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Photo credit: Francis Gagnon
The city of Baie-Saint-Paul abounds with things to do in the summer. To fully enjoy the breath of fresh air Baie-Saint-Paul and the Charlevoix region have to offer, we obviously couldn’t leave out the outdoor activities from our list of the best things to do in the summer in Baie-Saint-Paul.
Summertime in Baie-Saint-Paul is also the festival season. Le Festif is therefore a must on our list, but we have also taken care to include the many cultural activities that take place throughout the city.
Before revealing everything, here’s our list of the 11 best things to do in the summer in Baie-Saint-Paul.
Book a cottage for rent in Baie-Saint-Paul now to enjoy these activities!
Photo credit: Émilie Langevin
The Quai de Baie-Saint-Paul (“Baie-Saint-Paul wharf”) is the perfect place for an outdoor outing in the summer.
Depending on one’s mood, the season and the weather, this stroll can turn into an opportunity for sunbathing, a picnic outing or a moment with friends on the grass. The more daring can try a walk in the river at low tide or a swim in the St. Lawrence, thrills guaranteed.
The Baie-Saint-Paul wharf is extended to the west by a sandy beach from which you can reach the Boisé du Quai trail. The latter runs along the shore of the St. Lawrence, and as you trail ahead, you will cross a mixed wooded area and a pine forest. If you wish to go on, to the west, you will find an observation tower with an ample view of the swamp, an ideal place for discovering the wildlife of this unique ecosystem.
Photo credit: Émilie Langevin
Photo credit: Le Festif de Baie-Saint-Paul
The Festif de Baie-Saint-Paul is a musical event that shines on the Charlevoix region and beyond Quebec, with more than 42,000 festivalgoers in a festive city of 7,000 inhabitants. Born on a festive evening in 2009, the first edition of the festival came to be in 2010.
Led by a group of youth from the region, the music festival presents musical groups in a bursting line-up. The 2019 edition of the festival featured 95 artists, who performed in 135 concerts spread over 32 different stages, spread out over four festival days.
Photo credit: Le Festif de Baie-Saint-Paul
Today, Le Festif has ambitions that go beyond the music community through an eco-responsible and social commitment that emphasizes collaboration with local businesses and communities.
This has notably led to the birth of various initiatives, such as Le Festif à l'école, aimed at introducing young people to music, as well as the Cabaret Festif, a musical competition held every winter with the aim of discovering new talents and to help them make a breakthrough.
The Festif is therefore a weekend event that makes the city vibrate year round. This is an event in Baie-Saint-Paul not to be missed!
Photo credit: La Route des Saveurs
La Route des Saveurs, or the Flavour Trail, is an innovative tourist circuit in Quebec. This circuit was created in 1996 with the main objective of introducing gourmet products from the Charlevoix region. The circuit brings together about fifty participants in total, among which are local artisans, restaurateurs and producers. Quality and flavours await you.
Baie-Saint-Paul is located at one end of the Flavour Trail, and 20 renowned professionals from the city are members. At the Omerto, savour a delicious tomato wine or the bitterness of a Dominus Vobiscum, a beer from the Microbrasserie Charlevoix, a local microbrewery. Enjoy the Fleurmier, a soft cheese with a flowery rind from Laiterie Charlevoix, or the Migneron, a firm cheese from the Maison d’affinage Maurice Dufour.
If your time is limited, be aware that several restaurateurs in the city complete this agritourism route, and they make sure to include all the regional flavours in their delicious culinary offerings. Who wouldn’t like to include enjoying good restaurants in their activities to do in Baie-Saint-Paul?
The Le Loup de Baie-Saint-Paul golf course is the last born of the golf courses established in the Charlevoix region. The only golf course in Baie-Saint-Paul, it opened its doors in the summer of 1972. It offers an 18-hole course with a par of 72.
Le Loup offers individual or group golf training services, as well as equipment and golf cart rentals. In order to encourage the practice of this sport in the Charlevoix region, the Le Loup golf course also organizes numerous tournaments to celebrate family or corporate events.
Photo credit: Caroline Perron
Rue Saint-Jean-Baptiste is the main street of Baie-Saint-Paul. Behind its colourful facades, it houses the majority of the village’s art galleries. The location of these stems from the appeal of Baie-Saint-Paul for renowned Canadian painters who settled there several years ago.
