Mont-Tremblant is among Quebec’s best winter destinations and is home to one of Eastern Canada’s top ski resorts. It’s also a popular place in the summer for its excellent hiking and cycling. But did you know that Tremblant in the fall is one of Quebec’s best-kept secrets? While it’s considered a quieter time of year, particularly at the Tremblant resort, the turning of the fall foliage makes the landscapes here absolutely stunning. Not only is Mont-Tremblant worth visiting in the fall, but it just might be the best time of year to take a Tremblant road trip. This is especially true for those who don’t enjoy winter sports and won’t miss having snow cover on the ski runs.
Here are 8 great reasons to consider visiting Tremblant in the fall months.
2023 Nissan Sentra SR Premium
Our most recent visit to Tremblant saw us piloting a 2023 Nissan Sentra. Given that we watched the Nissan Sentra Cup races at Circuit Mont-Tremblant, this is a fitting car for this road trip!
In Canada, Nissan prices the Sentra to undercut most of the competition by several thousand dollars, which should immediately capture the attention of more frugally minded drivers. There’s also a strong suite of standard equipment, most notably blind spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert, which are unusual features to find at lower trim levels.
The Nissan Sentra’s 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine produces 149 horsepower and 146 lb-ft of torque. Those aren’t impressive figures on paper, but in practice this is plenty to get this compact car around. The continuously variable transmission is less intrusive than most, and the well-engineered suspension makes this car surprisingly fun to wing around winding mountain roads given the price point.
If we were to submit one quibble, it would be the seats, which are spongy and left us wiggling around for comfort after a few hours behind the wheel. But on the whole, if saving money on a new car up front is a high priority for you, the Sentra offers great value.
Watch the full review at Modern Motoring:
On to the reasons to visit Tremblant in the fall:
The trees explode with colour
The forests around Tremblant are made up of the perfect mix of trees to turn autumn vistas into an explosion of colour. Mont-Tremblant is one of the tallest peaks in the Laurentians. If you time your visit right, you can ride the gondola to the summit, climb the observation tower, and be surrounded by 360 degrees of stunning and vibrant fall foliage straight out of a watercolour painting. (In fact, these vistas are so impressive that we stumbled upon an inspired artist at work during our visit!)
Most summer activities are still open
Tremblant Resort is a hive of activity during the summer. While some of the water-based activities like the beach and swim facilities close in early September, many stay open until Thanksgiving weekend or even longer. We tried the luge, summer skiing, kayaking, and hiking during our visit, and there’s also ziplining, rock climbing, and more. It was a pleasure to enjoy these activities with cooler temperatures than we might have seen during the summer months.
Tonga Lumina
One of Tremblant’s unique attractions is Tonga Lumina. This after-dark experience is part hiking trail, part light show, and part fantastical storytelling about the creatures that surround us in the forest. From the chair lift ride that provides a dramatic entrance to the interactive props that encourage you to make the forest tremble, Tonga Lumina is a unique and immersive experience. And why should you visit Tonga Lumina at Tremblant in the fall? It gets dark earlier in late September and October, which means younger children can enjoy the trail with you and still get to bed at a decent hour.
Fall Classic at Circuit Mont-Tremblant
Less than 10 minutes from the Tremblant resort village is Circuit Mont-Tremblant, a professional-grade racetrack. The Fall Classic regional race weekend is held annually in late September. Each time we’ve attended this race weekend, the autumn colours in Mont-Tremblant have either been approaching or at their peak vibrance. This year, we watched the Nissan Sentra Cup crown Alexandre Fortin as its 2023 champion and also saw classic Porsche 944s, Lamborghinis, Audi R8s, and plenty of other great cars on track. Tickets are very affordable, temperatures are cooler, and because this track needs to follow local noise ordinances, the cars are relatively quiet. This makes the Fall Classic weekend at Circuit Mont-Tremblant the perfect outing for you and your car-crazy kids.
More availability at restaurants
We’re not going to claim Tremblant is deserted in autumn. It’s plenty busy, and you’ll still want to make reservations wherever you can to make sure you get a spot at your favourite restaurants. But because Tremblant in the fall is an off-peak season, there tends to be less competition for desirable locations and times than during busier months. Grab a bite and a beer on the large patio at Microbrasserie la Diable, Tremblant’s only microbrewery. (Beer is off the menu for us, but we enjoyed a cold local cider!) Enjoy fondue of all kinds at La Savoie. Give some upscale sushi a try at Yama-no-Kami. You could spend days just exploring Tremblant’s restaurants, and it’s a pleasure to do so while enjoying relatively short waits.
Sweet treats for all seasons
At times, autumn in Quebec can throw all four seasons at you, sometimes in one day. No matter: Tremblant in the fall is equipped to provide all manner of sweet treats for whatever nature has in store. If it’s warm in the afternoon, grab some ice cream. Once it’s cooler in the evening, pick up a hot chocolate. (The hot chocolate bar at Chocolato is very impressive!) And you won’t need to wait for winter to enjoy some maple taffy. There’s a barrel full of snow waiting for your pour at the sugar shack, near bottom of the cabriolet in the village.
Hotels offer off-peak pricing
From hotels to chalets and condo-style suites, Tremblant has a variety of accommodations available. And in the fall, you might find your favourite at a reduced rate. Keep an eye on social media: some properties offer lodging prices up to 20% off their usual rates when you visit Tremblant in the fall. Our stay at in a one-bedroom suite at L’Ermitage du Lac positioned us perfectly at the base of the village, a stone’s throw from all the action, with a view overlooking a beautiful pond amid a tree-lined setting.
A truly pleasant drive home
Saying goodbye to Tremblant and heading home is made a lot easier when you can enjoy even more fall colours along the way. If your return trip will take you to the west, the drive to Autoroute 50 and through Ottawa is all reds and yellows and rolling hills. You can extend this even further by taking the long way home through Ontario via Highway 41, Highway 7, the 1000 Islands Parkway via the 401, or if you’ve got plenty of time, Highway 60 toward Algonquin Provincial Park. If heading home takes you in a different direction, you’ll continue to enjoy fall colours as you travel through the Laurentians. No matter which way your travels take you, if you enjoyed autumn vistas during your stay at Mont-Tremblant, you’re likely to see more of them for much of your journey home.
