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Ski areas that are about an hours drive from Montreal
- Thread starter skijay
- Start date
ChileMass
Active member
Mont Tremblant is supposed to be terrific and the class of the region. The other Laurentian ski areas are really small and don't compare to Tremblant (at least that's what the magazines and e-zines always say). I'd be very interested in some first-hand feedback. It's too far from Boston for me and the family - 6 hours in a car, fuggedabouddit. Especially considering the currency exchange rate, it must be a great destination.......
L
Lisamarie
Guest
Well it just so happens.......
..that I just got back from Tremblant. Fortunately, it was not quite as cold as predicted. Unfortunately, the rumors of extreme cold did not keep the massive crowds away. But its definiitely worth going to. Its culture is surprisingly authentic; no Starbucks, Gap, McD's, just a lot of Mom and Pop stores and restaurants. For the price of inedible food at some NE resorts, you can get a tasty meal.
The terrain is varied, but I'm not sure is there is a good deal of super expert terrain. Black diamond trails have a way of showing up in unexpected places, such as the trail that leads to the main base area. Be careful, since they are not well marked. The trails themselves are really "ego blacks." But many unsuspecting newbies end up on them by accident, so you need to watch out for the human carnage.
There are many jumps, parks and rails, so Tremblant does attract many snowboarders. Fortunataely, they actually blow snow at many places on the mountain, so don't worry too much about the trails getting scraped off.
..that I just got back from Tremblant. Fortunately, it was not quite as cold as predicted. Unfortunately, the rumors of extreme cold did not keep the massive crowds away. But its definiitely worth going to. Its culture is surprisingly authentic; no Starbucks, Gap, McD's, just a lot of Mom and Pop stores and restaurants. For the price of inedible food at some NE resorts, you can get a tasty meal.
The terrain is varied, but I'm not sure is there is a good deal of super expert terrain. Black diamond trails have a way of showing up in unexpected places, such as the trail that leads to the main base area. Be careful, since they are not well marked. The trails themselves are really "ego blacks." But many unsuspecting newbies end up on them by accident, so you need to watch out for the human carnage.
There are many jumps, parks and rails, so Tremblant does attract many snowboarders. Fortunataely, they actually blow snow at many places on the mountain, so don't worry too much about the trails getting scraped off.
Tremblant is a great ski destination if you are planning on going for an extended period of time and want to stay in the village. I went up with my family last year and we skied 6 days/5 nights and never even had to get in our car for anything. There was a lift that brought us to the slope about 100 yards from our hotel, and at the end of the day (or lunch for that matter) we could ski back to within 100 feet of our hotel. They have everything in the village - restaurants, convenience stores, ski shops, shopping shops, etc. etc. There's also other things to do - we even went skating right behind our hotel one evening. I like to think of it as a more European experience - I can't think of any area on the East coast that has such a complete village right at the ski area. The terrain is reasonably good too, with a nice mix of difficulty and enough trails to keep most people interested for a number of days. I will agree that if you only like to ski the most difficult trails, there are some, but you'll run out after a little while.
The down side is that because many people who ski there are not day-trippers, it tends to be crowded. We went on the Feb. holiday week last year, hoping that being in Canada, we'd miss the crowds. Mistake! Actually, the majority of people there that week were from the US. If we made it to the lifts at 9:00, we'd have a 5-10 minute wait - by 10:00 you'd be pushing a 45 minute wait. By the end of the week we had learned the patterns of where to go and where to avoid at the various times of day, so it wasn't too bad. And - I must say - the people are much ruder in the lift lines than the places I am used to, skiing over your skis and crowding you. I guess this is the European experience as well.
The other down side is that it is pretty expensive - at least compared to the other ski areas in the Laurentians. Here I am not talking just lift tickets - but the whole package. While it is a bigger mountain than other mountains in the area, there are some others a little closer to Montreal that have some very good terrain, just not as much vertical. Some people from my ski team go to Mont Blanc every year and get a much better deal than Tremblant, and love it. I think most of the locals frequent these smaller hills as being less crowded and less expensive alternatives, with just as good terrain.
Don't get me wrong - I had a very good time at Tremblant and we will probably go back. Every now and then I like to go somewhere where there is the 'complete package' and I can park the car and just relax. But if you're looking for a deal, I think you'll need to look elsewhere.
If you like quirky there is one other place to consider - Mont Alta. It is very small, but is supposed to be like Mad River Glen Jr. Very old lifts, very little grooming, but some pretty tough (but short) runs. I have never skied there, but want to. I read about it in our local newspaper a number of years ago, but haven't made it up there yet.
SAB
The down side is that because many people who ski there are not day-trippers, it tends to be crowded. We went on the Feb. holiday week last year, hoping that being in Canada, we'd miss the crowds. Mistake! Actually, the majority of people there that week were from the US. If we made it to the lifts at 9:00, we'd have a 5-10 minute wait - by 10:00 you'd be pushing a 45 minute wait. By the end of the week we had learned the patterns of where to go and where to avoid at the various times of day, so it wasn't too bad. And - I must say - the people are much ruder in the lift lines than the places I am used to, skiing over your skis and crowding you. I guess this is the European experience as well.
The other down side is that it is pretty expensive - at least compared to the other ski areas in the Laurentians. Here I am not talking just lift tickets - but the whole package. While it is a bigger mountain than other mountains in the area, there are some others a little closer to Montreal that have some very good terrain, just not as much vertical. Some people from my ski team go to Mont Blanc every year and get a much better deal than Tremblant, and love it. I think most of the locals frequent these smaller hills as being less crowded and less expensive alternatives, with just as good terrain.
Don't get me wrong - I had a very good time at Tremblant and we will probably go back. Every now and then I like to go somewhere where there is the 'complete package' and I can park the car and just relax. But if you're looking for a deal, I think you'll need to look elsewhere.
If you like quirky there is one other place to consider - Mont Alta. It is very small, but is supposed to be like Mad River Glen Jr. Very old lifts, very little grooming, but some pretty tough (but short) runs. I have never skied there, but want to. I read about it in our local newspaper a number of years ago, but haven't made it up there yet.
SAB
S
smallberries
Guest
The next best thing to Tremblant might be Val Saint Come. Here's a topo:
http://www.valsaintcome.com/commun/carte sentiers.4.pdf
It's Wachusett sized.
http://www.valsaintcome.com/commun/carte sentiers.4.pdf
It's Wachusett sized.
rjc1976
New member
How far is Tremblant from Montreal? I was under the impression it was about 2 hours away.
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