Planning a Trip

Getting There

St. John's is located 127km (79 miles) from the ferry at Argentia, 874km (543 miles) from Port aux Basques. St. John's International Airport (tel. 709/758-8500; www.stjohnsairport.com) receives flights from Halifax, Montréal, Ottawa, Toronto, and even internationally. The airport is 6.5km (4 miles) from downtown; taxis from the airport to downtown hotels cost C$15 to C$20 (US$14-US$18/£7.50-£10).

Visitor Information

The city's main tourist information office (tel. 709/576-8106) is located at 348 New Water St., and is open year-round (9am-5pm in summer, weekdays 9am-4:30pm in the off season). St. John's produces a free, informative, and comprehensive pocket-size brochure detailing walking and driving tours of the metro area; it's an outstanding resource for planning and executing your visit to the city. Ask for it at the tourist information office . The city's tourism web site is at www.stjohns.ca.

Getting Around

Metrobus serves much of the city. Fares are C$2 (US$1.80/£1) for a single trip. Route information is available at the visitor information center or by calling tel. 709/722-9400.

Taxis are plentiful around St. John's; they charge an initial fee of about C$3 (US$2.70/£1.50) plus about C$2 (US$1.80/£1) per additional mile. One of the larger and more dependable outfits in the city is Bugden's Taxi (tel. 709/726-4400). You can tour the city by taxi for about C$30 (US$27/£15) per hour.

Parking -- Parking is rarely a problem in downtown St. John's, so long as you bring loonies and quarters to feed the meters. Once you park, you can continue easily by foot; the downtown area is compact. St. John's drivers seem to be uncommonly respectful of pedestrians as well -- a nice bonus. If you so much as take a step off the curb (or even let a look cross your face suggesting you just might want to do so), drivers will come to a halt and wave you across. So bring a good pair of walking shoes and use them.

Orientation

St. John's is built on the side of a steep hill, and the downtown is oriented along three streets -- Harbour, Water, and Duckworth -- that run parallel to the water's edge. (Duckworth and Water sts. contain the bulk of the downtown's shops and restaurants.) These are relatively level, each following the hill's contours, one above the other. Cross streets linking these main drags run the gamut from moderately challenging inclines to clutch-smoking vertical hills.

Outside of the central downtown, St. John's is an amalgam of confusing roads that run at peculiar angles to one another and suddenly change names on a whim. You can try to navigate with a map, but it's just as easy to orient yourself by some landmark -- such as Signal Hill -- and then point your car in the general direction you want to go. The city's small enough that you'll never get too lost, and you'll eventually end up on the main ring road (which of course goes by various names, including Columbus Dr., Confederation Pkwy., and Prince Philip Dr.).

Special Events

The great annual Newfoundland and Labrador Folk Festival began in 1976 and is well worth a visit. This 3-day shindig is usually held during the first weekend in August and includes performers from all over the province, who gather to play at Bannerman Park in downtown St. John's. (Bring a lawn chair.) Even after all these years, tickets are still very affordable: It costs just C$12 (US$11/£6) per adult (less for seniors and children) for an afternoon pass or evening pass allowing you access to the entire slate of performers, or C$50 (US$45/£25) for an all-weekend pass. That's a bargain.

Contact the festival specialists at the Newfoundland and Labrador Folk Arts Council (tel. 800/576-8508 or 709/576-8508; www.nlfolk.com) for schedules and information about how to purchase tickets.