Welcome to Wild Wales Tours
Newfoundland & Labrador,
an Eleven Day Adventure, July 22 - Aug 1, 2027
This eleven-day adventure for fourteen people begins at Deer Lake on the western shore of Newfoundland, next to the Gros Morne National Park. We believe in small group travel, to promote meaningful experiences, flexibility, and connect you with the local people. Most of the time we will be in small outports, supporting small family-owned businesses.
Thursday, July 22, 5pm
We gather at the Horizon Hotel in Deer Lake to greet each other. Taff the Director of Wild Wales Tours will present on ‘Newfoundland and it’s People’. Tonight we will be providing you with supper.
Friday, July 23, 9am
Our friendly bus driver will pick us up, and for the next two days we will be joined by Paul Knott, a local historian and guide, who was born and raised in Norris Point. This morning we will take a short walk on the Tablelands, the earth’s mantle: a bizarre and beautiful landscape among the glacially carved valleys and unique plants and vegetation that call the Tablelands their home.
Our lunch is at Woody Point an artist colony, and then board a small ferry ride across Bonne Bay, a salt water fjord, to Norris Point (twenty minutes). We join our bus for a short ride up the western coast to Rocky Harbor where we will be staying for two nights at the Fisherman’s Landing Inn. Cow Head nearby is the home of the world class Gros Morne Theater, featuring a show with local music and humor. We strongly recommend you taking in a show on one of your nights. Tickets are around $35 per person. Please make your reservations by May 1, 2027.
Saturday, July 24, 9am
This morning we visit Green Point. Almost 500 million years ago, these rocks formed on the bottom of an ocean floor. Here geologists have discovered fossils that define the boundary between the Cambrian and Ordovician periods, which makes Green Point a world geological benchmark. In the afternoon, weather permitting we recommend you joining us on a boat trip on Western Brook Pond, a fresh water fjord, an amazing experience, and as scenic as any fjord we have visited in Norway! (Two hours, $80 approx). Please let us know by the end of March 2027 if you would like to join us for this special trip.
Sunday, July 25, 9am
After breakfast we head up to St. Barb’s to catch the ferry to Blanc Sablon, Quebec, across the Straits of Belle Isle (90 minutes). Tonight’s stay will be at Forteau, in Labrador, where we will be warmly welcomed by our host. Supper is at a local restaurant, followed by a presentation on local history and the fishing industry.
Monday, July 26, 8:30am
After breakfast we head north on Route 510 to Mary’s Harbor on the eastern shore of Labrador. Here we will board our ferry to Battle Harbor (65 minutes), for a two-night stay at the Battle Harbor Historic Site. Once the economic and social center of southeastern Labrador, and the "Capital of Labrador" during the 19th century due to its thriving saltfish trade Battle Harbor is now a preserved 19th-century fishing village. Our accommodations will be in the restored fishing homes. We will be guided and entertained by local musicians and storytellers.
Tuesday, July 27, 9am
After breakfast we embark on a guided tour with Battle Harbor Historic staff who grew up on the island and visit Cape St. Charles, the most easterly point in continental North America. From the hill above the fishing village you will be able to traverse the scenic trails, sit at the edge of the Labrador Sea, and look out for icebergs, whales and passing ships, while you breath the salt air. There are no roads or cars on the island. This very special place truly transports us back in time. Both nights after supper we will be entertained by local storytellers and musicians.
Wednesday, July 28, 8am
After breakfast we board the ferry back to Mary’s Harbor, and head down the coast to the Red Bay Basque Whaling Station, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Here we explore where the Basque whalers, who sailed to Labrador from Spain seasonally, once produced the oil that lit the lamps of Europe in the early 1500’s.
The Basque whaling galleon San Juan sank off Saddle Island across from Red Bay, Labrador in December of 1565, after a violent storm. It was the end of the whaling season and they had a full load of whale oil on board ready to sail for home. The wreck, found in 1978, provided invaluable insight into 16th-century shipbuilding, and Basque whaling, a practice that was once dominant in the area. Over the past eleven years a replica of the San Juan has been built in the Basque Country, using traditional techniques and materials, a collaborative project between the Basque and Canadian governments. She will sail from Spain to Red Bay in the summer of 2027, and we hope to be there just after she has arrived from her trans-Atlantic voyage.
