Mont Tremblant Resort

History and Development

The resort's origins trace back to 1938 when American explorer Joseph Bondurant Ryan, accompanied by inn founder Harry Wheeler and journalist Lowell Thomas, first skied the mountain using skis wrapped in seal skins for traction. Inspired by the potential, Ryan opened the Mont Tremblant Lodge on February 12, 1939, establishing the foundation of the alpine village that remains part of the pedestrian area today. Lowell Thomas played a crucial early role in popularizing the resort through radio broadcasts from the site, and the resort later named a triple ski lift and several trails in his honour. Following Ryan's sudden death in 1950, his wife, Mary Rutherfoord Johnson Ryan, operated the resort until its sale to a group of Quebec entrepreneurs led by André Charron in 1965. This group ran the resort until 1979, when it was sold to La Société des Caisses d'Entraide Économique, which operated it for four years before it entered bankruptcy.

Louis-Pierre Lapointe purchased the resort out of bankruptcy in 1983 and then sold it to the large development firm Intrawest in 1991. Intrawest immediately initiated a major expansion of the pedestrian village with architecture reminiscent of traditional Quebec and built new ski lifts, including a gondola and the Grand Manitou summit lodge. Other changes under Intrawest included the opening of a casino at the base of the Soleil trails in 2009, which is serviced by an 8-passenger gondola from the main resort. Alterra Mountain Company acquired the resort in 2018 and has since overseen significant capital investments, including upgrades to the Manitou summit chalet in summer 2018 and a new high-speed quad chairlift for the 2018 to 2019 winter season. Alterra announced another $42.5 million (CAD) investment for upcoming seasons, focusing on the Soleil Side with plans for a new hotel, beginner area, and lift-serviced terrain on the Timber Summit.

Key milestones in the resort's technological and partnership development include the integration of Radio-Frequency Identification (RFID) for ski gate access in the 2023/24 winter season. The resort, owned by Alterra Mountain Company since 2018, has seen major investments, including improvements to the Manitou Chalet at the mountain's top in summer 2018. For the 2018 to 2019 winter season, a new high-speed quad ski lift replaced the old Lowell Thomas Lift, and the total number of trails is now 102. Alterra has announced a $42.5 million (CAD) investment for upcoming seasons, with new developments on the Soleil Side including a new hotel, beginner area, and lift-serviced terrain on the Timber Summit.

• 2023/24 Winter Season: Integration of Radio-Frequency Identification (RFID) for ski gate access.
• Late 2025: Announcement by Club Med to open a second ski-in, ski-out resort in Canada, Club Med Tremblant.
• Winter 2028: Scheduled opening date for the new Club Med Tremblant resort.
• 2026: Planned opening of a new beginner area and surface lift on the base of the Soleil side.
• 2027 to 2028 Ski Season: Planned construction of a seventh high-speed quad chairlift serving the new Timber Summit.

Skiing and Snowboarding Terrain and Infrastructure

Mont Tremblant's primary winter sports offering is its alpine ski and snowboard terrain, spread across more than 817 acres within the Laurentian Mountains. The terrain is divided into four distinct mountain areas: the North Side (Versant Nord), the South Side (Versant Sud), the Sunny Side (Versant Soleil), and The Edge (Versant Edge), an area of glade skiing located one kilometre north of the main downhill area. Since the 2018 to 2019 season, the resort has featured 102 designated trails, a count that includes the expansion from the Timber development. The trail network is graded to accommodate all skill levels, with 22 trails labelled easy, 34 intermediate, 42 difficult, and 15 expert. The resort also maintains four snow parks and twenty official gladed areas for tree skiing, providing varied challenges for advanced riders.

