Usually common, there have been almost no iceberg sightings from the Newfoundland coast this summer. (CBC)

The ocean along Newfoundland’s northeast coast is usually dotted with icebergs at this time of summer, but there are none in sight.

Tour operators in Twillingate, a town that promotes itself as the iceberg-watching capital of the East Coast, have been forced to shift their focus to whales and rocky coasts to entice tourists out onto the water.

While Twillingate boat tours may miss their signature attraction, the town's tourism association says it hasn't been a bad season.

"We're still on par like any other year," said the association's Fred Bridger.

"I think we probably would have to wait another year to see [a decline], because most people book accommodations well in advance."

Bridger said the area still has plenty to offer tourists.

"We're hoping that because they came, we can show them a different side of our town."

Twillingate hosts nearly 30,000 tourists each year.

There is also an expectation that a giant iceberg that broke off from Greenland this week will bring the bergs back to Twillingate in 2011, allowing the area to live up to its nickname of Iceberg Alley.