Below is a chalupa, a mid-16th century boat used by the Basque whalers. This 8-meter (26”) chalupa was discovered in the mud and silt beneath the sunken San Juan. The craft was designed to handle tough conditions like strong tides and high winds. It held a crew of seven—one steersman and six oarsmen, including a harpooner—that pursued and killed whales that were three times the size of their vessel.
Thursday, July 29, 7am
After breakfast we will board the 9 am ferry back to Newfoundland, and stop in Flower Cove for lunch, before heading up to St. Anthony’s. This afternoon we have a trip out into the bay with Dark Tickle Boat Expedition Tours, to look for icebergs, whales, dolphins and birds.(US$65 approx).Tonight we will be staying in Straitview at the South West Cabins, next door to the UNESCO Viking settlement at L’ Anse aux Meadows.
Friday July 30, 9am
After breakfast at Café Nymphe we visit L’ Anse aux Meadows, an UNESCO archaeological site (first discovered in the 1960s), of a Norse settlement dating approximately 1,000 years ago. The site is located on the northern most tip of Newfoundland. With carbon dating estimates between 990 and 1050 CE, L’Anse aux Meadows is the only undisputed site of pre-Columbian trans-oceanic contact between Europeans and the Americas.
In the afternoon we visit Saint Anthony and the Grenfell Historic Properties for a tour and presentation on Dr Wilfred Grenfell, who committed himself to improve the medical, economic and spiritual needs of the fishermen and their families, in the early 1900’s.
Saturday, July 31, 9am
After breakfast we board the bus and head west and south down the coast to the National Historic site at Port au Choix. For over 5000 years this location has been the crossroads for various indigenous and European cultures. Evidence of four ancient cultures has been uncovered here: Maritime Archaic, the Groswater, the Dorset Palaeo-Eskimo and Recent Period First Nations. This site is regarded as one of the richest archeological finds in North America. After lunch we head down Route 430 to Rocky Harbor for our last night together. Over dinner we will share and celebrate. Wild Wales Tours will be providing your supper this evening.
Sunday, August 1, 7:30am
After early breakfast this morning, we head south to Deer Lake (45 minutes) to the airport for your trip home, or continuation of your travels. We will gather for goodbyes, and take pictures at the airport. Please plan your flight to depart after 11am. If you wish to visit St John’s you can reserve a flight from the Deer Lake airport.
There is also a bus link that leaves the Deer Lake Circle K daily, that takes you to St John’s the (capital of the province) at 12:33 pm, arriving in St John’s at 9:40pm. C$89. The bus also stops in Gander. www://drl-lr
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We do recommend that you fly into Deer Lake a day early in case of a delay with your flight, which does happen. Flights into Deer Lake usually arrive between 11:30pm- 1:30am. We suggest that you fly in on July 21 (actually arriving on the 22nd, early in the morning). I will be there to pick you up at the airport to transport you to our hotel, a five-minute drive.
Please do bring a rain jacket. We will be close to the ocean most of the time and we recommend bringing a warm down jacket, wool hat, a pair of gloves, and hiking sticks. You will need the warm clothing when we are out on the water.
PAYMENTS
The cost of the trip is, $4950. We will email invoices which can be paid online with a credit card. A deposit of $1650 per person ($3300 per couple) is required to secure your place, followed by a payment of $1650 ($3300 per couple) November 22, 2026. The final payment of $1650 per person ($3300 per couple) is due on January 22, 2027. The single room supplement is $600.
The price above includes your accommodations, transportation, guides, tips, boat ferry, four evening meals, all breakfasts, two lunches, museums and historical sites, local taxes (15%), airport pick-up and return to Deer Lake Airport.
