3 Best Hotels in Ste-Adele, Side Trips from Montreal

With a year-round Nordic spa and outdoor hot tub, hammocks hung all around the property, and a waterfall, relaxation is the order of the day at this rustic riverside retreat. Rooms in the fieldstone building have hardwood floors, and although furnishings are spare there's plenty of space for spreading out; all suites have fireplaces and double Jacuzzis. The spa includes a steam room and Finnish sauna. Breakfast and lunch are served in the spacious dining room. The auberge also offers a variety of packages that usually include dinner off-site at one of several local restaurants as well as a spa treatment or outdoor activity such as skiing, snowshoeing, cycling, or canoeing.

At this 1,200-acre resort you can relax in a contemporary room with a valley view or commune with nature in a rustic-style cabin with a fireplace, and there are activities aplenty. In winter, you can ski out from many rooms; in the spring, summer, and fall, you can get your golfing in; and year-round you can indulge your senses at Spa Relaxia—there are even spa packages for kids. The French cuisine at L'Ambroisie restaurant is good, with entrées such as salmon rotolo with balsamic sauce and duck breast with black cherries. On a historical note, this place started out as a log structure with about a dozen rooms, built by Josephine Hartford Bryce, whose grandfather founded the A&P grocery chain.

A longtime favorite with Montrealers, this hotel has seen better days, but it remains a good choice for active types wanting to expend some energy. Built in the 1930s, this rustic spot in the Laurentians, near the lovely Lac Ste-Adèle, offers a good range of year-round activities. These include skiing, ice-climbing, skating on the lake, and snowshoeing with a trapper in winter, and horseback riding, golf packages, and mountain biking in summer. And if you overwork your muscles, massage therapy is available. Rooms and chalets, furnished with Canadian pine, have a rustic appeal and some have a view of the lake. For business guests there are various meeting rooms and conference amenities.