405,720 km2; more than three times the total area of the Maritime Provinces (Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island). Newfoundland would rank fourth in size behind Alaska, Texas and California ... if it were one of the United States. It is almost one and three quarters times the size of Great Britain.

• Area of the Island of Newfoundland - 111,390 km2
• Area of Labrador - 294,330 km2
• Area of Avalon Peninsula - 9,700 km2

Capital City
St. John's is the capital of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Icebergs
Late spring and early summer is a good time to see icebergs. These icebergs are spectacular. Some years thousands float south toward the warmer waters of the Gulf Stream where they melt. Some run aground near shore. No two are alike. These bergs break off from glaciers in the far north and their mountainous majesty is unsurpassed in the northern hemisphere.

While you can see icebergs in Newfoundland and Labrador waters most years, sometimes climatic conditions in the north result in few bergs "calving" from the glaciers and drifting south. Generally, about two years after a warm winter in the Arctic, thousands of bergs drift south. Iceberg viewing was spectacular in the summer of 1991. Visitors standing on the coast near St. John's could see dozens at a time.

Incidentally, the International Ice Patrol, established after the Titanic hit a berg and sank off Newfoundland 1912, still flies daily aircraft patrols over the northwest Atlantic during iceberg season. Its headquarters is on Governor's Island, New York.

Whales
There are 17 species of whales that frequent the waters of Newfoundland and Labrador. The best time to see whales is summer. The larger baleen, or toothless, whales give birth to their young in warm southern waters during our winter. As the northern hemisphere warms, they migrate northward following timeless ocean paths.

Even though you can often see whales from shore, the best place to see them is out on the ocean. You can take tour boats to well-known whale-watching spots, or hire a local fisherman. Some of the best places to see whales are the seabird colonies on the Avalon Peninsula. At Cape St. Mary's, where a lighthouse marks the eastern approach to Placentia Bay, you'll find a sanctuary where thousands of huge, golden-headed gannets rear their young. Here, you will also find kittiwakes, murres and razor-billed auks. These hardy birds stay hundreds of miles out to sea most of the year. In mid-summer they come to land to breed in cliff side colonies.

Cape Spear, just a few miles south of St. John's, is another good whale-watching spot. This is the most easterly point in North America and a national historic park. The original lighthouse has been restored to look as it did in the mid-1800s. The beach at St. Vincent's in St. Mary's Bay, Cape Bonavista, Trinity and the Eastport Peninsula in Bonavista Bay are just a few of the other areas you can see whales.

Ferries offer excellent opportunities to spot whales at closer range than from land. The ferry from Portugal Cove to Bell Island is a good place to see potheads when squid are plentiful. Other short ferry trips through whale waters include the run from Burnside to St. Brendan's island in Bonavista Bay and from Carmanville to Fogo Island across Hamilton Sound.

Winter Fun and Adventure in Newfoundland & Labrador
With thousands of kilometres of groomed trails, hundreds of thousands of square kilometres of virgin back country powder, and a long, long season, Newfoundland and Labrador is a snowmobiler's dream destination.

Take Labrador. This is the true north, with sledding from December to April. A long-distance trail that crosses from west to east connects local trail systems around the major towns. There's even a spur to the remote north coast. Many trails are groomed, and there's a camaraderie based on shared experience that strong clubs foster with special events. Overhead at night, the Northern Lights dance a celestial tango.

On the Island of Newfoundland, you can ride groomed trails in forests and sheltered river valleys, and sled up mountains on back country trails that were footpaths centuries before the snow machine came along. Imagine riding an ancient mountain spine between two UNESCO World Heritage Sites while keeping an eye out for red foxes, tall brown moose and big-footed Arctic hares. You'll find wilderness lodges and in-town hotels, guided tours and hot tubs, good food and good company. Western Newfoundland offers the longest season: the snow stays in the mountains well into April, and the annual snowfall averages 16 feet. Out here, mother nature has created one mother of a mountain. Marble Mountain, Newfoundland It's 1,600 feet straight down More fresh powder than anywhere else in Atlantic Canada. It's ski all day and into the night. Marble Mountain is the headquarters for the Corner Brook Winter Carnival, held in February. It's a blast. And if you'd rather head for virgin powder, there's a Cat skiing operation that will take you up the wild side of a mountain.

In Baie Verte, in Central Newfoundland, you can ski to the sea on the 12-run Copper Creek hill. In eastern Newfoundland at Clarenville, the White Hills resort offers 10 downhill runs and groomed cross-country trails. In Labrador, the Mont Shana downhill just outside Happy Valley-Goose Bay has seven runs, and in the Labrador City-Wabush area you 'll find the Smokey Mountain club with 18 runs.

