The Overview
Michael Fulton
Melbourne-based skier and snowboarder with 50+ resorts across 5 continents. Specialises in Australian resorts and international resort comparisons.
Mont-Sainte-Anne's summit reaches 800 metres, dropping 625 vertical metres to a base at 175 metres across 71 runs spread over roughly 221 hectares near Quebec City, Quebec. Terrain splits 46 per cent intermediate, 21 per cent beginner, 20 per cent advanced and 13 per cent expert, with average annual snowfall of roughly 3.5 metres. The resort carries Epic Pass affiliation. Nine lifts, including four quad chairs and one gondola, serve the mountain alongside two surface lifts and two t-bars.
Mont-Sainte-Anne holds a genuinely significant place in Eastern Canadian skiing history, having installed Eastern Canada's first gondola at its 1966 opening, and is set to host alpine skiing and snowboard events at the 2027 Canada Winter Games, marking the Games' return to Quebec City for the first time in 60 years. Its considerable proximity to Quebec City and extensive night-skiing programme have built the resort's reputation as the city's primary mountain destination.
Local volunteers cut the first runs on the mountain in 1943, and the resort officially opened in January 1966 with ten trails and four lifts, including that pioneering gondola. The area was simultaneously established as a provincial park, with the ski operation run by the public Société des établissements de plein air du Québec until the Quebec government privatised it in 1994, transferring operations to Club Resorts under a 99-year lease.
Resorts of the Canadian Rockies acquired Mont-Sainte-Anne in 1999, with businessman Murray Edwards taking control of RCR and its broader portfolio in 2001. The Quebec government committed 50 million Canadian dollars toward a 100 million dollar modernisation plan for the resort's infrastructure, announced in December 2024. Adult daily tickets run from 135 to 145 Canadian dollars.
625m
Vertical
71
Runs
547 acres
Skiable
4m
Annual snow
Epic
Pass
The Terrain
71 runs across 547 acres skiable
Mont-Sainte-Anne drops 625 metres from 800 down to 175 metres, east of Quebec City on the Beaupré coast. With 71 runs over about 221 hectares, the grading is 21% beginner, 46% intermediate, 20% advanced and 13% expert, so intermediates are well catered for. A gondola, four quad chairs, two T-bars and two surface lifts cover the mountain, so getting between the faces is straightforward. The three faces give you real choice, and this is one of the larger areas in eastern Canada by terrain, if not by sheer vertical.
La Crête and the steeper pitches higher up give advanced skiers their fix, while Le Chemin du Roy is a long cruiser that runs from summit to base. Forêt Noire and La Forêt Enchantée are the named glades, offering a sheltered tree-skiing option when the wind is up. Night skiing adds a second shift, with a large lit section under the lights. The cold climate and river weather can produce firm, icy mornings, so a sharp edge helps. It suits intermediates and families who want a full day of varied descents, plus confident skiers heading to nearby Le Massif.
Terrain split
71
runs
71 runs across 4 grades
Beginner15 runs · 21%
Intermediate33 runs · 46%
Advanced14 runs · 20%
Expert9 runs · 13%
Time it right
When to visit Mont Sainte Anne
The 2025-26 season at Mont-Sainte-Anne ran from 5 December 2025 to 20 April 2026, a roughly twenty-week season supported by average annual snowfall of around 3.5 metres. Season dates can shift depending on early and late-season weather near Quebec City.
Midwinter, from December through February, typically brings the most consistent conditions to Mont-Sainte-Anne's intermediate-weighted terrain. As an Epic Pass resort through Resorts of the Canadian Rockies' partnership with Vail Resorts, Mont-Sainte-Anne draws considerable visitation from Epic Pass holders alongside Quebec City residents.
Mont-Sainte-Anne's extensive night-skiing programme continues to draw strong weekday evening visitation from the Quebec City area throughout the season. School holiday periods bring substantial family visitation given the resort's approachable, intermediate-weighted terrain.
The resort's infrastructure has been the subject of a Quebec government modernisation plan announced in December 2024, worth noting for anyone tracking the resort's investment trajectory. Since Resorts of the Canadian Rockies' 1999 acquisition, Mont-Sainte-Anne has continued building on more than eight decades of history since local volunteers cut the first runs in 1943. The resort's Olympic and Canada Winter Games heritage, including its confirmed role at the 2027 Games, remains central to its identity.
Season 2026 - 2027
12 Dec 2026
Opens
18 Apr 2027
Closes
127
Days open
4 m
Annual snow
Getting there
Getting to Mont Sainte Anne, and where to stay
Mont-Sainte-Anne sits near Quebec City, Quebec, with a base elevation of 175 metres and a summit at 800 metres across a 625-metre vertical drop over roughly 221 hectares. This setting places the resort within a short drive of Quebec City, one of the more accessible major resorts relative to a significant Canadian city.
Beaupré and the broader Quebec City region offer extensive lodging, dining and services within a manageable drive of the resort, given its considerable proximity to the provincial capital.
Route 138 and Route 360 provide direct access to the resort from Quebec City. Winter driving conditions on these routes can include snow and ice, though the well-travelled roads are regularly maintained given the resort's status as a major regional destination.