The lift system is a critical component designed to move skiers efficiently across this varied terrain. The system comprises 14 lifts with a combined uphill capacity of 27,830 skiers per hour. The lift fleet includes three gondola lines: the Tremblant Express top-to-bottom gondola, the Télécabine Casino Express connecting the South base to the Versant Soleil and casino, and the open-air Cabriolet within the pedestrian village. Chairlifts form the backbone of the on-mountain network, with six detachable high-speed quad chairlifts and two fixed-grip chairlifts, supplemented by several surface lifts including magic carpets. A privately owned fixed-grip quad chairlift serves a one-slope housing development on the Soleil side, and a fourth surface lift will open on the base of the Soleil side in 2026 to serve the new beginner area for that side of the mountain.

Future terrain and lift expansions are detailed in Alterra's investment plans. For the 2026 season, the resort will add a new beginner (easy) trail to the base of the Soleil side, serviced by a new surface lift. A more substantial expansion is scheduled for the 2027 season, with eight new trails planned from the top of the Timber Summit. Of these new trails, seven will descend to the Soleil side and one will connect to the North Side. To serve this new terrain, a seventh high-speed quadruple lift with an hourly capacity of 2,400 skiers is set to be constructed for the 2027 to 2028 ski season, increasing the resort's skiable acreage and variety.

Resort Facilities and Pedestrian Village

The heart of the resort is its pedestrian village, a car-free zone at the base of the mountain designed with architecture reminiscent of traditional Quebec. The village provides direct ski-in, ski-out access for many guests and is connected internally by the Cabriolet gondola, which transports visitors above the village from the parking lot to the bottom of the mountain. A ski trail also runs through the village for skiers to access the lower level and transportation, and the village houses a wide array of services including restaurants, bars, and extensive retail shopping for ski and snowboard enthusiasts. The municipal village of Mont-Tremblant is located five kilometres from the resort base, offering additional services and accommodations separate from the resort's core area.

Lodging within the resort area is diverse and includes a wide variety of hotel and condo accommodations situated in the pedestrian village at the foot of the mountain. Additional condo and chalet accommodations located adjacent to the pedestrian village are managed by the resort's rental agency or other private rental agencies, and these feature shuttle bus service for guest convenience. Most condo accommodations are privately owned, with the resort or agencies acting as rental brokers handling maintenance and reservations, and there are also many privately owned chalets of all levels, from budget to luxury, in the immediate area surrounding the resort. Club Med announced in late 2025 it would open a second ski-in, ski-out resort in Canada, Club Med Tremblant, set to open for Winter 2028, adding a new all-inclusive lodging option to the base area.

Mountain facilities include several day lodges offering food services and amenities. The primary summit lodge is Le Grand Manitou, open year-round at the top of the mountain and featuring a cafeteria for guests. On the North Side base, La Fourchette du Diable serves as a winter-only chalet with a cafeteria, rental store, and it is only open for the winter season. A mid-mountain café called Le Refuge du Trappeur is located on the Soleil side, and at the base of the south side there are many different food options in the Pedestrian Village itself. The resort's location within Mont-Tremblant National Park provides a scenic backdrop and direct access to extensive parkland, with the summit of Mont Tremblant reaching an elevation of 875 metres, one of the tallest peaks in the Laurentians.

Year-Round Sporting Activities and Events

Beyond alpine skiing, Mont Tremblant Resort operates an extensive program of year-round activities that leverage its mountainous and lacustrine environment. Most activities are set up on daily schedules and take the form of tours in small groups accessible to families, and they are run by independent operators or specialized guides. Summer activities include golf on two resort courses, tennis, and watersports on Lake Tremblant such as swimming, boating, canoeing trips, waterskiing, wakeboarding, and lake cruises. Other summer activities are all-terrain vehicle tours, cycling, dune buggy tours, fishing tours, helicopter tours, hiking, horseback riding, mountain biking, paintball games, rafting, rock climbing school, spas, via ferrata, white-water rafting, and zip-lines.

Land-based summer adventures are equally varied and include all-terrain vehicle (ATV) tours, dune buggy tours, mountain biking, hiking, horseback riding, and via ferrata routes. Specialized summer activities also feature fishing tours, helicopter tours for aerial sightseeing, a rock climbing school for all levels, paintball games, white-water rafting on local rivers, and zip-lines through the forest canopy. Relaxation options such as resort spas provide a counterpoint to the more strenuous activities, ensuring a balanced experience for visitors. The resort's name, derived from the Algonquin indigenous people who called it the 'trembling mountain,' reflects the long history of human interaction with this active landscape.

