(This Fairmont Tremblant review was updated on Feb. 22, 2023, after a more recent stay with our dog. So, if you’re looking for a dog-friendly Tremblant hotel, you’ve come to the right place.)
There’s just no hiding the fact that my family fell in LURVE with the Fairmont Tremblant the first time we stayed there more than seven years ago. And we have returned time and again to experience the Fairmont Mont-Tremblant’s new dining options, its in-house spa and take advantage of the only true ski-in/out hotel in the pedestrian village.
As Mont-Tremblant hotels go, it always ranks in our top two for location and at the very top for overall amenities and service.
Heading back with Duchess in tow was a very different experience, and it was lovely to get to know the Fairmont Tremblant through another lens.
Need a dog-friendly Tremblant hotel? Well, there are only three of them — so let’s get down to business and talk about the first of your three options.
Let’s be clear, though: while there are deals to be found at the Fairmont Tremblant, it’s usually one of the most premium-priced lodging options in the village. It’s important for us to stay at and review lodging at every price point, because I know you — my readers — all have different travel budgets. And, while stay at luxury properties is almost always a treat (I write “almost” because five-star hotels have more to live up to in my eyes), as the dollar bills to stay at a given property increase, so do my expectations.
But, with several stays under our travel belts, does the Fairmont Tremblant continue to exceed expectations? Let’s find out.
Fairmont Tremblant: a dog-friendly Tremblant hotel
Let’s begin with the hotel overall and get to the doggy stuff in a bit. We simply must start with the Fairmont Mont-Tremblant’s location, because it doesn’t get much better in the Mont-Tremblant village (also often referred to as the pedestrian village).
Check out my Hotel Mont Tremblant guide for all of the best hotels in Mont Tremblant!
Location, location, location
The Fairmont is conveniently situated in the upper village, smack in the midst of all the action that Place St-Bernard will throw at you during your stay. You’re a proverbial stone’s throw from great coffee and pastries at Au Grain de Cafe, but with the Fairmont’s addition of Ricochet Cafe on the lower level of the hotel, you don’t have to leave the property to get your java and croissant fix. The bircher muesli at Ricochet is the bomb if you want a quick but hearty breakfast on your way out to the slopes:
For more food and drink ideas, check out my guide to Mont-Tremblant restaurants in the pedestrian village and Old Tremblant.
But, I digress; we’ll get to the onsite food options soon enough.
Back to location: Centre Aventure, loads of shops and restaurants, the gondola that takes you to the summit, a chair lift, and the better of the two bunny hills are all within a few paces of the Fairmont Tremblant. You can even get your lift tickets at the hotel from a kiosk on the lower level.
Ski valet
There’s an onsite ski valet — a service that also exists in the village, with which I’d become familiar during our first family trip to Tremblant (affectionately, Camp Tremblant) as well as our second visit to the Mont-Tremblant village without the kidlets.
Right between the bunny hill and gondola is a little kiosk known as the Tremblant Ski Valet; for $5 per night per person, you can keep your skis and poles at the base of the mountain so you don’t need to schlep them to and from your hotel. This is a brilliant concept for families with young kids because you’re not just carrying one set of skis, mom and dad, are you? No. You’re carrying everything for your kids, too. (Even though you’ve kindly asked them to carry your poles so you can take their skis for them, but they keep stabbing you in the eye / boob / stomach / privates / whatever, depending on how tall they are, so you carry those too.) The ski valet solves everything.
So, when you’re a guest at the Fairmont Mont-Tremblant, you can save yourself not only the $5 nightly charge but also the brisk walk to the other ski valet because the hotel has its own, free valet service on the lower (terrace) level. Not only will your skis be properly cleaned, dried and stored on the terrace level, just a short walk from the tail end of the Nansen trail, but at the end of your stay, your skis and poles will be packed up for you in your ski bag on check-out day and delivered directly to your vehicle at the hotel’s front doors.
Pro Tip: Ensure you ask the guys at the Ski Valet to remove the stickers they put on your skis, because they’re REALLY HARD to get off and I’ve now had this happen to two pairs of skis. Those suckers do NOT come off easily.
Ski-in & ski-out of this dog-friendly Tremblant hotel
Access to a ski-in and -out spot at the tail end of one of the Tremblant’s best runs (the Nansen Trail) is what makes the Fairmont extra-special among the resort hotels. We really enjoyed the convenience of grabbing our skis each morning from the Ski Valet and suiting up not 20 steps from the hotel entrance, whisking ourselves down the gentle slope toward the chair lift or gondola. It may sound like a little thing, but it’s an enormous advantage — especially with kids in tow.
The pools
There are two heated outdoor pool and two hot tubs (one reserved only for adults) plus a cold-plunge pool on the terrace level of the Fairmont Tremblant, and our kids just love this so much — especially at night after a long day on the slopes.
It’s always a welcome retreat after a few hours of hard work on the hill, soothing tired legs. But a tip I learned from outdoor hot tub veterans during this particular visit: bring a beanie! It is notoriously cold in Tremblant most of the winter, and your ears and will be chilly without one. In subsequent visits, we’ve taken our own advice:
There’s an indoor pool, too, with a hot tub just behind it. My kids like this pool because there are fewer adults who hang out in here and they feel they can be a bit more, well, childish.
A dog-friendly Tremblant hotel with amazing restaurants
No — your dog can’t come with you to any of the Fairmont Tremblant restaurants. Even though it’s very much a dog-friend;y Tremblant hotel, you ain’t sneaking Poochy-Poo into any of the onsite dining options.
