Skip to main content

Historic St. John's Newfoundland and Cape Spear Tour

Recommended by 98% of travelers
St John's, Canada
High interest
Booked 5+ times today.
  • 3 hours 30 minutes (approx.)
  • Pickup offered
  • Mobile ticket
  • Offered in: English

Why travelers loved this

4.9
·
· David_M ·
Mar 2026
Great tour. Saw all the highlights plus got some excellent recommendations for local restaurants. Nice to see some smaller communities too.
· Heather_R ·
Oct 2025
A wonderful trip that provided some amazing history and insight into this area. Our guide was excellent with lots of information and providing service over and above what was expected. Included the major sights as well as major areas around town. Certainly value for money

Overview

    What's Included

    • Air-conditioned vehicle

      Meeting and Pickup

      Pickup points

      Select a pickup point

      Pickup details

      PICKUP TIMES START PRIOR TO TOUR START TIME. PLEASE LOOK FOR YOUR PICKUP TIME BELOW AND SELECT YOUR PICKUP LOCATION. OTHERWISE WE WILL NOT PICK YOU UP PLEASE NOTE WE ARE IN NEWFOUNDLAND NOT NEW BRUNSWICK. St. John New Brunswick is a different town which is roughly 1000 KM away. If you are travelling on a cruise ship and wish to be picked up at the pier, feel free to check out our Cape Spear, Signal Hill in St. Johns Newfoundland Shore Excursion. Pickup time depends on the location of pickup. We pick up prior to the listed departure time, a set amount of time- see list below. As an example of how this works, for a 9:30 tour, if the hotel listed says "30 minutes prior to departure," that means we should be there to pick you up right around 9:00 am. We will pick you up just outside of the lobby of each of the hotels unless otherwise specified. ALT Hotel – 15 minutes prior to tour departure Bannerman Park Suites – 20 minutes prior to tour departure Best Western – 45 minutes prior to tour departure Capital Hotel - 45 minutes prior to tour departure Courtyard by Marriott - 20 minutes prior to tour departure Delta - 10 minutes prior to tour departure *Pickup from Lower Lobby* DoubleTree - 20 minutes prior to tour departure *Pickup from Lower Lobby* Duckworth Hotel – 15 minutes prior to tour departure Extended Stay - 5 minutes prior to tour departure Fairfield Inn - 45 minutes prior to tour departure Franklin Hotel - 15 minutes prior to tour departure Gower Guest House – 15 minutes prior to tour departure Hampton Inn and Suites - 45 minutes prior to tour departure Hilton Garden Inn - 10 minutes prior to tour departure Holiday Inn Express - 45 minutes prior to tour departure Holiday Inn Portugal Cove Road - 40 minutes prior to tour departure Jag Hotel - 10 minutes prior to tour departure Leaside Manor - 5 minutes prior to tour departure Mallard Cottage – 25 minutes prior to tour departure Memorial University (MacPherson College) - 30 minutes prior to tour departure Monastery Spa and Suites – 5 minutes prior to tour departure Murray Premises - 15 minutes prior to tour departure Narrows B&B - 15 minutes prior to tour departure Pippy Park (Main Entrance) - 30 minutes prior to tour departure Ramada - 45 minutes prior to tour departure Sandman Signature – 45 minutes prior to tour departure Sheraton Hotel - 20 minutes prior to tour departure Super 8 Hotel - 40 minutes prior to tour departure The Roses B&B - 20 minutes prior to tour departure The Rooms - 30 minutes prior to tour departure Visitor Information Centre - 15 minutes prior to tour departure

      Itinerary

      1

      Cape Spear Lighthouse National Historic Site

      15 minutesAdmission Ticket Free

      2

      Petty Harbour

      15 minutesAdmission Ticket Free

      3

      Jellybean Row Houses

      10 minutesAdmission Ticket Free

      4

      Signal Hill

      15 minutesAdmission Ticket Free

      5

      Quidi Vidi

      10 minutesAdmission Ticket Free

      Additional Info

      • Confirmation will be received at time of booking, unless booked within 1 day of travel. In this case confirmation will be received as soon as possible, subject to availability
      • Not wheelchair accessible
      • Service animals allowed
      • Near public transportation
      • Most travelers can participate
      • We require a minimum of four people total booked on a tour in order for it to proceed, and we reserve the right to cancel the tour if we do not receive sufficient people
      • This tour is located in St. John's Newfoundland, not Saint John New Brunswick- they are different towns in different provinces and not close to one another
      • Passengers may have to go up and down a couple of steps. We do stop and walk around at the different sites, however if desired they can stay in the vehicle.
      • The tour lasts 3.5 hours, which includes the driving time to get to the different sites, as well as pickups. We generally spend around 15 minutes at each stop but the driving time to get to each place adds a significant amount of time to the tour
      • The closest pickup to the Cruise Terminal is the Alt Hotel, roughly 300 Meters Away
      • Pickup starts prior to tour departure time- please check in the list to see how long before the start time of the tour you should be ready for pickup
      • Please ensure that you will be in Newfoundland and not New Brunswick
      • This tour/activity will have a maximum of 20 travelers

      Cancellation Policy

      You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

      Traveler Photos

      Gallery picture 1 (from a traveler's review)
      Gallery picture 2 (from a traveler's review)
      Gallery picture 3 (from a traveler's review)
      Gallery picture 4 (from a traveler's review)
      Gallery picture 5 (from a traveler's review)

      Reviews

      4.9
      based on 251 reviews
      Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor

      Loved every minute.