Winter brings a different set of pursuits that complement the downhill skiing, and guests can participate in cross-country skiing on a network exceeding 100 kilometres of trails that connect with neighbouring towns, allowing for excursions lasting several days. Other winter activities include snowshoeing, ice skating on maintained rinks, and ice climbing on frozen features within the national park. Guided winter experiences include dogsledding tours, snowmobiling excursions, ice fishing trips on frozen lakes, and traditional sleigh rides through the snow-covered valleys. The resort also continues to offer spa services, via ferrata adapted for winter, paintball, and helicopter tours during the colder months, and it has established itself as a notable host for endurance sports, having hosted Ironman 70.3 Mont-Tremblant events for many years, including the prestigious Ironman 70.3 World Championship in 2014.

Surrounding Region, Connectivity and Notable History

The resort is situated within the larger Mont-Tremblant National Park, a Quebec provincial park in the Laurentian Mountains. The surrounding valleys of the park have small lakes, dense boreal forests, and thousands of vacation cottages. The park features extensive trails for hiking in the summer and cross-country skiing in the winter, with some ski trails connecting to networks in neighboring towns, allowing for multi-day excursions as far south as Blainville, Quebec on the outskirts of Montreal. The region is also known for its world-class golf courses and small rivers suitable for canoeing and swimming.

Cyclists are served by dedicated infrastructure, including mountain bike trails and a special paved multi-use path built on the abandoned right-of-way of the Montreal-Mont Laurier railway. This path, part of Quebec's Route Verte network, allows for road cycling without sharing space with motorized vehicles, and the surrounding valleys and the Devil's River, which is followed by much of the cross-country ski trail network, offer scenic backdrops for these activities. The resort's history is marked by personal stories, including that of founder Joseph Bondurant Ryan, who is buried next to the St. Bernard Chapel he built in 1940-41 at the base of the village, alongside his wife Mary and son Peter Ryan. Peter Ryan was an accomplished champion skier named to the Canadian Olympic team before a 1959 skiing accident led him to auto racing, where he became the first Canadian in Formula One and won the first Canadian Grand Prix at Mosport in 1961 before his death in Paris in 1962 at age 22 as a result of an auto racing accident. In March 2009, actress Natasha Richardson sustained a head injury when she fell while taking a beginner skiing lesson at the resort, and she died two days later in New York City, a tragic event that highlighted safety considerations in the sport.

Ownership Timeline and Key Figures

The resort has seen several changes in ownership and management since its founding. Founder Joseph Bondurant Ryan opened the Mont Tremblant Lodge on February 12, 1939. Following his sudden death in 1950, the resort was operated by his wife Mary Rutherfoord Johnson Ryan until 1965, when it was sold to local Quebec entrepreneurs led by André Charron. They ran the resort until 1979, when they sold it to La Société des Caisses d'Entraide Économique, which operated it for four years until bankruptcy. The resort was bought in 1983 by Louis-Pierre Lapointe, who sold it in 1991 to Intrawest. Intrawest expanded the pedestrian village and built new lifts. Since 2018, the resort has been owned by Alterra Mountain Company.

• 1939 to 1950: Founded and operated by Joseph Bondurant Ryan. Lowell Thomas aids promotion via radio broadcasts.
• 1950 to 1965: Operated by Mary Rutherfoord Johnson Ryan following her husband's death.
• 1965 to 1979: Owned by a group of local Quebec entrepreneurs led by André Charron.
• 1979 to 1983: Owned by La Société des Caisses d'Entraide Économique. Resort enters bankruptcy.
• 1983 to 1991: Owned by Louis-Pierre Lapointe.
• 1991 to 2018: Owned by Intrawest, which expanded the village and added major facilities like the casino (2009).
• 2018-Present: Owned by Alterra Mountain Company, initiating new lifts and a $42.5 million investment plan.