Quebec City Jean Lesage International Airport, roughly a 40-minute drive away, is the primary gateway for visitors flying into the region, with Mont-Sainte-Anne's considerable proximity to Quebec City supporting substantial day-trip and weekend visitation.
Where to stay
Search all stays →Hotels and lodges near Mont Sainte Anne, powered by Stay22.
Latest News
From the SnowStash desk
California Ski Resort Opening Dates 2026-27: Mammoth Leads, Tahoe Follows
Mammoth Mountain is first up in California, targeting Friday 13 November after a dusting of September snow. Heavenly and Northstar follow on 20 November, Palisades Tahoe on Wednesday 25 November and Sugar Bowl on 27 November, with Kirkwood on 4 December and June Mountain on 19 December. Plenty of smaller areas have no date yet. A super El Niño favours the Sierra, but a warmer storm track is the catch.
7 Oct 2026
Colorado Ski Resort Opening Dates 2026-27: A-Basin and Keystone Race to Be First
Arapahoe Basin, Keystone and Winter Park are all chasing an October start, though none has a firm date yet. The first dated openers are Breckenridge and Copper on Friday 6 November, then Vail on 13 November, with most of the rest bunched around US Thanksgiving. Hesperus did not open at all last season. A super El Niño offers hope but no guarantee, and forecasters say the southern mountains have the better odds.
5 Oct 2026
Dolomiti Superski 2026-27: Four New Gondolas, New Reservoirs and an €89 Peak Day Pass
Dolomiti Superski is spending around €100 million across its 12 areas before winter. Kronplatz gets a new 10-passenger gondola with a middle station, 3 Zinnen gets Helmissimo, and Val di Fassa swaps a chairlift for a gondola above Col Valvacin. New water-storage basins and upgraded snowmaking follow, and construction has started on the San Martino to Passo Rolle link. A peak adult day pass is €89.
4 Oct 2026
Utah Ski Resort Opening Dates 2026-27: Brian Head First, Eagle Point Out
Brian Head is targeting 6 November, though last year it aimed for 7 November and did not open until the 25th. Park City, Alta and Solitude are pencilled in for 20 November, Snowbird and Snowbasin for 27 November, and Deer Valley for 5 December. Eagle Point will stay closed after the Cottonwood Fire. A super El Niño is forecast, but the big snow is not expected until January.
4 Oct 2026
Hintertux Glacier Opens for 2026-27 With 12 Kilometres of Piste
Hintertux became Austria's second glacier to open for 2026-27 on Friday 2 October, after the Pitztal Glacier. Twelve kilometres of piste are running around the Olperer and Gefrorene Wand, served by one gondola and two drag lifts, with the Betterpark also open. Lifts officially run 8:15 am to 4:30 pm, but skiing stops at 2 pm for now.
4 Oct 2026
Vail Resorts Counts the Cost of a Thin Winter as Pass Sales Slide Further
A historically poor western winter cut Vail Resorts' annual net income from $280 million to $147.5 million and skier visits by 13.4 per cent. Now 2026-27 pass units are down 12 per cent as of 18 September, worse than the 10 per cent flagged in spring. Vail blames the weather and thinks some buyers are simply waiting, and it forecasts a rebound if the snow behaves.
3 Oct 2026
Arizona Snowbowl's $1 Lift Tickets Are Hard to Find, but $9 Days Are Not
Arizona Snowbowl advertised eight $1 lift ticket days this winter. Go looking and only three are showing - 10 March, 1 April and 10 April - so the rest may already have gone. The consolation is a calendar full of $9 days, including all but one day in April. Opening day is 20 November, weather permitting, and opening weekend is $19.
2 Oct 2026
Whitewater Brings Its Short Side Inbounds, With Six New Runs for 2026-27
For years, Whitewater's Short Side was where you ducked a rope and hoped for the best: unmapped, ungroomed and unpatrolled. This winter it's inbounds. Six new runs of glades and fall-line skiing add 190 acres (about 77 hectares), taking the resort past 1,400 acres in total. F2 Logging spent a month in the trees to make it happen, and opening day is pencilled in for 4 December. Bonanza now needs less snow to groom, too.
1 Oct 2026
Mont Sainte Anne Trail Map
Downloadable Mont Sainte Anne trail map
Terrain split
71
runs
Beginner21%
Intermediate46%
Advanced20%
Expert13%
547 acres skiable221 hectares
Resort Stats
Elevation
Base175m
Summit800m
Annual snowfall
4m
Season
2026 - 2027
12 Dec 2026 - 18 Apr 2027
Trail coverage
71 runs
547 acres (221 ha)
About Mont Sainte Anne's trail map
Explore Mont Sainte Anne's full trail map with 71 runs across the mountain, colour-coded by difficulty and shown alongside the terrain split. Use it to plan a day that matches your ability, find lift-served pockets of your favourite grade, and see how the resort links together. Download the piste map (PDF) ↗
More Mont Sainte Anne intelligence: snow report, lift system, webcams, resort overview.