      Kearie_D, Mar 2026
      Larry was a phenomenal tour guide. Very knowledgeable, great storyteller. Overall a wonderful experience.

      Loved the tour. Larry was great.

      David_M, Mar 2026
      Great tour. Saw all the highlights plus got some excellent recommendations for local restaurants. Nice to see some smaller communities too.

      Wonderful!!

      Sarah_D, Nov 2025
      Wonderful tour to see all the best spots. Larry our tour guide was the best! Cannot recommend this tour enough.

      Great Outing in St. John's

      Colin_B, Oct 2025
      Great bargain to see the famous spots of St. John's with the minimum of effort. It was well organised and well paced.

      An excellent half day tour covering major sights with lots of information

      Heather_R, Oct 2025
      A wonderful trip that provided some amazing history and insight into this area. Our guide was excellent with lots of information and providing service over and above what was expected. Included the major sights as well as major areas around town. Certainly value for money

      Great historic and...

      Teresa_N, Oct 2025
      Great historic and current events overview of the area. Guide was very knowledgeable and fun to spend the afternoon with.

      Exceptional tour and John was amazing…

      Diane_F, Oct 2025
      I booked this tour prior to boarding our P&O cruise ship Aurora. There was an option to meet at the Alt Hotel approx 300 yards from the port. Everything went smoothly, our tour guide John was amazing, had a great personality and made sure everyone on his mini bus (around 15 people) had a wonderful experience. He’s knowledge was outstanding, we saw everything we wanted too and a much better way to get around without being with guests on a full coach. I highly recommend this tour, took approx 3-4 hours. We loved it. A huge thank you John… you are a gem. Saw Cape Spear light house, the most easterly city in North America, views stunning. Went to Jelly Bean row, visited the first transatlantic wireless signal December 12th 1901 at signal Hill historic site, here you seen a stunning view of St John’s city and a visit to quidi Vidi village which sits on a quaint marina. John dropped us by Jelly Bean houses and we walked into the town, found Grotto who did the most amazing lobster rolls. Highly recommend this fab tour.

      Good overview of St John’s

      Carol_A, Oct 2025
      This tour is a good way to see a lot of St John’s in a short time. Larry is humorous and shares information throughout the whole tour.

      CLIFFE - You’re a kegend

      KEITH_H, Oct 2025
      Cliffe was a very professional and informative guy. Showed us around - sadly a very quick tour but would have happily stayed with this guy all day

      St John's, friendliest place on earth.

      Larry_W, Oct 2025
      Brilliant mini tour of one of the friendliest places on earth. Dave was a brilliant tour guide, his humour and knowledge of the island made it a joy to be on.

      Great tour and lovely guide

      Rachel_O, Oct 2025
      This was a great tour but would love a longer version that allowed a little stop in more places e.g. Petty Cove and Quidi Vidi. Guide was very informative and pleasant.

      Fun in St John's Newfoundland

      Kevin_C, Sep 2025
      Our guide, Steve, was wonderful. So much fun and very informative. We went to so many charming fishing villages along the way. And Cape Spear was wonderful!

      Fun and informative! Our...

      Beth_Y, Sep 2025
      Fun and informative! Our driver Cliff was kind and knowledgeable. Highly recommend this tour if it’s your first time in St. John’s!

      We had a great tour with...

      PATRICIA_A, Sep 2025
      We had a great tour with lots of information about history, food, nature etc. Cliff the guide and driver was excellent

      Great Tour for First Timers to St.. John’s

      damb1, Sep 2025
      Excellent tour to see St. John’s highlights. Our tour guide Mike was very accommodating,knowledgeable and had a great sense of humour. All these qualities made our tour very enjoyable.

      Fun & Informative! The best way to get acquainted with this lovely city!

      Shelley_D, Sep 2025
      Don’t miss it! You will be glad you went. Our driver Bill knew a lot to tell us about the area and was kind and funny!

      One to forget

      Jamie_B, Sep 2025
      It was a really disappointing start when the driver mis judged the carpark height sign upon exiting our hotel car park, thus crashing into it. The vehicle then got wedged in the turning curve of the exit, which had to be rectified when a hotel employee had to removed a fixed cone. We decided we couldnt continue with the same driver, so in fairness to the company they then booked us on the next tour later that day. At the later tour when the driver arrived (late) the bus heating appliance could not be turned off. After we picked up all the other guests we made our way to a car park in St Johns to change vehicle. Upon arrival, our driver was not left a key for the new vehicle. Thankfully a guest managed to tinker with the mechanics to turn the heater off. At this point we were approximately 40 minutes late for the start of the tour. The tour itself wasnt too bad, our 2nd driver Bill was knowledgeable and made sure we got to see everything what was on the itinerary. Really disappointed with the full experience.

