The new year is a time for resolutions for the year ahead… but also credit card bills from the holiday season behind. We have put together a list of just perfectly affordable activities everyone will enjoy, to have fun while giving your wallet a break.
Outdoor activities at St-Bernard Regional Park
After indulging in tasty dishes and treats over the holiday season, it’s time to pull on the snowsuit and get back out there! Head to St-Bernard Regional Park for a whole range of exciting things to do that won’t break the bank.
Among the park’s unique activities are large snow tubing runs with a mechanical lift—an especially fun way to play in the snow for anyone young or young at heart!
Also new at the park this winter are a number of kicksleds for getting the most out of the trails. These sleds, popular in Scandinavian countries for over a century, offer more stability than cross-country skiing. Want to try it out with the family? Your kid can also enjoy the outdoor experience with you from the kicksled’s front seat. And if you’ve got energy to burn, you can turn this sport into a cardio workout if you keep up a swift pace.
For just perfect sledding, choose hard, compacted snow on the park’s trails.
Other on-site activities: hiking, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, skating
Entry fee: $8–$10 Free entry for kids 5 and under
Equipment rental: $5–$10
Other outdoor activity ideas
St-Bernard Regional Park isn’t the only regional destination for winter activities. Whether you feel like just taking a walk on the trails, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing or fatbiking, there’s no lack of fun options in Montérégie’s parks.
Check out our list of parks to help plan your next outdoor adventure:
- Parc régional des Grèves, Sorel-Tracy
- Activities: hiking, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, skating, snow tubing
- Entry fee: FREE
- Equipment rental: $5–$20 *Family discounts available
- Parc national du Mont-Saint-Bruno, Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville
- Activities: hiking, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, snow tubing, fatbiking, Skivel
- Entry fee: $9.25 for adults Free for youths 17 and under
- Equipment rental: Free–$58 (*some for a full day rental, some free for kids)
- RécréoParc, Sainte-Catherine
- Activities: hiking, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing
- Entry fee: FREE
- Equipment rental: none
- Les Sentiers de L’escapade, Rigaud
- Activities: hiking, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, fatbiking
- Entry fee: FREE
- Equipment rental: $7–$14
- Île Saint-Bernard, Châteauguay
- Activities: hiking
- Entry fee: $5–$6.78
- Equipment rental: none
- Centre écologique Fernand-Séguin, Châteauguay
- Activities: hiking, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, sledding hill
- Entry fee: FREE
- Equipment rental: $2.61–$21.74
- All winter, kids 12 and under can use full cross-country skiing equipment for free.
- Parc national des Îles-de-Boucherville, Boucherville
- Activities: hiking, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, fatbiking, kicksledding, Skivel
- Entry fee: $9.25 for adults Free for youths 17 and under
- Equipment rental: Free–$58 (*some for a full day rental, some free for kids)
- Parc Les Salines, Saint-Hyacinthe
- Activities: hiking, cross-country skiing, kicksledding, skating, snow tubing
- Entry fee: FREE
- Equipment rental: $6–$10
- Les Vergers Ivanhoë Faille, Franklin
- Activities: hiking, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing
- Entry fee: $7–$13
- Equipment rental: none
- CIME Haut-Richelieu, Mont-Saint-Grégoire
- Activities: hiking, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing
- Entry fee: Free–$5.25 (free for kids 4 and under)
- Equipment rental: $8.50–$10.50
Free educational tour of the Beauharnois generating station
Out of ideas on educational activities to entertain your curious kids? Why not go on a guided tour of the Beauharnois generating station?
Designated a national historical monument, it’s one of the biggest generating stations in the world. Your kids (and you ) will be impressed by this massive structure that stretches the length of three Eiffel Towers! Built in 1932, the station also features unique 1920s-style Art Deco architecture.
During the tour, your budding scientists will learn about the station’s three construction phases, see its 38 groups of generating units spread over a kilometre and discover its heritage. Before you leave, make sure to check out the interpretation centre for its exhibition of historical objects and archival photos.
There’s no reasons to miss out as tours are free
Details
Free guided tours: Every Saturday until April 26, 2020
Duration: 90 minutes
Hours: 9h a.m to 4h p.m.
Reservation required, places limited
*Flat, closed shoes are required.
Other perfectly affordable cultural outings
Aside from the Beauharnois generating station, Montérégie is full of budget-friendly museums and interpretation centres that will inspire your kids. More ideas include:
- Learn about the many aspects of electricity at the Électrium in Saint-Julie
- Free
- Plunge into the world of different Indigenous cultures in Québec and Canada at La Maison amérindienne in Mont-Saint-Hilaire
- Entry fee: Free–$8 (free for kids 5 and under)
- Discover the artifacts and iconic objects of Roussillon at the Musée d’archéologie de Roussillon in La Prairie
- Entry fee: Free–$7.50 (Free for kids 4 and under. Family discounts available.)
- Learn more about the region’s history and heritage at the Musée régional de Vaudreuil-Soulanges, Musée de société des Deux-Rives (MUSO) or the Musée du Haut-Richelieu
- Entry fee varies: Free–$10 (free for certain age groups)
