St. John's International Airport (YYT) → Portugal Cove ferry terminal
St. John's Airport (YYT) to Bell Island
The drive from every airport and ferry ↓
- Distance
- 10.6 km
- Drive time
- In your maps app ↗
- Roads
- 40
Use another map app
Apple Maps · Google Maps · Organic Maps · OsmAnd (both work offline, no tracking) · Waze
.jpg){kind=link}
Then a ferry to Bell Island
The mapped ferry route runs across Conception Bay between Portugal Cove and Bell Island, drawn in both directions and tagged as carrying motor vehicles, cyclists and foot passengers. The province runs it and publishes more than one timetable, depending on which vessels are working. Open the current schedule before you go.
Operated by the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador.
Current schedule →Faded lines are other drives from St. John's International into this area: Downtown St. John's (7.7 km), Signal Hill (Cabot Tower) (9 km), Cape Spear (24 km), Harbour Grace (108 km), Brigus (75 km), Clarke's Beach (88 km), Witless Bay (46 km), Heart's Content (132 km). Each splits off where its line leaves this one.
Scan with your phone to open this page there. Then tap Keep for offline before you lose signal.
Drive measured Sep 5, 2026, St. John's International Airport (YYT) to Portugal Cove ferry terminal. Your maps app gives the time on the day. The ferry after it is not included. How we measure
Then the ferry to Bell Island — sailings & schedule →
Add to a trip →Staying here? Days out ↓Keep for offline ↓Download GPX (offline, Garmin)Airport info: St. John's International Airport →
10.6 km. St. John’s airport to the Portugal Cove ferry terminal on Route 40, with nothing worth a detour on the way.
Then the ferry. The province’s ferry to Bell Island sails from Portugal Cove, right where this drive ends. Check the province’s schedule page for the next crossing.
When you get to Portugal Cove
- Where to eat near Portugal Cove → — 10 places the open map records, alphabetically, with addresses and phone numbers.
Sunrise and sunset at Portugal Cove, by month
| Month (the 15th) | Sunrise | Sunset |
|---|---|---|
| January | 7:44 am | 4:35 pm |
| February | 7:08 am | 5:23 pm |
| March | 7:15 am | 7:06 pm |
| April | 6:13 am | 7:49 pm |
| May | 5:24 am | 8:30 pm |
| June | 5:02 am | 9:00 pm |
| July | 5:18 am | 8:56 pm |
| August | 5:56 am | 8:15 pm |
| September | 6:37 am | 7:15 pm |
| October | 7:19 am | 6:14 pm |
| November | 7:06 am | 4:26 pm |
| December | 7:43 am | 4:10 pm |
Worked out for the 15th of each month at this spot, in local time. The weather line at the top has today's.
Places to eat on the way
25 near the start: where to eat in St. John's →
5 near Portugal Cove ferry terminal: where to eat near Portugal Cove →
Nothing mapped between the two ends.
Not ranked or complete, and nobody pays to be here. No opening hours: phone ahead. Open map data, swept 2026-09-12. How we measure · Add a missing place
New place to eat, or one that's missing? This list comes from OpenStreetMap, so nobody can pay to be on it. Add it to the map yourself (about twenty minutes on a phone), or email us the details and we'll put it on the map.
What has been recorded near here
Wildlife people have reported within 10 km of Portugal Cove ferry terminal, and the months they saw it. Tap a name for everywhere else on our drives it turns up.
- Northern gannetseabirdMorus bassanusReports cluster in July, May, April96 reports on record
Reports, not counts: busy harbours report more. No sighting is promised, and the list covers only the species we look up. Source: GBIF, the international record of wildlife sightings, checked 2026-10-07.
Short drives from Portugal Cove
Other map apps
Apple · Google · Organic Maps · OsmAnd (both work offline, no tracking) · WazeOr any of these: nearest first, measured by road from Portugal Cove.
- Piccos Ridge Pathtrail · 14.5 km point to point, one way · strenuous3.2 kmDirections →
Other map apps
Apple · Google · Organic Maps · OsmAnd (both work offline, no tracking) · Waze - Father Troy's Pathtrail · 8.9 km point to point, one way · easy14 kmDirections →
Other map apps
Apple · Google · Organic Maps · OsmAnd (both work offline, no tracking) · Waze - White Horse Pathtrail · 18.2 km point to point, one way · strenuous16 kmDirections →
Other map apps
Apple · Google · Organic Maps · OsmAnd (both work offline, no tracking) · Waze - Colonial Buildingstop16 km
On Military Road as the drive comes down into town.
