Itinerary (Laval - Quebec City - Tadoussac - Saguenay)
For our camping trip to Fjord-du-Saguenay National Park, we wanted to stop at Tadoussac for a few hours. Tadoussac is a small little town in Quebec well known for whale watching so of course, we had to make that stop! Unfortunately, we didn’t see any whales but we had one of the most scenic drives ever.
Our original plan was to leave Laval Friday morning, hang out in Tadoussac for a bit and then head over to our campsite. However, after reviewing the driving time we noticed that the drive from Laval to Tadoussac was going to take almost 6 hours. I know, insane right?!
We would have wasted most of our day driving and would probably be too exhausted to really enjoy it. The new plan was to leave Laval Thursday evening and head over to Quebec City for the night and head over to Tadoussac Friday morning. This would only be a 3-hour drive. This way we were able to take our time, stop at viewpoints, take nice photos and just overall enjoy the road trip rather than rushing.
We spent a few hours in Tadoussac before heading over to our campsite which took about 30 minutes. The check-in process was really simple, and navigation to our campsite was very easy as well. We unloaded the car and headed towards our campsites! Friday was a more relaxing day. While we were setting up our camp and unloading our stuff into the tent the sun was starting to set so we started the fire for dinner.
Saturday morning had some pretty heavy rain. Luckily with the ready-to-camp tent, it was pretty heavy-duty so we didn’t get any rain inside the tent. Once the rain stopped around early afternoon we started to make breakfast and head out for our adventure! We wanted to go for a hike on the west end of the park which would take 2.5-3 hours since it was across the Riviere Saguenay and there was no way to cross, so the only way to get there was to drive all the way around. Halfway driving towards the hiking spot we decided it was too late to go and turned back. It wasn’t too bad because we stumbled upon Sainte-Rose-du-Nord. It’s a small little village close to our campsite. There was a little hang-out spot for the locals with an ice-cream shop, burger joint and the most beautiful site of the Riviere Saguenay. Shortly after, we drove back, started our fire for dinner and watched the gorgeous sunset from the beach right by our campsite.
Tadoussac
The road we took leaving up to the Tadoussac ferry was breathtaking. We took QC-136 and it led us to the ferry (with the car & it was free). Just before getting on the ferry don’t forget to stop at the Pointe Noire Lighthouse. There is a little boardwalk/viewpoint of the St Lawrence River for whale watching. The lighthouse park has some Muskoka chairs and picnic tables too. I would highly recommend making a quick stop here before getting on the ferry.
We were pretty lucky with the ferry. We just had to wait 15 minutes and the lineup wasn’t terrible either, especially since it was a Friday. I’ve been told that it does get quite crowded during the summer weekends though so plan accordingly!
The ferry ride over to Tadoussac was only 10 minutes, once we arrived we went for a little hike overlooking the river. A perfect place for a little picnic on a hot summer day. A meal with a view!
Our campsite in Fjord-du-Saguenay was located in the sector Baie-Sainte-Marguerite. In this sector, there are two campsites; Le Bleuvet and Pointe-du-Moulin. The first campsite Le Bleuvet is an easy to access campsite where you would just park your car in front of your designated camp spot. Pointe-du-Moulin on the other hand is more of an adventure. Once you arrive at Pointe-du-Moulin you will have to park your car, grab a little trolley (complimentary) and take a 2.4km trek to your campsite. The hike consists of some steep down and up hills so it does make it a bit difficult. However, once you arrive at the campsite it is all worth it. There are pros and cons for both campsites.
Campsites in Baie-Sainte-Marguerite
Le Bleuvet
- Both ready-to-camp tent or bring your own tents camping
- Not a long walk, you can just park right in front of your camp spot
- Showers and flushable toilet facility available
Point-du-Moulin
- Both ready-to-camp tent or bring your own tent camping
- 2.4km walk from the parking lot – campsite
- Flushable toilet facility available & outhouse
- Close to Beluga lookout point
- Close to beach with a stunning sunset
We stayed at a ready-to-camp tent in Point-du-Moulin. The beach nearby and the Beluga viewpoint were absolutely beautiful. The 2.4km hike was a bit challenging because of the up and down hills but the complimentary trolley provided to us made it a lot easier to move our stuff.
Our ready-to-camp tent had everything we needed. The website didn’t show us any photos of how the tent looked inside so we overpacked just in case. When we arrived and looked inside the tent we couldn’t believe how much we overpacked. The park provides you with a lock for the tent as well which was nice
Inside the tent
- 4 mattress side by side (you’ll need to still bring your sleeping bag or bed sheets and pillows since it’s only a blank mattress
- Small dining table for 4 guest
- Counter with everything you need to cook
- Cutting board
- Knifes
- Tongs
- Cutlery
- Cups
- Mugs
- Coffee maker
- Kettle
- Space heater
Outside the tent
- Firepit
- Picnic table
- Fridge
- Camper stove
Overall the trip was amazing, I always love going on adventures with my boyfriend. The hike although challenging also added to our experience. Everything exceeded my expectation, from the scenic drive to the beautiful sunset everything was unbelievably wonderful. Don’t forget to pack mosquito burning coil or thermacell and mosquito repellent. The mosquitos out there was no joke!
Check out my first ever Youtube video below. This trip was a great destination for me to learn how to edit and film for a Youtube channel. I had so much fun working on this. Hope you enjoy this as much as I enjoyed making it.
