Royal St. John's Regatta

Oldest continuous sporting event in North America Or does the 128 years of slide-seat rowing at the Canadian Henley come to mind? Well, the Royal St. Fun is fun!

When you say the word Regatta, does it conjure up images of historic rowing rivalry, like the 181 years between England’s Oxford and Cambridge? John’s Regatta tops them both with 194 years of rowing tradition. Our Regatta is both a unique sporting contest, but even more importantly it is one of the best summer social events in Newfoundland and Labrador’s capital city. The Royal St. John’s Regatta,

is held in St. John’s every year, on the first Wednesday in August (weather permitting). Ours is the oldest continuously organized sporting event in North America! Dating back to the times when sea captains in port, would wager on the strength of their sailors, and used their gigs or whale boats to race across the harbour and back. From those days, as far back as 1816, our Royal St. John’s Regatta eventually moved to beautiful Quidi Vidi Lake where the shorelines offered all the citizens a chance to cheer on their favourite crew and enjoy a day of fun and activity. What makes our Royal Regatta so unique? Our shells have fixed seat, are just over 50 feet long and weigh over 450 lbs. They hold a crew of six, plus coxswain. Our races start and finish at the same spot on beautiful Quidi Vidi Lake. The men’s crew row 2.450 km. and the women row 1,225 km. – but all five crews that make up a race, have to “turn the buoys” at the half way point – a true feat of athleticism and teamwork. With a full day of races on the pond – the day ends with the Championship Races for top five men’s and women’s crews. Every fraction of a second shaved off a record is a great cause for celebration and pride. Our Regatta is more than that, even more than our most favourite sport, it’s a day for family and friends, young and old, visitor and neighbours. All around the shores of beautiful Quidi Vidi Lake are concessionaires offering all manner of food and treats for the whole family. Community groups who volunteer to staff a booth on Regatta Day will entice you to play games of chance, or games of skill. “Try your luck!” is a call that appeals to tourists and locals alike. The tourism board for the Newfoundland’s capital city has a promotion called a “St. John’s Time” marketed as the best time for a visit. The key event during the last two weeks in July and the first two weeks of August – is the Royal St. John’s Regatta! Newfoundlanders usually plan their summer trip home to coincide with The Regatta! We invite you to come and experience this fabulous sport and social event in our fair city! Come see what you’re missing?

05/30/2026

Suncor Learn to Row Open House is going ahead today!!!

From 8:30am-10:30am, at the East Coast Kia Boathouse at 10 Clancey Drive.

Everyone Welcome!

Suncor Learn to Row Open House

Have you ever wondered what it’s like to row in a traditional fixed-seat shell? Now’s your chance to come explore one of Newfoundland and Labrador’s most iconic sports traditions!

This family-friendly open house is open to all ages and experience levels and will include:

✔️ A chance to see and sit in our fixed-seat racing shells
✔️ Learn about fixed seat rowing
✔️ Access to our erg room with rowing demonstrations and technique tips
✔️ Meet members of the rowing community
✔️ Explore the Regatta Museum and its incredible memorabilia and history
✔️ Learn about opportunities to get involved as a rower, coxswain, volunteer, or supporter
Whether you’re curious about the sport, looking for a new challenge, or simply interested in the history of the Royal St. John's Regatta, we’d love to welcome you!

When: Saturday, May 30, 2026
Where: East Coat Kia Boathouse
Time: 8:30-10:30am

Bring a friend, bring the kids, and come experience the spirit of the lake. 💙

05/29/2026

Reminder that the Suncor Learn to Row Open House is tomorrow, May 30th, from 8:30-10:30am.

We are excited to welcome you to the East Coast Kia Boathouse. Come one, come all!

05/27/2026

🚣‍♀️🚣‍♂️June Race Day Registration is OPEN!🚣🚣‍♀️🚣‍♂️

We’re excited to have everyone back on the pond for the first races of the year!

June Race Day is set to take place on June 20th, 2026. (weather permitting of course)

Last day to register and make crew changes will be June 12th, 2026.

To register, click on the link below:

https://forms.office.com/r/kaxUrKFEJ2

Can’t wait to see you there!

05/23/2026

📢 LAST CALL 📢 for the Learn To Cox Course

If you missed our last two sessions, it’s not too late. We have one more coming up!

When: May 30, 2026
Where: East Coast Kia Boathouse Museum
Time: 12pm

If you’d like to join in on this course, please RSVP to [email protected] to secure your spot.

We look forward to seeing you there!

05/20/2026

05/18/2026

Today, we celebrate the spirit of community, tradition, and the unofficial start of summer here in Newfoundland and Labrador. As we enjoy time with family and friends, we’re also looking ahead to another exciting Regatta season on Quidi Vidi Lake.

From all of us at the Royal St. John’s Regatta Committee, we wish everyone a safe, joyful, and relaxing Victoria Day weekend. We can’t wait to see you at the lake this summer!

Photos from Royal St. John's Regatta's post

05/12/2026

A great group of folks came out for our Learn to Cox session this weekend led by coxswain, rower, and our Director of Rowing, Jennifer Windsor Browne! Big shoutout to Jennifer for sharing her expertise and for capturing these photos. We look forward to seeing these new coxswains out on the pond someday! 👀😁👏

05/08/2026

Today’s forecast seems decent from a wind perspective, but not so much with the rain 🌧️

If your team is a bunch of hardcore, go-getters that doesn’t mind the rain, by all means, keep your spin time and get at it!

Our hard working staff and volunteers will be dock side to help where needed.

If you decide not to use your spin booking today, please go to Veribook and cancel. This will help our staff and volunteers determine how many boats to leave dock side.

As always, go to our website for updated flag status throughout the day. stjohnsregatta.ca/

Thanks and Happy Rowing!🚣

The Royal St. John’s Regatta The day is a civic holiday for the entire St. John’s area and is a full day of Fixed Seat Rowing Races. The decision to go ahead with the Regatta is made early that morning (if not…

05/07/2026

We’re finally back on the water!

With the opening of the East Coast Kia Boathouse on May 4th, we were hoping to have our first spin of the year, but Mother Nature had other plans 💨💨💨, gave us 3 days of high winds and 🚩🚩🚩

BUT……it looks like today could be the day! We have a yellow flag at the moment. If you have a spin booked this evening, please check our website for flag status.

Here’s to the start of another great rowing season!

05/05/2026

🚣‍♂️ Interested in learning how to be a coxswain?🚣‍♀️

Are you ready to take the helm? Join our coxswain course and learn the essential skills to lead a rowing team!

📅 Dates:

* Saturday May 9th, @ 10am
* Thursday, May 14th @ 7pm

Location: East Coast Kia Boathouse

Don’t miss this chance to become an integral part of a regatta team!

For more info and to register, please email Jennifer at [email protected]

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Location

St. John's

Website

http://www.stjohnsregatta.ca/

Address

10 Clancey Drive
St. John's, NL
A1A5P5

Royal St. John's Regatta

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