1. Baie-Saint-Paul: (Charlevoix, north shore of the St. Lawrence, about 7,300 people, best known as an artists' town of galleries and farm-to-table restaurants, the birthplace of Cirque du Soleil and the gateway to Le Massif ski area)
2. Tadoussac: (Côte-Nord, where the Saguenay Fjord meets the St. Lawrence, about 800 people, best known for whale watching, the oldest wooden church in North America and the historic Hôtel Tadoussac)
3. Kamouraska: (Bas-Saint-Laurent, south shore, about 600 people, best known for its tidal flats, famous sunsets, smoked eel and one of the best preserved village streets on the river)
4. Percé: (Gaspé Peninsula, about 3,100 people, best known for the giant limestone arch of Percé Rock, boat trips to Bonaventure Island's gannet colony and its seaside restaurants and galleries)
5. Saint-Jean-Port-Joli: (Chaudière-Appalaches, south shore, about 3,300 people, best known as the woodcarving capital of Quebec, with workshops, museums and riverside walks)
6. Sutton: (Eastern Townships, near the Vermont border, about 4,100 people, best known for Mont Sutton, hiking, microbreweries, cideries and a walkable main street of cafes and shops)
7. North Hatley: (Eastern Townships, on Lake Massawippi, about 700 people, best known for its lakeside setting, historic inns, summer theatre and an English-speaking heritage dating back to the 1800s)
8. Mont-Tremblant: (Laurentians, about 11,800 people in the municipality, best known for its ski resort, the colorful pedestrian village at the base of the mountain and the nearby Parc national du Mont-Tremblant)
9. Montmagny: (Chaudière-Appalaches, south shore, about 11,200 people, best known for the spring and fall snow goose migration, its accordion festival and as the departure point for Grosse Île)
10. Carleton-sur-Mer: (Gaspésie, on the Baie des Chaleurs, about 4,000 people, best known for its Acadian heritage, a long sandy spit and bird sanctuary, warm beaches and the views from Mont Saint-Joseph)

Spotlight on Four of Quebec's Most Popular Small Towns to Explore

Baie-Saint-Paul

Best known for its art galleries, its creative spirit and its position in the heart of the Charlevoix Biosphere Reserve.

Natural Setting

Baie-Saint-Paul sits at the mouth of the Gouffre River, where steep, forested hills open onto a wide bay on the north shore of the St. Lawrence. The town lies inside a huge ring-shaped landscape of hills that was shaped by a meteorite impact roughly 450 million years ago, and the curved valleys and mountains around it give Charlevoix its distinctive look. Farms, orchards and river views line the roads in every direction, and the hills offer some of the best fall colors in the province. Parc national des Grands-Jardins and Parc national des Hautes-Gorges-de-la-Rivière-Malbaie are within easy driving distance.

Historical, Cultural & Economic Importance

French settlers began farming this area in the late 1600s, and the town grew as a farming, shipbuilding and lumber community. In the early 1900s the beauty of the landscape began to attract painters, and Baie-Saint-Paul became one of the best known artists' colonies in the country. Clarence Gagnon painted the area's hills and villages, and members of the Group of Seven also visited. That tradition continues today, with dozens of galleries along Rue Saint-Jean-Baptiste and the Musée d'art contemporain de Baie-Saint-Paul showing contemporary work.

The town is also the birthplace of Cirque du Soleil, which grew out of a troupe of street performers here in 1984 and went on to become one of the most successful entertainment companies in the world. The summer Festival Le Grand Cirque and street entertainers keep that spirit alive. Local restaurants build menus around Charlevoix products such as lamb, artisan cheeses, cider and fresh vegetables, and the region's food trail is a major draw.

Tourism is now the main industry, supported by Le Massif de Charlevoix, a ski mountain with a drop of about 770 meters (2,526 feet) that overlooks the river, and by the cruise ships that stop on the coast. The compact downtown is easy to walk, and the town is a natural base for driving the coast road to La Malbaie and Pointe-au-Pic.

Tadoussac

Best known for whale watching, its historic hotel and its place at the meeting of the Saguenay Fjord and the St. Lawrence.

Natural Setting

Tadoussac sits on a sheltered bay where the dark, cold waters of the Saguenay Fjord pour into the St. Lawrence estuary. The meeting of fresh and salt water, warm and cold currents, creates a rich feeding ground that draws belugas, minke whales, fin whales, humpbacks and even blue whales through the summer. Sand dunes stand behind the village, rocky headlands overlook the water, and forested hills rise on either side of the fjord. A free ferry crosses the Saguenay just east of town, and the fjord and the St. Lawrence are protected as part of the Saguenay-St. Lawrence Marine Park.

