Old Tremblant

The historic Hotel Mont Tremblant

If there's an "old Tremblant", then logic dictates that there must be a "new Tremblant".  And therefore, the old Tremblant was just Mont Tremblant before the new Tremblant made it Old Tremblant.  Got it?  Whether you call it Old Tremblant, or Vieux Tremblant, or The Village, this is a cute little destination well worth checking out.

Old Tremblant isn't hard to find.  Just look for Chemin du Village, a crescent-shaped road accessible from either of the big roundabouts on Montee Ryan.  The road is about 5 or 6 km long and the Old Village is right in the middle, on the shore of Lac Mercier and just a  few minutes' drive from the ski hill.  It used to be the main ski town, until the early nineties when Intrawest built the pedestrian village at the base of the ski mountain.  Since then, the Old Village has waned, but there's still lots to see.  These are our favourites:

• Lac Mercier.  In the summer, this is a great place to swim.  There is an entrance fee...about six bucks I think.  But never too crowded, family friendly, and the water is clean and warm.  And it's close to the pub (see next bullet).
• Au Coin.  This is the only traditional pub in the Mont Tremblant area.  Au Coin is situated in the street level of the historic Hotel Mont Tremblant, which reopened in 2011 after a brief closure.  See our full write up on Au Coin for more details.
• Farmers' Market.  Every Saturday in the summer, there's an amazing farmers' market in the parking lot behind the library.  Fresh produce, honey, fruit wines, artists, and so much more by artisans from across the Laurentians.
• Place de la Gare.  Formerly the train station from the days of the Petit Train du Nord, the building now houses an art gallery where local artists work and display their paintings and sculptures.
• Milly's. We haven't been here for dinner, but we've been a few times for lunch and a beer. They have a beautiful patio in the summer, and good people watching as they're situated up on a hill.
• Ital Delli.  See our full writeup on this Italian food gem.

Sidewalk art exhibit at Place de la Gare

What makes things confusing is that there is a small collection of old buildings in the slopeside ski village, which has been dubbed "Vieux Tremblant" (Old Tremblant). While these buildings are indeed old, and they are indeed situated within Tremblant, it's a misnomer.  If you want the original, historic town where the loggers lived and the first ski tourists lodged, you want the Old Tremblant I'm describing above.  We'll add to this list as we experience more of Old Tremblant. In the meantime, do consider this quaint historic village if you're in the area!