You will be paying for your airfare, four evening meals, seven lunches, and refreshments. Please do let us know if you have any special dietary needs.
Extra: Western Brook Pond fjord boat trip, US$80 approx.
Dark Tickle boat trip, whales and icebergs: US$65 approx
REFUNDS
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You may cancel your Wild Wales Walkabout for a full refund, minus a $200 processing fee, if you do so more than 4 months prior to your scheduled tour (March 22, 2027).
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If you cancel between 3 and 4 months before your scheduled tour, you will receive a 50% refund, minus a $200 processing fee, ONLY if your seat can be filled. If your seat cannot be filled, there is not refund.
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If you cancel fewer than 3 months (April 22, 2027) prior to your scheduled tour, no refund will be given.
PASSPORTS
If your passport isn’t current, it can take up to 10 weeks to process a renewal. However, it normally takes around a month. If you have had your passport for years, make sure it does not expire in 2027! You will need to renew if it expires after January 1, 2027.
TRAVEL INSURANCE
It is highly recommended you purchase travel insurance. It covers almost everything involved with your trip: flights, bags, delays, healthcare, etc. If due to illness or a family-related reason you have to cancel after the refund deadline, the insurance should cover it. One company to consider is TravelGuard.
LAUNDRY & TEMPS
We will be near the sea often and it will be breezy, so we need to dress accordingly. The normal temperatures in June/July range from 45F to 75F degrees. The tour is casual and there is no dress code.
There will be appliances to wash and dry your clothes in Cow Head and Battle Harbor.
Suggested clothing for our tour:
A waterproof jacket.
A good pair of shoes.
Wool hat and gloves.
Warm jacket.
Some guests like to use hiking sticks.
WALKING PREPARATION
We expect you to be able to walk at least a mile a day to get to the sites. We will be visiting over varied terrain, pebbly, gravel paths, boardwalks, stairs and getting on and off our motor coach, and ferries. Dressing in a one-piece cold weather floatation suit, if you will be joining us for the two-hour whale, and iceberg boat ride aboard a 28-foot rigid hulled inflatable zodiac boat.
There will be ample opportunities for those folks who would like to hike further, before we get on the bus in the morning, or after supper each day. In July there is plenty of light from early morning (sunrise 5:30am) to hike before breakfast, or after supper, sunset around 10pm. Join me for and early hike or after supper!
ELECTRICITY
Electricity runs on the same system as the US.
MEDICAL INSURANCE
We do recommend that you buy travel insurance.
PHONES AND INTERNET
If you have an iPhone you can call your provider and make arrangements for your phone to work in Canada for a small fee. You will be able to call and receive calls from home, send emails and text. It works very well, automatically going into effect when your airplane touches down. All of our accommodations will have Internet, as well the sites, restaurants and cafes we will be visiting.
The best source for cash will be ATM’s which are present in most places where we will be visiting and staying.
Hywel Taff Roberts the Director of Wild Wales Tours & Walkabouts will be leading the tour along with local guides. Taff’’s first visit to Newfoundland was twenty years ago, when two of his dearest friends moved from New Jersey to the province. It did not take him long to find out why they moved, and he fell in love with its people, culture and traditions. Taff bought a home on the island, is passionate about the people and visits yearly.
While doing research at the Rooms, the National Historical Museum of Newfoundland and Labrador in St Johns last year, Taff discovered a picture of his grandfather’s ship the Blodwen moored in Battle Harbor, Labrador. Captain Job Roberts sailed from Porthmadog, North Wales to the province with slate from the Welsh mines for the roofs, and salt from the salt mines in Patras, Greece for the cod fishery between 1896-1905 on his 100 ton wooden, topsail schooner.
Come join us!
Taff
hyweltroberts@gmail.com
Cell: 507 458 8637
Wild Wales Tours & Walkabouts
Director
www.wildwalestours.com
wildwalestours@gmail.com
Sandbar Storytelling Festival
Board of Directors, Artistic Director
www.sandbarstorytellingfestival.org
info@sandbarstorytellingfestival.org
