I’ve been looking into a ski trip for January, to do something different for my 40th birthday. Last few years we’ve taken cruises and it’s time to return to a ski trip.I’ve skied in Quebec 3 times before - at the lost Mont Joye, at Owl’s Head, and at Bromont. Enjoyed all 3. I have never been to the Laurentians before. I wrote an article last month for Skiing History Magazine on Pierre Dumas’ effort to document all of Quebec’s ski areas, past and present, and it got me thinking to take a trip there. It’s less than 4 hours from my house, almost all on highways.I did some research on where is the best place to stay, and settled on St. Sauveur. There are 18 alpine areas within 1 hour! About 10 of them are within 35 minutes and 5 within 10 minutes. It’s a ski area buffet!Yes, most areas are in 350-700′ vertical, but many are quite long, like Mt. Blanc and St. Sauveur, and there are large areas like Tremblant of course.Which brings me to affordability - on Airbnb, we got a condo (just for us, no sharing with the owner) directly across from St. Sauveur (3 min walk to base lodge) for $450 for a 1 bedroom - for 7 nights, 8 days! That’s nearly impossible in the US. There are lots of other great rentals - some large, new resort homes can be found for $130/night for places with 6 bedrooms! Lift tickets, if one is flexible skiing midweek, range from $15 at La Reserve ($12 US) to $20 ($16 US) at Belle Neige on their “Mustache Thursdays” (Mens day). Even at St. Sauveur or Mt. Blanc it is about $40 US for a full day.The hardest part is picking what areas to go to - do I go to ones for history, for price, or to check off distant areas off the bucket list? Too many to choose and I could spend 3 weeks there and not do the same one twice. Tremblant is on the must visit, as is St. Sauveur, and likely Vallee Bleue, Belle Neige, Morin Heights, Olympia, Mont Sauvage (former lost T-bar area), and Habitant (next to St. Sauveur).Have you been to these areas? Any suggestions?
