Montreal is gorgeous in autumn, but sometimes you just want to escape the city and chase fall colours somewhere a little quieter.
Luckily, you don’t have to go far to find storybook small towns, rushing waterfalls and winding roads lined with red, orange and golden leaves.
From charming villages that look straight out of a Hallmark movie to scenic hikes with incredible views, there are plenty of places within easy reach of Montreal that make for the perfect fall day trip.
Oka National Park
Why You Need To Go: Set in the Laurentians, just 50 minutes from Montreal, Oka National Park is a majestic nature park that offers plenty of ways to take in the autumn scenery.
Open year-round, the park offers over 28 kilometres of hiking trails varying in levels of difficulty, with trails that wind through forests, hills, and peaceful landscapes.
While it’s beautiful in any season, fall is an especially magical time to visit to see the park’s trees bathed in red and gold.
The Calvaire, with its four oratories and three chapels, is a unique complex of historic buildings in the park, and the top of the Calvaire d’Oka trail provides an exceptional view of Lac des Deux Montagnes and the Adirondacks.
The park also offers opportunities for mountain biking, canoeing and kayaking, and fishing.
SEPAQ website
North Hatley
Why You Need To Go: Located in the Eastern Townships, just 1 hour and 30 minutes from Montreal, North Hatley is a charming village set along a stunning lake.
Founded in 1897, the village is known as one of the most beautiful small towns in Quebec, and it’s easy to see why upon visiting.
Over the years, many of the village’s century-old homes have been transformed into cute inns, B&Bs, and restaurants, making it feel like something right out of a Hallmark movie.
Fall is an especially beautiful time to visit, when the leaves drape the area in shades of red, orange and gold. You can easily explore the village by bike or on foot and find plenty of cute photo ops along the way.
Eastern Townships website
Lac Brome (Knowlton)
Why You Need To Go: Just a little over an hour from Montreal, Knowlton is a small town that’s perfect for visiting on a crisp autumn day.
Located in the Eastern Townships, this picturesque community sits along the shores of Lac Brome.
Knowlton is actually one of seven villages that make up the town of Lac Brome. It has been called one of Quebec’s most beautiful villages, and is home to boutique shopping, antique dealers, quaint restaurants and cafes, country inns and charming B&Bs.
You can spend an afternoon here popping into little shops, browsing antiques and stopping for coffee or a sweet treat.
There are also plenty of places in and around town where you can see fall colours. For a great way to admire the autumn foliage, take the Lac-Brome Path, an 11-kilometre linear trail that connects Knowlton’s historic downtown to the Foster area while following the shores of Brome Lake.
Tourism Lac Brome website
Sutton
Why You Need To Go: Located about an hour and 15 minutes from Montreal in the Eastern Townships, Sutton is a charming mountain village that makes for a spectacular fall day trip.
Here you’ll find the famous Mont Sutton, which offers plenty of opportunities for outdoor adventures, including mountain biking, ziplining, a zipline coaster, and many scenic hiking trails.
The Sentier du Village-Montagne trail links the mountain and the heart of the village to Sutton’s Parc d’Environnement Naturel, which features one of the most beautiful trail networks in Quebec, and is a great place to admire the fall foliage.
After spending some time outdoors, head to the heart of the village to find cafes, restaurants and microbreweries where you can enjoy drinks and bites.
Eastern Townships website
Rigaud
Why You Need To Go: About 50 minutes from Montreal, you’ll find Rigaud, a Montérégie village set on the shores of Lac des Deux-Montagnes and the Ottawa River.
Brimming with natural experiences, including the scenic Mont Rigaud, the area makes for an easy fall day trip spot where you can get outdoor adventure and small-town charm, all in one visit.
Visit one of the town’s sugar shacks, like Sucrerie de la Montagne, a 120-acre maple sugar farm set in the heart of an ancient maple forest that’s open year-round. Here, you can enjoy a menu based on traditional sugaring-off fare with a gourmet twist.
For fall colours, head to Les Sentiers de L’escapade, a 27-kilometre recreational network located in the heart of Mont Rigaud that can be accessed for free year-round.
Then, head into town to discover shops, restaurants, and cafés where you can find something special and grab a bite.
Tourisme Vaudreuil-Soulanges website
Val-David-Val-Morin Regional Park
Why You Need To Go: Set in the Laurentian Mountains, Val-David-Val-Morin Regional Park is a vast nature park offering a network of hiking and mountain biking trails as well as breathtaking vistas, especially during fall.
Located just over an hour from Montreal, the park makes for a great fall day trip from the city where you can get incredible views of autumn foliage.
The park has more than 60 kilometres of marked trails to choose from. For a truly unforgettable experience, don’t miss the spectacular views from the summits of Mount Condor, Mount McMaster and Mount King.
Val-David is also known as the “cradle of climbing in Quebec,” with a variety of climbing trails available.
You can also head to the village, which is known to be a haven for art and culture enthusiasts, to find exhibitions, local markets, artisan workshops and more.
Val-David-Val-Morin Regional Park website
Mont-Tremblant
Why You Need To Go: This charming village has been called Quebec’s “Little Switzerland,” and it’s just an hour and a half from Montreal.
While Mont-Tremblant is known as a winter destination thanks to its famous and iconic ski resort, fall is a beautiful time to visit, when the changing leaves create a colourful backdrop of red, orange and gold that frames the charming village like something out of a postcard.
Visit the pedestrian village to find shopping, restaurants and cafes, all set within a charming area that’s like a little slice of Europe.
For fall colours and incredible natural vistas, head to the nearby Mont-Tremblant National Park.
The park is home to hundreds of lakes, cascading waterfalls and over 100 kilometres of hiking trails with panoramic lookout points, as well as canoeing, kayaking, paddleboarding and fishing opportunities.
Tourism Mont-Tremblant website
Stowe
Why You Need To Go: If you’re after a classic New England fall day, you can find it right across the Canada-U.S. border in Stowe, Vermont.
Located just over 2 hours from Montreal, Stowe offers an idyllic landscape and quaint town, which is only made even more stunning in fall when the leaves change colour.
The beautiful foliage can be seen all around town, but some spots offer particularly great viewing. Smuggler’s Notch State Park offers hiking and climbing as well as a narrow, winding road that cuts through the Green Mountains for a stunning fall drive.
Stowe also offers three beautiful covered bridges, each with its own story and unique design, surrounded by fall colours.
Be sure to spend some time exploring the super charming, walkable downtown, where you’ll find well-preserved historic buildings, boutique shopping, restaurants, cafes, and more.
Stowe tourism website
Before you get going, check out our Responsible Travel Guide so you can be informed, be safe, be smart, and most of all, be respectful on your trip.