Directions →Other map apps
Apple · Google · Organic Maps · OsmAnd (both work offline, no tracking) · Waze A few hundred metres along Military Road: Parks Canada's register describes a massive stone cathedral built in the mid 19th century in the Lombard Romanesque Revival style, a national historic site since 1983.
Directions →Other map apps
Apple · Google · Organic Maps · OsmAnd (both work offline, no tracking) · Waze- St. John'stown17 kmDirections →
Other map apps
Apple · Google · Organic Maps · OsmAnd (both work offline, no tracking) · Waze - The Batterystop17 km
On the harbour side of Signal Hill Road.
Directions →Other map apps
Apple · Google · Organic Maps · OsmAnd (both work offline, no tracking) · Waze - Trans-Canada Highway Zero Kmstop17 km
OpenStreetMap records a highway milestone here reading distance zero, named for the Trans-Canada Highway.
Directions →Other map apps
Apple · Google · Organic Maps · OsmAnd (both work offline, no tracking) · Waze
More, up to 26 km (10)
- Quidi Vidistop17 km
A small village on its own harbour, north of Signal Hill.
Directions →Other map apps
Apple · Google · Organic Maps · OsmAnd (both work offline, no tracking) · Waze - Signal Hill Visitor Centrestop17 km
Halfway up Signal Hill Road.
Directions →Other map apps
Apple · Google · Organic Maps · OsmAnd (both work offline, no tracking) · Waze - North Head Trailtrail · 1.6 km point to point, one way · easy18 kmDirections →
Other map apps
Apple · Google · Organic Maps · OsmAnd (both work offline, no tracking) · Waze - Marine Parkstop18 km
On screen: the fish farm where a fisherman first sees something wrong in the water.
Directions →Other map apps
Apple · Google · Organic Maps · OsmAnd (both work offline, no tracking) · Waze - Railway Coastal Museumstop18 km
The drive passes it at 495 Water Street: St. John's old railway station, now the Railway Coastal Museum, about the Newfoundland Railway and the coastal boats.
Directions →Other map apps
Apple · Google · Organic Maps · OsmAnd (both work offline, no tracking) · Waze On screen: the marine research lab where Calvin tries to sell the iceberg fragment he caught, in the first episode.
Directions →Other map apps
Apple · Google · Organic Maps · OsmAnd (both work offline, no tracking) · Waze- Stiles Cove Pathtrail · 15.1 km point to point, one way · moderate20 kmDirections →
Other map apps
Apple · Google · Organic Maps · OsmAnd (both work offline, no tracking) · Waze - Pouch Cove Heritage Societystop21 km
Said "pooch".
Directions →Other map apps
Apple · Google · Organic Maps · OsmAnd (both work offline, no tracking) · Waze - Fort Amherst Lighthouselighthouse23 kmDirections →
Other map apps
Apple · Google · Organic Maps · OsmAnd (both work offline, no tracking) · Waze - Manuel's River Interpretation Centerstop26 km
A fossil bed and walking trail on Manuels River, with guided walks back to when trilobites ruled the seas.
Directions →Other map apps
Apple · Google · Organic Maps · OsmAnd (both work offline, no tracking) · Waze
Distances by road, measured on OpenStreetMap October 16, 2026, from where this route ends. Your maps app gives the time on the day. How we measure
Doing it electric
- Fast chargers on this drive
- none
- Longest stretch without one
- 11 km
- St. John's → Portugal Cove ferry terminal, of 11 km driven
- Nearest fast charger to Portugal Cove ferry terminal
- 17.9 km
- by road, at Paradise
No fast charger at Portugal Cove ferry terminal. From St. John's it is 11 km there and the same back: plan on about 22 km on one charge, more in cold weather or with the heat on. Or charge at Paradise, 17.9 km from Portugal Cove ferry terminal by road, off this drive's own road.
NL Hydro fast chargers within 3 km of the drive. Check the app for one that's working. Exported 2026-10-22. How we measure
Paved or not, per the map
- Mapped as unpaved
- none
- Mapped as paved
- 96%
- 9 km of 10.6 km driven
- No surface tag on the map
- 4%
- 0.4 km: surface not recorded
In a rental car: Hertz Canada’s terms say “use off paved roads or on roads which are not regularly maintained” voids the damage waiver. Check your own agreement. Hertz’s terms ↗. Source for these figures: OSRM driving profile, stored route query, with node annotations; OpenStreetMap surface tags via Overpass, checked 2026-09-13. Today's road conditions: 511.