      Response from Host, Sep 2025

      Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback. I want to sincerely apologize for the difficult start you experienced — from the parking lot incident to the heating issue and resulting delays. We understand how frustrating this must have been and I’m truly sorry for the inconvenience it caused. For context, this is why we specify that we collect guests from the Water Street side (lower exit) of the DoubleTree, rather than through the hotel car park. In this case, the driver was trying to be helpful by picking you up directly from the lobby, but unfortunately it created the opposite effect. With the heating issue, the bus itself was in working order, but it was a vehicle the driver was not familiar with, and while the heat could be turned off, he wasn’t successful in doing so at the time. We did have another vehicle available, but at that point it was judged best to continue without losing more tour time. I am glad to hear that Bill provided a great tour and ensured you saw everything on the itinerary — though this start is certainly not the standard we set for ourselves. We’ve reviewed these issues internally so our drivers are better supported in the future. Thank you again for sharing your experience. While we regret that this was your impression, your feedback helps us improve, and we hope you’ll give us another chance in the future.

      Great Overview of St John’s and Newfoundland

      Brad_B, Sep 2025
      Great tour, provided a great overview of Newfoundland as we were beginning our time in St John’s. Our tour guide, Steve Watson, was amazing! He was courteous, knowledgeable, had a sense of humour and easy going.

      Boring st johns

      victor_v, Sep 2025
      St. John’s is just a very boring place . There is nothing of real interest to the average tourist. The prices of tourist type items was very high.

      Response from Host, Sep 2025

      Thank you for sharing your thoughts. We’re sorry St. John’s didn’t feel like the right fit for you. Many of our guests enjoy the history, colourful streets, and nearby coastal sites like Signal Hill and Cape Spear, but we understand every traveler’s experience is different. We appreciate your feedback and hope, if you return, you’ll discover more of the charm our province has to offer. Warm regards, The McCarthy’s Party Tours Team

      Our guide was very...

      Paula_L, Sep 2025
      Our guide was very knowledgeable of the area and because of that, came away with things I did not know about St John’s.

      Great tour. We had Cliff...

      Lynda_O, Sep 2025
      Great tour. We had Cliff as our guide and he was informative, knowledgeable and entertaining. Highly recommend!

      Excellent Tour

      Richard_J, Sep 2025
      Well done. Guide (Bill) was exceptional. Knowledgeable, courteous and interesting. Sites are well worth taking the time to see and understand. Lots of history in St John’s.

      The trip was.very...

      Robert_S, Sep 2025
      The trip was.very enjoyable. Tour guide was pleasant, friendly, informative and humorous. Would recommend the tour to anyone visiting the city for the first time.

      Very informative. Guide...

      Ike_R, Sep 2025
      Very informative. Guide was very knowledgeable. We learned a lot about St. John's and enjoyed visiting the sites. My only problem was the confusing messages we got from Viator prior to the tour. We were concerned the tour operator had not received our information. We had to finally confirm with McCarthy directly.

      Our St Johns tour.

      Denise_M, Sep 2025
      Shaun was knowledgeable, funny and ver accommodating. He’s a great driver and your guide. We thoroughly enjoyed the day

      Excellent tour.

      David_B, Sep 2025
      Excellent tour guide. Bus engine was very noisy so distracting. The biggest problem was that Viator gave incorrect details of the meeting point. Very lucky that the tour guide found us.

      A Great Trip

      WILLIAM_S, Sep 2025
      It was very informative and the driver/guide (Larry) was a riot. He told us about all sorts of occurrences locally which happened years ago, such as the 51 to 49 vote which made Newfoundland a part of Canada, and we even went to Quidi Vidi to see his own boat.

      Excellent way to see the...

      Linda_P, Sep 2025
      Excellent way to see the sights of St. John’s Newfoundland and learn some history. Our guide, Cliff, from McCarthy Party Tours, was super informative and gave us adequate time to enjoy each stop

      Cape Spear Petty Harbour Quidi Vidi Jelly Bean Homes St Johns tour

      Donna_M, Sep 2025
      Very informative and our tour guide Larry was the best. Very knowledgeable, made funny comments, and answered any questions with a brief history.

      Our tour guide Cliff was...

      Jackie_N, Sep 2025
      Our tour guide Cliff was so informative and personable. Also an excellent driver! It was my first time to Newfoundland and I learned a lot on this tour about the history of St Johns Cape Spear Signal Hill and various scenic sites. Thank you!
      Likely to Sell Out

      From $65.41

      per person

      up to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)

      Book ahead!
      On average, this is booked 61 days in advance.

      Compare Similar Experiences

      1 / 3
      Current
      Likely to Sell Out
      Historic St. John's Newfoundland and Cape Spear Tour


      3 hours 30 minutes
      Free Cancellation
      From
      $65.41
      St. John's 3 Hour Newfoundland Food Tour


      3 hours
      Free Cancellation
      From
      $99.22
      St. John's Guided Walking Tour


      2 hours
      Free Cancellation
      From
      $29.40