And let's not forget cross-country. Both the Menihek club in western Labrador, which has hosted World Cup events, and Birch Brook in Goose Bay are excellent. On the island, the Whaleback club in Stephenville has 33 kilometres of groomed trails, including 2.5 lighted for night skiing, and the Blow Me Down club in Corner Brook has 42 kilometres of trails that begin only 10 minutes from Corner Brook.

Adventurous Learning Vacations
Learn about whales by going to sea. Learn about Vikings by standing where they stood 1000 years ago. Meet explorers and pirates, painters and archaeologists, traditional musicians and the skeletons in your family tree. You can do all this and more on Newfoundland and Labrador learning vacations. This isn't classroom learning. It's life learning, seeing how it's done close up. Hands on. And it's terrific fun and adventure.

Memorial University offers 10 traditional Elderhostel programs.These range from six to 10 days and cover everything from the geology of world-famous Gros Morne National Park to an exploration of Irish settlement, including visits with people you'll swear are Irish, but are the descendants of 18th century immigrants who hold fast to their culture. McCarthy's Party offers small group vacations that focus on history, archaeology and culture. Wildland Tours offers a whale study week, plus birds, history and much more. Adventure Tours offers a painting vacation replete with trips to sea and into coastal fishing villages.

And more...

Canada’s easternmost province is also famous for its geology. A notable UNESCO World Heritage Site is Gros Morne National Park on Newfoundland’s west coast. The park’s Tableland Mountains are an example of the earth’s mantle at the surface, evidence geologists used to confirm that the continents move. The park is also famous for its fjords, especially Western Brook Pond, an inland fjord with a small opening to the sea that is almost totally surrounded by 2000-foot high cliffs.

In cosmopolitan St. John’s, you can walk out of a fine restaurant and down the oldest street in North America. This old port has changed from the rough-and-tumble days of pirates and adventurers, but it is still a lively seaport. Downtown St. John’s has much to offer. Music for every taste, art galleries, a theatre, the Newfoundland Museum, and a fine wine cellar are just a few of the attractions. From atop Signal Hill, where in summer cadets perform 19th century military maneuvers, the ancient city stretches out before you. Brightly colored houses ramble up a hill topped by a cathedral. Ships move in and out of the harbor. Off to the south is Cape Spear, the Far East of the Western World, and a must-see for any visitor.

An hour’s drive south of St. John’s is Ferryland, where Lord Baltimore’s 17th century colony is being excavated. In Conception Bay, you can visit Brigus, the home of Captain Robert Bartlett, who accompanied Admiral Robert Peary on his polar explorations. His house is a National Historic Site. Nearby Cupids is the oldest English settlement in Canada. In Harbour Grace, the local museum is built right on the spot where pirate Peter Easton had his headquarters. Further along the north shore is Northern Bay Sands, one of the finest beaches in Canada. At Heart’s Content in Trinity Bay, you’ll find the cable station from which telegraph messages traversed the first Trans-Atlantic cable.

Museums
Everywhere you go, you will find people eager to tell the history of their area. Newfoundlanders are proud of their past and have conserved many artifacts in local museums. In Hiscock House at Trinity, for instance, you can see how a local merchant family lived in the 19th century. Trinity is also the site of a summer theater festival.

At Boyd’s Cove in Notre Dame Bay, a new center interprets the now-extinct Beothuk aboriginal tribe. And at Port au Choix on the island’s northwest coast, another new center contains artifacts of the ancient maritime Arachic and Dorset Eskimo cultures.

The Newfoundland Insectarium in Reidville on Route 430 (just outside Deer Lake) features live and preserved insects, and butterflies, so this could be both a "Yuck, gross" place or just "Cool." If it's a rainy day, why not head for the pool- It's a great break and a refresher for the who family, and a sure favourite is the pool at Rocky Harbour In Gros Morne National Park. The parents can soak in the huge hot tub while the kids swim.

The North Atlantic Aviation Museum in Gander on Route 1 is where you'll find a DC3. Climb in and grab the controls of this classic airplane. Let the kids wait their turn! From the skies, you can move back in time to the 19th century at the Green Family Forge in Trinity on Route 239. This place has all the tools the local blacksmith used to make everything from horseshoes to boat hooks. It seems like all it needs to get going is a fire and someone to work the bellows. Nearby in New Bonaventure is the set used in filming the TV miniseries Random Passage. This is real pioneer architecture, with rough log buildings and a wharf that look like they are right out of the 1830s. Exterior scene for the feature film The Shipping News were also filmed in this area of the province.