Mont Tremblant has a reputation as a ski hill, but once the snow melts this colourful pedestrian village in Quebec's Laurentians turns into a full-on summer resort — and July might be its best-kept secret. One family who spent four days there during the Tremblant International Blues Festival came home calling it their best trip yet, and their itinerary reads like a solid blueprint for anyone planning a warm-weather escape.
The festival is the anchor: for five days each July, the car-free village streets fill with free blues, soul and roots rock concerts. Acts in recent lineups have included Bywater Call and JJ Grey & Father "n" Son, and you can watch sets from a restaurant patio without buying a ticket. Staying in the village itself — the family checked into the Homewood Suites by Hilton near Place St-Bernard, which comes with breakfast and on-site parking — means you can walk everywhere and barely touch your car.
Then there's the mountain. The summer luge sends you down a 1.4-km paved track with 24 turns at your own chosen speed, with automatic brakes if a nervous kid lets go — each ticket covers two runs. The panoramic gondola climbs to the 875-metre summit, where a birds of prey show lets kids get close to the raptors and 11 hiking trails range from 1 to 11 km. After dark, Tonga Lumina, a 1.5-km illuminated forest walk created by Montreal's Moment Factory, turns the mountainside into a glowing storybook.
Rainy-day cover is solid too. Studio Créatif lets you paint ceramics and collect them kiln-fired the next day; Mission Liberté runs family-friendly escape rooms, including a magic-themed one called Abracadabra; and Iris Galerie photographs your iris with a macro lens and turns it into art or jewellery — a genuinely one-of-a-kind souvenir. Just outside the village, Domaine Saint-Bernard offers easy guided hikes (bring serious bug spray in summer), while a short drive to Mont-Blanc gets you the Sentier des cimes Laurentides: a raised treetop walk ending in a 40-metre tower with a suspended net, a 53-metre slide, and Là-Haut, an aerial circus performed 20 metres above the forest floor.
Food-wise, the village punches above its weight. La Diable microbrewery and La Pizzateria have both been institutions since 1995; SoCal Kitchen brings Californian plates and proper vegetarian options; Le Shack has a terrace overlooking the main stage; and Place Bonbon is a candy shop kids treat like a treasure hunt. Chez Émile, near the treetop walk, serves local favourites like poutine on the grounds of an old fish farm.
For families, the appeal is obvious: everything is walkable, most activities suit a wide age range, and the mix of free entertainment, adrenaline and crafts means no weather or mood is left uncovered. If you've only ever considered Tremblant in winter, July deserves a spot on the calendar — book accommodation in the village and plan around the blues festival week for maximum atmosphere.