St John’s Cruise Port

St John’s, Newfoundland, Canada

Hello and welcome to our guide, review and rating for the cruise port of St John’s, located on the island of Newfoundland on the east coast of Canada.

The port of St John’s is one of our personnel favourites as it offers everything, we like from a cruise port.

Firstly, you dock in a central location where you can simply walk into town, all its attractions can be enjoyed on foot, and it offers some simply stunning beautiful views.

The entry into the port is one that you will want to get up onto the top deck for as you enter through a narrow channel, down the side of the beautiful Signal Hill and enter into an oval bay.

The town has a Cornish vibe to it and despite been the capital and largest city in Newfoundland, it still retains a small-town charm and has some of the friendliest locals we have ever met.

Cruises To St John’s

Our Visit To St John’s

We visited the port in August 2023, onboard the Celebrity Summit cruise ship on a journey from Reykjavik to Boston, via Greenland.

On what was an incredible journey full of incredible ports of call and memories that will live long in our memory.

From the stunning entry, the great hike around the headland and up to the top of Signal Hill and especially the friendly people we met in the city centre, everything about the port is special.

For our day ashore, we simply set off on the North Head Trail, a hiking route that ends at the top of Signal Hill and heads along its base, before exploring the fort at the top.

We then walked the shorter way back into the city centre, along the main road, before taking in the sights of the city centre including its churches, brightly coloured houses and pedestrian shopping area.

St John’s Cruise Guide

In this guide we will take you through all that you need to know before visiting the port of St John’s in Newfoundland, Canada.

If you are trying to decide whether an itinerary calling in there is right for you or not or if you have already booked to go there are wanting to make the most of your time onshore, we are shore that this guide based on our own experience should prove of use.

Type of Cruises Available

If you want to visit the port there are plenty of options available including Fly Cruises (including options to start in Canadian and American ports), Cruise and Stay options (with New Yorks, Boston and Quebec City amongst the most popular options) and it is also possible to visit the city on transatlantic round trips directly from the United Kingdom.

There are also a wide range of repositioning cruises that call into the port including those sailing between Montreal or Quebec and New York or Boston and of course there are a number of transatlantic journeys that stop of their including ones similar to the itinerary were on when we visited that sailed between Reykjavik and Boston.

St John’s Cruise Port Location

The cruise port is located right in the heart of St John’s itself and within walking distance of many of the city’s key attractions.

It is just a short stroll to Duckworth Street, George Street and Water Street, the main high streets in the city that offer a range of bars, cafes and shops, with many of them been local independent ones.

St John’s itself is located on the far eastern end of the island of Newfoundland, in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, just off of the east coast of the Canadian mainland.

St John’s Cruise Facilities

The cruise port has few facilities as it is only a port of call for cruisers so there are no turnaround facilities, no terminal building and in truth, nothing but a port gate.

What it did have was some Newfoundland dogs waiting to welcome you, so that instantly made it a great port for my wife!

St John’s Attractions

There is lots to see and do in the city and although much of it is based on the naval and maritime history of St John’s, there are plenty of other options for those visiting.

One of the most popular attractions must be a trip up to the top of Signal Hill which not only give you incredible views over the whole city but there is a fortress, visitor centre and the iconic Cabot Tower awaiting you.

It is around a 30-40 minute walk from your cruise ship to the top of the hill if you go the road way or you can spend a couple of hours walking along the North Head Trail.

A unique attraction on the hill is the Johnson Geo Centre which is a geological museum that takes underground to see just what makes up the hill you are exploring.

There are a number of small parks, green areas and gardens that have statues in them that can easily be seen as you walk around town including one dedicated to Terry Fox and a few featuring Newfoundland and Labrador dogs that are arguably the icons of the region.

One thing that you just cannot fail to notice when in the city are the multi-coloured hoses that can be found throughout, with the Jellybean Row amongst the most photographed.

In many ways, the main attraction of the town is just been able to walk around the streets, pop into some of its independent cafes and shops and meet the friendly people that call St John’s home.

St John’s Shorex

Many of the shore excursion options are simply doing what you can do on your own but with a guide including guide tours of the city centre and a coach ride up to the top of Signal Hill.

These are a great option for those with mobility issues who still want to see the city but aren’t really necessary for most visitors.

There are some boat tours and whale watching trips available that some line sallow you to pre-book through them.

Best Time To Visit St John’s

The cruising season is only a relatively short one for those wanting to visit the city as the first ships don’t tend to arrive until either the last week of April or the first week of May, although it does continue onto to October.

With the early and later parts of the season often seeing bad weather and even storms, it is perhaps best to visit during the summer but with the city been a popular holiday resort, it can get very crowded in late July and August.

So, if you want to visit when it is likely to be dry and warm we would recommend late June or early July but the region and the port does get a second wind in October when ships head to the east coast of Canada to take in the stunning autumnal scenes on offer.

If that is of interest to you, October could be the best time to visit

Transport

There are some local buses that can be used including one that goes up to the top of Signal Hill but in truth, the city is very walkable, apart from been quite hilly, so there is little need for transportation.

If you have mobility issues or you simply want to take it easy and relax, there is a hop on hop off tour bus in the city that takes in most of the key attractions and takes to places on the outskirts of town including Quidi Vidi and Cape Spear.

St John’s Cruises From UK

If you prefer not to fly, you can still visit the port direct from the United as there are a few round trips offered from these shores that head to the east coast of Canada and then back again.

For the most option, you may have to do a repositioning cruise between the UK and the USA that calls into the port.

St John’s Cruises From Southampton

If you do want to visit St John’s from the UK, the chances are that you will have to set sail from the port of Southampton.