It was after the establishment of these painters in the region that the first art galleries appeared in the 1970s on rue Saint-Jean-Baptiste. The street underwent a restoration programme to restore its historic buildings during the 1980s and later in the early 2000s.
A street that is definitely not to be missed, rue Saint-Jean Baptiste is not only a place in Baie-Saint-Paul to go visit in the summer for its art galleries, but also for all the other shops that one can find there!
The Jardin de François (“Francis’ Garden”) is a cultural representation of the religious heritage of the congregation of the Petites Franciscaines de Marie (“the Little Franciscans of Mary”), having been bequeathed to the city of Baie-Saint-Paul in 2015. Its name, François, is in homage to Saint Francis of Assisi, a Catholic cleric who advocated humility and respect for nature, which earned him the title of Patron of Environmentalists.
Today, the place is a haven of peace that is conducive to resting and relaxation, where fruit trees share space with grassy lawns and a pond.
The Jardin de François is part of the larger whole of Maison-Mère, a sustainable economic development project.
Photo credit: Francis Gagnon
The Route du Fleuve tourist circuit runs its 78 kilometre-long route between La Malbaie and Baie-Saint-Paul, along Highway 362. This is an opportunity to discover the maritime aspect of the Charlevoix region, along the St. Lawrence.
Along this tourist route, discover several beautiful villages of Charlevoix located between the bordering cities of Les Éboulements, Saint-Joseph-de-la-Rive, and Saint-Irénée.
This scenic route allows you to discover a marine-influenced combination; the St. Lawrence River is never far away, and there are beautiful landscapes near the mountains. Travellers on the lookout will never fail to enjoy the local products, not to mention the outdoor activities of each of the villages they cross paths with on their journey.
Cape-aux-Corbeaux is a natural rocky cape that has a height of more than 300 metres, located in the eastern part of the village of Baie-Saint-Paul and overlooking the Saint Lawrence River.
With its sister capes of Cap de la Baie (in the western part of the village) and Cape Labranche (on l’Isle-aux-Coudres), they once comprised a network of capes used by ships as navigational aids and by the mainlanders as a means of monitoring the maritime traffic.
Today, Cap-aux-Corbeaux offers an exceptional panoramic view of the village and the river. This natural rocky lookout point features several accommodations available on our site that allow our guests to enjoy breakfast with a privileged vantage point—an assured favourite!
Photo credit: Katabatik
The Charlevoix region offers an interesting sample comprised of wilderness, natural beauty and pure, fresh air away from the city. The environment is therefore ideal for practising sea or river kayaking in an abundance of peace and quiet.
Katabatik offers a full range of kayaking-related services in its centre located in Baie-Saint-Paul. From training for beginners to multi-day tours and expeditions for the most experienced, Katabatik will accompany you in the fulfilment of your most ambitious activities.
Photo credit: Laiterie Charlevoix
The Économusée du Fromage was opened by the dairy Laiterie Charlevoix in Baie-Saint-Paul to allow visitors to observe, understand and be able to immerse themselves in the many different stages of the cheese-making process.
The museum aspect consists of windows that are open to the various processes of cheese making and blend into the factory walls.
Permanent or temporary exhibitions allow the focus to be on different aspects of milk work. On a permanent basis, antique tools used in the making of cheese are on display. The La goutte de lait (“the drop of milk”) exhibition traces the history of dairies in Quebec in the 20th century.
The dairy also produces about ten cheeses, some of which are unique. Notably, the 1608, a cow’s milk cheese made from Canadian-bred cows. This breed of cows was imported from France from 1608 to 1670, and today only a few hundred remain in the territory of Quebec.
Photo credit: Caroline Perron
The tourist train of Charlevoix connects La Malbaie to Quebec City and, of course, passes through Baie-Saint-Paul. On this 125-km route, there are two old DB-Baureihe 628.1 railcars from Deutsche Bahn, which provide three to four daily journeys in each direction.
The trajectory of the railway to La Malbaie, along the St. Lawrence River, keeps travellers in an atmosphere between land and sea. If you are lucky and travel at the right time of year, this memorable voyage will allow you to photograph a sunset on the St. Lawrence.
A gourmet meal service is offered aboard the train for those who want to experience this experience with all their senses.
Check out our other articles on the best things to do in the Charlevoix region!