Hi. I am planning a 12 day camping trip to Newfoundland, and I am not sure where to start. We are a family of 5 (children ages 15, 13, 12) and we will be flying into either Deer Lake or St. John's (flexible) and renting a van. We are bringing all our camping gear with us for tenting. We'd love some advice on the best campgrounds, and ideas for an itinerary. We enjoy hiking, nature, local culture, and would like to try kayaking. Last year we did the Oregon Coast and we loved it so much that the kids wanted to do it again this year. Any advice would be much appreciated. Thank you in advance.

Camping in Nfld. is wonderful, but do you really want to haul all your gear on the plane? You'd be in for some hefty excess baggage fees I expect. Why not rent a camper van?

sounds like a great time...unfortunatly, one province i haven't been able to camp in yet so the only info i can share is get their tourism book and know that getting around the province is very slow.

Hi eiliztravels2. It was actually no problem for us to haul our gear on the plane. We've done it twice already for similar trips. Once to Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and PEI, and last year to the Oregon Coast. It's the only affordable way we can do these kinds of trips since we use Aeroplan points for the airfare and van rental. It definitely isn't the easiest way, that is for sure, but it works for us.

@Itt...yes, I should probably get some books. I've checked out the websites, but I am finding it hard to know where to start. I just wonder if people have a favorite campground or campground site that is not to be missed.

Once I have a better idea, I will post my itinerary. Thank you both for your replies.

Well good for you and your adventuresome spirit, then. Our vacations when our kids were young were always camping, as it was all we could afford, and we didn't have the advantage of FF points so it was an old VW van for us.

I would suggest flying into Deer Lake and doing Gros Morne for sure, and up to L'Anse Au Meadows. You could then drive across to the east and do some of the Avalon pennisula and fly out of St. John's. The drive across is pretty boring so avoid backtracking if you can without incurring big van drop off fees.

I'd have to get out a map to give more specific suggestions, but sounds like you are the type of family that will make the most of a trip and will enjoy it no matter what.