Before you go
These change, so we link to the people who keep them up to date.
MooseYear round, worst between dusk and dawn
The province states the likelihood of injury in a moose collision is about twice as high between dusk and dawn as in daytime. The drive is short and starts in the city, but the warning applies on the stretch to Portugal Cove - St. Philip's as anywhere else.
gov.nl.ca →Road conditionsYear round, matters most November–April
Route 40 is a short run west to Portugal Cove, but Avalon winter weather still slows and closes it. Check conditions before you leave the airport, especially if you are timing a ferry.
511nl.ca →
The trails
- White Horse Path18.2 km point to point, one way · strenuous · about 635 m of climbing · profile, 3D flyover and the drive to the trailhead →
- Stiles Cove Path15.1 km point to point, one way · moderate · about 346 m of climbing · profile, 3D flyover and the drive to the trailhead →
- Piccos Ridge Path14.5 km point to point, one way · strenuous · about 318 m of climbing · profile, 3D flyover and the drive to the trailhead →
- Father Troy's Path8.9 km point to point, one way · easy · about 293 m of climbing · profile, 3D flyover and the drive to the trailhead →
- Biscane Cove Trail7 km point to point, one way · moderate to difficult · about 288 m of climbing · profile, 3D flyover and the drive to the trailhead →
Renting a car? Book the car when you book the flight.
Summer rentals sell out, says NL Tourism, and in June 2026 BNN Bloomberg reported St. John's airport agencies booked for nearly all of summer.
Both checked October 7, 2026.
Rental counters at St. John's, with numbers →Arriving without a car
Not renting? Here's who St. John's International Airport Authority lists at the terminal.
Rideshare: it depends who you ask.
The Airport Authority's own ground-transportation pages name City Wide Taxi as “the exclusive provider of ground transportation services for the public” and do not mention rideshare anywhere. Uber publishes pickup instructions for YYT, and the Airport's own account welcomed Uber in 2024. Both are true. The Authority's pages govern the kerb, so check them on the day.
Taxi
City Wide Taxi, which the Airport Authority names as the exclusive provider for the public. Cabs queue outside the Arrivals area and a dispatcher is there to help. The Authority publishes preset fares to named hotels and a meter-plus-surcharge rate everywhere else.
Public transit
Metrobus route 14 runs between the airport and the St. John's metro region, including Memorial University. There are two stops at the airport: one near the arrivals area, and one on World Parkway by the Holiday Inn Express. The Authority says Metrobus has committed to a wheelchair-accessible service on this route and can take large, non-folding mobility aids. Schedule and fares are Metrobus's.
Source: St. John's International Airport Authority,2026-09-15. Check there for fares and times.
The drive back
Measured the other way, Portugal Cove ferry terminal back to St. John's is the same distance: 11 km.
Plan back from your check-in time. Going home, the ferry comes first: confirm the sailing, then count back. Give the planner your flight time and it tells you when to set off.
How early to arrive depends on the carrier and the season: check St. John's International Airport →
Return measured 2026-09-29, the same way as the drive out. How we measure
Questions
How far is Portugal Cove ferry terminal from St. John's airport?＋
10.6 km, on Route 40. It is one of the shortest airport-to-destination drives on this site.
Should I fly into St. John's, Gander or Deer Lake for Portugal Cove ferry terminal?＋
St. John's, by a wide margin: 10.6 km against 338 km from Gander and 641 km from Deer Lake. For the Bell Island ferry, book St. John's.
Is there anywhere worth stopping on the way?＋
No. Nothing worth a stop is mapped along this stretch. Next comes the ferry line-up.
Where do I find the Bell Island ferry schedule?＋
On the province's schedule page, linked from the ferry note on this page. It carries sailings, vessels and weather changes; check it on the day you travel.
No recorded track yet.Drove it? Send yours →
Put this map on your site
Run a place to stay, a tour or a town page on this drive? Add this map to your site. It shows your guests the drive and its distance. It is free, needs no account, and we keep the figures current.
<iframe src="https://fromtheairport.xyz/embed/yyt-bell-island"
width="100%" height="420" style="border:0" loading="lazy"
title="Driving route: St. John's International Airport (YYT) to Portugal Cove ferry terminal"></iframe>?lat=&lon=&label= to the URL to pin your own property on the map.Every distance and coordinate on this page was checked against its source on September 5, 2026. Origin: OpenStreetMap way/279110348 — St. John's International Airport. Destination: OpenStreetMap node/1556565861 — Portugal Cove.