Historical, Cultural & Economic Importance

The Innu have gathered here for thousands of years, and Tadoussac became the first French trading post in Canada when merchants set up here in 1600. The fur trade made it an important meeting point for Indigenous peoples and Europeans, and the Chauvin Trading Post, a reconstruction of the original, tells that story. The little Chapelle des Indiens, built in 1747 and the oldest surviving wooden church in North America, still stands on a hillside above the water.

In the 1800s Tadoussac became a fashionable summer resort for wealthy families from Quebec, Montreal and the United States. The white Hôtel Tadoussac, with its bright red roof, opened in 1864 and is still the main landmark of the village. The Marine Mammal Interpretation Centre explains the whales and other animals of the estuary, and the town's small museums, cafes and shops are all within walking distance.

Tourism is the economy here, with whale watching boats, kayak tours, inns and restaurants all operating through the summer. The population is small, but the village fills with visitors in July and August, and it is a major stop on the road along the north shore.

Kamouraska

Best known for its wide tidal flats, glowing sunsets, smoked eel and well-preserved river village.

Natural Setting

Kamouraska lies on the south shore of the St. Lawrence in the Bas-Saint-Laurent, where the river is about 25 kilometers (15 miles) wide and the water turns brackish. At low tide, the flats stretch far from shore, and the islands just offshore, including Île aux Corneilles and the Pilgrim Islands, are reached by sandbars at certain times. The setting sun drops behind the mountains of Charlevoix across the water, and the sunsets here are among the most famous in Quebec. The village is surrounded by fertile fields and low hills, and the name comes from an Algonquian word that is often translated as "where there are rushes at the water's edge."

Historical, Cultural & Economic Importance

The area was granted as a seigneury in 1674 and has been farmed and fished ever since. For centuries local families have caught eels in wooden weirs set on the flats, and smoked eel is a local specialty. The village is home to a large number of old stone houses, a landmark church, a general store and several heritage buildings along Route 132, giving it the feel of an unspoiled 19th-century river town. The novel Kamouraska by Anne Hébert, based on a famous 1839 murder case in the area, brought the village a wider audience, and the book was later made into a film.

Visitors can take in the Musée de Kamouraska, which tells the story of the region, and follow the Route des Navigateurs along the river to nearby towns such as Saint-Germain and Rivière-Ouelle. Local bakeries, cheese makers and restaurants serve regional foods, and a handful of inns and bed-and-breakfasts occupy historic houses. The village is quiet, walkable and very photogenic, and it is often voted among the most beautiful villages in Quebec.

Farming, fishing and tourism sustain the community. A small number of artists and craftspeople also live here, and the village hosts a summer arts festival, drawing visitors from Quebec City, which is about two hours away.

Percé

Best known for Percé Rock, one of the most famous natural landmarks in Canada, and for Bonaventure Island's huge gannet colony.

Natural Setting

Percé sits at the eastern tip of the Gaspé Peninsula, beneath tall limestone cliffs and a hillside of forest. Just offshore, the enormous limestone arch of Percé Rock rises from the sea, about 433 meters (1,420 feet) long and 88 meters (289 feet) high, with a natural opening that gave the town its name, which means "pierced" in French. At low tide, visitors can walk across a sandbar to the base of the rock. Bonaventure Island, a short boat ride away, is home to about 110,000 northern gannets, one of the largest colonies in the world, along with puffins, murres and many other seabirds. Whales, seals and dolphins are common in the surrounding waters.

Historical, Cultural & Economic Importance

Jacques Cartier sailed past in 1534, and French and Basque fishermen used the coast long before any permanent settlement. In the 1700s and 1800s, merchants from the Channel Islands, notably the Robin company from Jersey, controlled much of the Gaspé cod fishery, and the old fishing stages and warehouses are part of the town's heritage. The cod fishery shaped village life for centuries, and fishing, though diminished, still has a place in the local economy.

Since the early 1900s, Percé has been a popular summer destination, with artists, writers and tourists drawn by the scenery. The area around the town is part of the Percé UNESCO Global Geopark, which preserves the fossil-rich cliffs and unusual rock formations of the region. The Parc national de l'Île-Bonaventure-et-du-Rocher-Percé, run by the province, protects the rock and the island.

Today the town is built around its harbour and its main street, which is lined with seafood restaurants, craft shops, inns and galleries, and the whole village can be easily covered on foot. Summer is busy, and many businesses close in winter, so visits are best planned from June through October. It is the most popular stop on the Gaspé Peninsula loop, and it is also the best base for exploring Forillon National Park and the Gaspé coast.