Discover Matane

Matane tells its maritime story along the river and offers different ways to experience the town: historic buildings, green spaces and excursions out to sea. When planning your trip, you can choose between local history, activities by the water and maritime experiences—depending on what you’d like to discover together.

Stories and Buildings in Matane

The Promenade des Capitaines runs through the town centre along the Matane River. Through stories about the best-known captains, it brings the town’s maritime heritage to life. If you’re interested in the history of seafaring, you can explore the route with its focus on real-life stories. The route can be extended to the Parc des Îles, then continues onto the William-Price cycling path.

Another way to get to know Matane is the Circuit patrimonial. The 3.15 km walking tour includes 17 points of interest and is best explored on foot. Its first section follows Avenue Saint-Jérôme, where you can see the oldest buildings. In the town centre, the Circuit showcases history and architecture, as well as local features and anecdotes. If you enjoy looking more closely, the route is a way to take in different aspects of the town’s heritage on a single tour.

Among the historic buildings is the Presbytère de Saint-Jérôme-de-Matane. The presbytery was built in 1887 and extended around 1916; its architecture shows Second Empire influences. The Phare-Musée maritime de Matane is also part of the area’s maritime history: the lighthouse dates from 1907. The keeper’s house at the Phare de Matane contains the tourist information office and the maritime museum Lire la mer. These offer different points of interest—from the architecture of a presbytery to a lighthouse and a museum about the sea.

Green Spaces and Riverside Trails

The Parc des Îles is a green space in the centre of Matane that is open year-round and directly connected to the salmon river. Circonflexe operates a rental station in the park where anyone can borrow equipment. The William-Price cycling path runs for 1.8 km along the Matane River. If you’re planning a bike ride, this gives you a specific distance to work with; the path is also part of the route that continues from the Promenade des Capitaines.

The Sentiers du Bon-Pasteur offer another way to enjoy the outdoors. The forest trail is about 4 km long, open year-round, and connects Parc Jane-McCallum with Parc Mélanie-Joncas. For your stay, you can choose between a cycling route by the river and a longer forest trail. The Circuit patrimonial, in turn, focuses on points of interest and local history. These differences can help you plan outings to suit your travel group’s interests without having to experience everything in the same way.

Maritime Excursions and Regional Products

Maritime adventures to observe marine mammals, including whales and seals, are available from Matane. Fishing trips for striped bass, mackerel, cod and groundfish are also offered. These excursions appeal to different interests: marine mammal watching focuses on the animals, while the fishing trips target the fish species listed above. If you’d like to focus your trip more on maritime experiences, these activities can add another dimension to Matane alongside its inland stories and buildings.

The Halte maritime et gourmande offers views of the coastal landscape and a welcoming place to enjoy regional products. It adds a culinary element to the historic and active experiences. If you’re looking for a vacation rental in Matane, you can tailor your trip to your preferred focus: local history, riverside trails, maritime excursions or regional products.

Discover More Places

If you’d like to explore other places in addition to Matane, you’ll also find Sainte-Paule, Baie-Des-Sables, Saint-Ulric, Sainte-Félicité and Les Méchins.

For the broader travel overview: Matane.