Mont-Sainte-Anne

I really loved our trip to MSA and can’t wait to return. I am probably best categorized as an advanced-​beginner snowboarder so I really appreciate the easy to mid level blues and MSA had plenty to offer. Your fellow riders at MSA are also friendly and TRULY courteous (not as much of the skier vs. snowboarder mentality, which is nice because I’m not a rip and roar down the mountain kind of person). I love that MSA grooms the mountain often and still DREAM of the night my bf and I were able to carve our own paths down the mountain in the freshly groomed snow.
We stayed at the hebergements and really enjoyed the room as well. It was simple but clean and the little kitchen made it so that we didn’t have to worry about what to do for dinner every night. The focus could be more on being on the mountain.

Large mountain and good conditions. The layout is a bit confusing and you can end up walking a lot (especially if you’re on a snowboard) but we had a great time here.
The bar scene was meh, but who cares? They have a sugar shack, which you should totally check out.
Would return.

Ouvert depuis 1966, le MSA (Mont Ste-​Anne) est l’une des stations de ski mythiques du Québec. Bien que peu d’amélioration aient été apportées au cours des dernières années, la montagne reste reconnue pour la qualité de son enneigement et la longueur de son dénivelé. 70 pistes sont disponibles avec une grande variété de niveau de difficulté. Non, le MSA n’est pas les Alpes françaises ni les Rocheuses de l’ouest canadien, mais il s’agit de l’une des plus belle montagnes skiable du nord-​est de l’Amérique. Sur les pentes, j’ai souvent rencontré des skieurs américains qui venaient y skier par manqué de neige chez eux. L’enneigement du versant nord est souvent exceptionnel.
Les points forts: Un plus pour la rapidité avec laquelle les skieurs peuvent prendre les remontés mécaniques. De toutes les stations où j’ai skié au Québec et en Nouvelle-​Angleterre, il s’agit de celle où l’attente est la moins longue. En autre, l’attente aux gondoles dépassé rarement les 5 minutes. Un fait rare dans la belle province. De plus, la station se trouve assez proche de la ville de Québec, donc il y est possible d’y trouver une chambre d’hôtel (pour les montréalais comme moi) à moins de 30 minutes de voiture de la station. Sinon, plusieurs petits hôtels et motels sont disponibles plus près, mais la qualité de l’hébergement est moindre. À mon grand étonnement, MSA n’est pas une station surpeuplée à l’image de Bromont en Montérégie ou de ou de Saint-​Sauveur dans les Laurentides. On peut donc dévaler les pentes sans se piler sur les skis.
Les points faibles: La restauration aux pieds des pentes est lamentable. Cher, très cher même, pour une diversité à peu près nulle. Attendez-​vous à manger de la poutine et des hot-​dogs. Un effort pourrait être fait par les propriétaires pour rehausser la qualité. D’autres stations tel que Jeak-​Peak et Tremblant l’on fait avec succès. De plus, la clientèle est surtout composée de retraités et de familles. Les ski-​bums se sentiront un peu seuls, surtout si vous venez en semaine. L’après-ski est terriblement ennuyant au MSA. Pour tout dire, il n’y a absolument rien à foutre ici une fois les pistes fermées.
Finalement…
Je recommande si: vous désirez une belle grande montagne enneigée près de Québec, facile d’accès et peu d’attente aux remontés mécaniques. Parfait si vous aimez l’ambiance familiale.
Je né recommande pas si: vous aimez l’après-ski. Si vous êtes un ski-​bums et que vous cherchez l’effet d’isolement. Le MSA offre peu de possibilité de ski hors-​piste. De plus, la proximité de la ville de Beaupré (5 minutes de voitures) et d’un grand complexe de condos (2 minutes) gâchent l’impression de se retrouver en nature. Finalement, je né recommande pas si vous désirez un certain standard en matière de restauration à la sortie des pistes.

This is probably the least memorable mountain (during my epic ski road trip), still I’d love to live beside Mont-​Sainte-​Anne. What a beautiful mountain!
MOST AWESOME: big mountain! All levels welcome. Very friendly crowd, skilled (and serious) skiers come here. Beautiful view.
TERRIBLE: nothing special, ordinary. But I definitely prefer Sainte-​Anne over Mont Tremblant.
============The hills:
Blue runs were ACTUALLY steep. Double-​blacks? THEY’RE LIKE STRAIGHT DOWN. In comparison to what I’m used to in Ontario, the runs at Mont Sainte Anne were challenging and tons of fun. I could actually/​finally push myself here.
============People watching was fun:
We visited on a Sunday and Monday, late March. On Sunday, it wasn’t crowded at all (surprisingly). On that Monday, a lot of senior people had field trips here.
And you know what???
Quebec people take skiing very seriously!
Children at 4 (look at those little boots!), ladies at 80, mother of 2 boys (age 6 and 9), spoiled little girls («daddy i don’t want to carry this!!» *throws skis to the floor*)… all are GREAT skiers. By great skiers, I mean they’re tackling moguls, they control their speed well, and they look like experts (with their fancy equipment). Some of these children (10 and under) ski better than me! I wish my parents were ski experts too so I could have started younger!
(again, I’m from Ontario. Most are young, snowboarders, and party-​goers.)
============Service:
Staff at the gondola are very helpful. I almost destroyed their gondola because my ski was stuck (sorry I’m short). Imagine the cost of that thing.
They were probably mad but they didn’t show it.
The ski patrol staff are also very friendly.
============Performance equipment for rental and shopping:
There are two shops here for rentals. One at the foot of the mountain (Mont Sainte Anne’s shop) and a privately owned one behind it (Ski Michel).
I rented mine from Ski Michel (they also have a rental shop at Massif Charlevoix) because I bought my gloves here too. Their actual store (for buying stuff) is just 10 minutes (drive) west on Boul Sainte-​Anne, with very friendly staff.
A lot of ski shops around this area (10 – 15 minutes drive away). Don’t limit yourself to the shop at the foot of the mountain! Drive around and explore! Unfortunately most close at 4−5pm.
============Cafeteria, Town, and Nightlife:
There are a few nice (expensive) restaurants, which I was not interested in (after paying $ 75 per ticket per day, does it look like I want to pay $ 80 for dinner?).
Nightlife, it’s terrible. There’s nothing to do when the day ends. People just drive home.
Bars and pubs are driving distances away. Our favourite is the Microbrasserie Des Beaux Pres.
============SUMMARY:
RECOMMEND: I’d take lessons on this mountain if I lived in Quebec!!! You’ll always be able to challenge yourself here. Variety of runs. I also loved that it’s not busy. Gondola line-​ups went by very fast and smoothly. Also it’s the most comfortable Gondola ever (and new!!).
DO NOT RECOMMEND: If you’re looking for a more unique mountain, visit Le Massif Charlevoix and Massif Du Sud instead.

This is a nice ski mountain.
Plenty of trails for all levels. I skied here over the weekend and it was pretty icy. I guess this isn’t typical, we heard it rained the whole day before we got here and I also heard it’s a low snow year. Due to the weather about 60−70% of the trails were open.
The view from the top is beautiful. The lift lines weren’t bad at all.
I also liked that this place didn’t seem to be too commercial. If you stay at the mountain there a couple places to eat. The only one I tried was La Brez for dinner and it was great. If you drive down the street about 5 – 10 minutes, you’ll run into a IGA and gas stations where you can buy some snacks for your ski trip.
I’d like to come back here and ski when the conditions are a little better, but overall a good experience.