Each ownership era left a distinct mark on the resort's physical layout and market position. The Ryan family established the resort's identity and early infrastructure, including the original lodge and chapel, while the Intrawest period was defined by large-scale village development and modernization of the lift system that increased capacity and guest comfort. The current Alterra era focuses on technological upgrades like RFID access, terrain expansion on the Soleil side and Timber Summit, and attracting new partners like Club Med for the 2028 season. This progression demonstrates the resort's ongoing adaptation to market demands and its sustained position as a leading sports venue in Eastern North America, consistently ranked number one for ski resorts in the region.

Questions about Mont Tremblant Resort

What are the future expansion plans for the resort?

Alterra Mountain Company has announced a $42.5 million CAD investment plan for the resort. Key developments include adding a new beginner trail at the base of the Soleil side in 2026. For the 2027 season, eight new trails are planned from the top of the Timber Summit, with seven descending to the Soleil side and one to the North Side. A new high-speed quad chairlift serving the Timber Summit is also slated for the 2027 to 2028 season.

Who owns Mont Tremblant Resort?

Mont Tremblant Resort is owned by Alterra Mountain Company. Alterra took ownership of the resort in 2018 and has since made major investments, including improvements to the Manitou Chalet and installing a new high speed quad ski lift. Previous owners include Intrawest, which bought the resort in 1991 and expanded the pedestrian village and built new lifts. The resort was originally founded by Joseph Bondurant Ryan, who opened the Mont Tremblant Lodge in 1939. Following his death in 1950, the resort was operated by his wife until 1965 before being sold to a series of other owners prior to Alterra.

How many ski trails does Mont Tremblant have?

Since the 2018 2019 winter season, Mont Tremblant Resort has 102 ski trails. The trails are distributed across four distinct areas: the North Side, South Side, Sunny Side, and The Edge. Of the total, 22 trails are labelled easy, 34 are intermediate, 42 are difficult, and 15 are expert. The resort also features four snow parks and twenty official glades. Future expansions are planned, including a new beginner trail on the Soleil side in 2026 and an additional eight trails from the Timber Summit in 2027.

What summer activities are available at Mont Tremblant?

Summer activities at Mont Tremblant are numerous and take advantage of the surrounding mountains, forests, lakes, and rivers. Available activities include all terrain vehicle tours, boating, canoeing trips, cycling, dune buggy tours, fishing tours, golf, tennis, helicopter tours, hiking, horseback riding, lake cruises, mountain biking, paintball games, rafting, rock climbing school, spas, via ferrata, waterskiing and wakeboarding, white water rafting, and zip lines. The resort also features Lake Tremblant, which is suitable for swimming, and two golf courses. Most activities are run by independent operators on a daily schedule.

What major sporting events has Mont Tremblant hosted?

Mont Tremblant Resort has hosted major triathlon events. It hosts yearly Ironman 70.3 events, which included the prestigious 2014 Ironman 70.3 World Championship. The resort also used to host the full Ironman Triathlon series up until a certain point. These events are part of the resort's year round sporting offerings, which also include a wide range of winter and summer activities for visitors. The resort's facilities and natural setting make it a suitable location for such large scale athletic competitions.

When did Mont Tremblant first open?

Mont Tremblant Resort first opened on February 12, 1939. On that date, founder Joseph Bondurant Ryan opened the Mont Tremblant Lodge, a building which remains part of the pedestrian village today. Ryan was inspired to create the resort after a difficult trek to the summit in 1938. His dream was realized just one year later with the lodge's opening. The resort's early popularity was boosted by American broadcaster Lowell Thomas, who helped promote it through radio shows broadcast from the site.

Sources and further reading

• Mont Tremblant Resort (Wikipedia)
• Mont-Tremblant Activity Centre (tremblantactivities.com)

Checked by the Garbutt Disposal desk. Last updated 2026-10-19.