We tested | Visit (or not) Mont-Sainte-Anne

I was on my way to Mont-Sainte-Anne last week when the media announced that the mountain would receive $100 million in investments over the next five years. Here's how a weekend exploring the Côte-de-Beaupré and skiing on the mountain whose reputation was darkened by the fall of a gondola in 2022 went.

For Sébastien Roy, general manager and co-owner of the Delta hotel at the foot of Mont-Sainte-Anne, it stood to reason that investments would be announced one day. This is why, from 2019, the 210-unit hotel underwent a makeover. It also joined the large Marriott family in 2021.

In 2023, an aquatic center with a large swimming pool and hot tubs – hot and temperate – was created. This is one of the hotel's key attractions, accessible via a footbridge also leading to the Convention Center.

The Bistro Nordik du Delta, open to the hall, is a good restaurant, with generous cuisine, a trendy cocktail menu, and a selection of rather traditional, but numerous, wines. Café Nordik offers Starbucks coffee and decent morning and lunch meals. This can help if you are not in one of the mountain chalets for lunch.

The Delta is a true “ski in/ski out” hotel. You store your equipment in a locker on the second floor, then the exit leads directly to the gondolas. There is a workshop/shop/rental center for those who need equipment.

The mountain

Saturday morning, it's time to face the beast. It may have rained a lot the previous week, but the precipitation seems to have fallen as snow here. However, the southern sector of the mountain is not yet open. So you have to take the gondola to the top, ski down the other side, then take the gondola back down at the end of the day.

If the dilapidation of the Mont-Sainte-Anne gondolas worries you, consider this statement from Sébastien Roy, of Delta: “There is not a gondola in the world that has been inspected more than this one!

Once at the foot of the north face, a four-seater chairlift and a T-bar type lift are the two ways to return to the top of the mountain. It’s better to have good “cushioning” so as not to get cold (or sore) behind in the chairlift. As for the “T”, it stops at least five or six times during the ascent, and not because of falls. Early season troubles? It's quite possible.

The station is not very busy. I wait between one and ten minutes to go up! There are instructors in training, young people participating in the MSA's numerous ski programs and die-hards who will never give up their mountain. For the moment, it's a very local clientele.

In the end, my day of skiing was far from unpleasant. Is it worth the $145 ticket (online promotions can bring the price down to $108 on weekdays)? Perhaps, if you find that tranquility is priceless.

In après-ski mode

Besides beer or Bailey's coffee, there's no better après-ski than the spa! But first, while “going back down” to Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré, a 10-minute drive away, I make a quick stop at Café Apollo for a bite to eat.

This address is a real gem in the region. After a good soup served with grilled focaccia, I leave with one of the best “dirty chais” I have tasted.

The Snow Spa is not the most “up-to-date” of thermotherapy centers, but when you soak in the temperate bath with a view of the river, you will forget the closure of the hammam for repairs and the absence of windows to contemplate the landscape in the Finnish sauna.

Very relaxed, I take the mountain road to test Brasseur des Monts, at the gates of Saint-Ferréol-les-Neiges. The dining room is packed. Sitting at the bar, I taste four pints of beer in tasting mode. We practice a wide range of styles here, from German lager to oatmeal stout to every variation of pale ale imaginable. The cuisine has two personalities: classic pub with nachos and burgers and micro refined, with more seasonal dishes on the slate. A great discovery.

My second night, I spend it in one of the very beautiful new units at the foot of the slopes, facing the gondola, managed by Chalets Village (prices from $395 per night). The leading family business rents a wide range of chalets and condos directly on the mountain, for 2 to more than 80 people.

Each rental now comes with access to a resort two kilometers from the mountain with indoor pool, heated outdoor pool, spa, sauna and gym.

François Turcotte, owner of Chalets Village, recently acquired another rental management company, Hébergement Mont-Sainte-Anne. Concretely, these are two condo towers located directly at the resort.

With prices starting at $132, it's safe to say that this is one of the most affordable “ski in/ski out” options in the province, at least until the mountain is finally upgraded.

Don't want to go downhill skiing? The majority of Chalets Village clients would not even be in the mountains for sport. “Many families are simply looking for a semi-country chalet to get together,” says Mr. Turcotte.

Late Sunday morning, I decide to do something other than skiing. I was recommended a walk to Jean-Larose Falls. The long staircase which allows you to make a loop is closed in winter. So, to clearly see the waterfall from the bottom, you have to walk about four kilometers and do the round trip. The enchantment of the winter landscape is worth it.

After this lovely walk, as I have a two-day ski ticket, I take the opportunity to finish off my thighs with a few descents. On a Sunday afternoon, between 2 p.m. and 4 p.m., there is hardly anyone on the lifts. I conclude that this is the greatest advantage of this unenviable reputation acquired by Mont-Sainte-Anne in recent years, a reputation which is fortunately in the process of changing completely.

Part of the costs of this trip were paid by Tourisme Côte-de-Beaupré, which had no right to review the content of this report.

Read the article “Mont-Sainte-Anne: Quebec grants 50 million to Alberta’s RCR”

Visit the Côte-de-Beaupré website