop is the most popular but is challenging at 1.2 miles and a significant gain in height and takes about 1 hour. This trail is the oldest and most popular going up to Signal Hill that offers fantastic views of the coast and city.
Planning A Cruise? Start With The Intentional Travelers Port Guides
Deep in the South Atlantic there is an archipelago known as the Falkland Islands. Generally, these are isolated, windswept islands where raising sheep and cattle are the main businesses. Covering about 4,700 square miles, the Falklands has a population of a little over 3,000 people.
The tourist business here is thriving and the main attraction is tours to the isolated coasts to see penguins, seals and sea lions. Stanley, the capital is located on the far eastern tip of East Falkland. It is nestled behind a double natural harbor where most cruise ships anchor, and is the starting point for most excursions.
The day we spent in the Falklands, we booked a tour in advance with a local company (Falklands Style Off-road Tours), and went out to Dolphin Cove, about eighty miles from Stanley. The trip was in a 4X4, mostly over dirt roads after leaving Stanley. We traveled almost two hours past ranches and peat bogs and ended with a few miles of open country to the coast. Dolphin Cove is on a private ranch and we were introduced to the woman who manages the property. Just to offer some insight into the people who live here, when asked how often she gets into Stanley, she said about four or five times a year.
A King penguin adopted by a colony of Gentoos
Driving in wheel tracks over open country towards the sea, we started spotting rookeries of mostly Gentoo penguins. Our guide (Wayne McCormick) said that they walk inland, sometimes as far as a mile, to dig their nests. One group of three was in our track and, in trying to run away, they kept right in front of us running at full speed for some distance. (You had to have been there – funny.)overlooking a rocky beach and a harem of seals had been giving birth that day. The harem was overseen by a good sized bull and the dark newborn pups were scattered across the rocks with the new moms watching over them. There were also large numbers of buzzards hanging around attracted by the byproducts of the births.
Shortly after that, we made a couple of stops near large gentoo rookeries. These birds have no real fear of man and you can actually walk right up to them. The largest group we found seemed to have adopted a King Penguin who stood almost a foot taller than the Gentoos. The Kings look very much like the famous Emperor but they are not as large. We also stopped and watched some Magellanic Penguins come ashore at a rocky area. A Falkland penguin population guide can be found HERE.
A Gentoo colony settled in a mile from the ocean
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A Water Monitor photographed in Yala National Park, Sri Lanka. This particular lizard was just short of five feet long. Scary…
Sri Lanka is home to three species of monitor lizard: the Bengal Monitor (Varanus bengalensis), a mainly terrestrial lizard found in dry forests and grasslands, the larger, semi-aquatic Water Monitor (Varanus salvator salvator) which lives near water and can grow to be one of the largest lizards in the world and the Spotted Tree Monitor (Varanus scalaris), The Water Monitor from Sri Lanka holds the world record for the longest lizard, measuring up to over 9 feet.
Only about 10 inches long is this Spotted Tree Monitor (Varanus scalaris)
A Bengal Monitor (Varanus bengalensis)
This monitor was just under three feet.
Planning A Cruise? Start With The Intentional Travelers Port Guides
Planning A Cruise? Start With The Intentional Travelers Port Guides
The Intentional Travelers 