Even before the Fairmont Mont-Tremblant totally revamped its restaurants and bars, we were smitten with its food. I’m happy to report that have done the hard work and managed to try all of the Fairmont’s dining options, including room service, to get you more info about each of them:
For more great Mont-Tremblant information to help you plan your own family-friendly or adult-only getaway in any season, here are some of the additional pieces I’ve written over the years: Mont-Tremblant in the summer; Mont-Tremblant summer; Casino Mont-Tremblant; Casino Tremblant; winter activities in Mont-Tremblant; Mont-Tremblant restaurants; Mont-Tremblant chalet rentals; and Camp Tremblant.
Ricochet Cafe & Terrasse
As I mentioned earlier, the cafe is on the lower level of the Fairmont Mont-Tremblant and has both drip and fancy coffees as well as a beautiful spread of pastries. Then there are also some prepared meals off to the side in an adjacent fridge — think sandwiches, yogurt parfaits and my beloved bircher muesli.
For First Tracks kind of mornings, this is fast and not crazy expensive (think Starbucks prices), and you’ll find plenty of others in their bib pants and ski boots grabbing a quick bite before rushing off to some fresh corduroy, too.
Axe Lounge Bar
What a cool space to chill! Big B and I absolutely love the vibe here. It’s an elevated sports bar has cozy nooks by a roaring fire, bar stool seating and comfy chairs and benches around small tables, perfect for cocktails and snacks.
We have visited Axe for lunch, drinks before dinner, and as a dinner alternative. The food is consistently excellent and the menu has had great variety each time.
The nachos are piled high with lots of different ingredients and came with a delish guac. The poutine has so many squeaky cheese curds in it that you may find you actually have some left after all of the fries are gone — crazy, I know.
There’s a new salmon tartare dish on the Axe Lounge Bar menu that blew me away, and the cocktails are always mint.
Axe is a great spot to meet friends for drinks; the extensive drink menu will definitely have something for everyone’s taste. I couldn’t bring myself to try Maple Old Fashioned, which I didn’t love the last time we visited, but every cocktail I had this time was outstanding.
Le Comptoir
The breakfast buffet is back!
Le Comptoir is the more casual of the two main restaurants at the Fairmont Mont-Tremblant, but just about any dress code works here. Perhaps my favourite part about dining at Le Comptoir during the breakfast buffet is that kids five and under eat for free from the children’s menu, and six to 11s pay half-price for anything on the regular menu. If you’re eating out for most meals, this can have a huge impact on your total Tremblant vacation spend.
The buffet is well worth the price tag provided you’re hungry and both a juice and hot beverage are included with the cost of your plate. For a family of four (who no longer have kids under 12) with tax and tip, it did come to nearly $200 for breakfast so you’ll want to come hungry with time to be leisurely; this isn’t the place for a breakfast quickie.
Sadly, the Fairmont Tremblant’s legendary Sunday brunch is no more (#sadface).
Choux Gras
Oh my word, how do I adequately sum this up? Choux Gras Brasserie Culinaire is simply phenomenal. Having eaten pretty much everywhere in the village, and even beyond, I do think it’s the best fine-dining restaurant in all of Tremblant.
Here’s what I’ve tried and loved: the venison tartare (light and beautifully seasoned), the gin-infused foie gras (to die for and such an interesting take on a foie gras terrine), oysters, the warm bread (gahhhhh!), the 30-ounce grilled tomahawk steak (the smashed potatoes nearly stole the show), pan-friend mushrooms (soooo buttery) and the strozzapreti (yummy pasta with crispy pancetta).
La Terrasse
OK, OK, OK, y’all! La Terrasse is, hands down, my new favourite way to après in Tremblant. In concert with Veuve-Clicquot champagne (who are total legends when it comes to luxe après-ski installations), the terrace just outside Le Comptoir has been completely transformed into an outdoor bar — complete with a live DJ.
The vibe is elevated, but fun, and you can either ski in from the Nansen Trail or be escorted through the restaurant. Ski boots welcome!
Whether you find seating in one of the faux fur blanket-lined Muskoka chairs in front of a stone fire, the hightop table ready for a party of 10 or one of the two Veuve-branded gondolas that have been converted with tables and seating for up to six guests, be ready for fab service with a dedicated bartender and an exclusive cocktail and snack menu.
Room service
On our check-out day, we decided to hit First Tracks for an hour or so and then order room service for breakfast when we got back to give us time to pack up our things and dry our tears. Considering it was only about $20-30 more than the buffet, including the mandatory $5 delivery fee and gratuity added to the bill, I think it’s a really nice splurge that isn’t too off-the-charts price-wise.
It took a mere 30 minutes for our food to arrive and it was all piping hot.
Like the buffet, each dish also comes with juice and a hot beverage, which ends up being quite the coup for kids who can scarf down a freshly squeezed OJ and still have a hot chocolate to spare.
Bonus? No need to leave your dog to dine.
The Fairmont’s dog-friendly Tremblant hotel rules
If you’ve been keeping up with my new Road Trip with Dogs series, or you’re a well-travelled dog owner, you’ll know every dog-friendly hotel has house rules. The Fairmont Tremblant is no different.
Staying in this dog-friendly Tremblant hotel means you agree to the following:
- There’s a $48 (plus tax) per night fee to bring your pet (service animals are exempt)
- Pets must be leashed at all times when not in your room
- Although the official contract you’ll sign at check-in states that your dog cannot be left unattended in your room, if you bring a crate and your dog is crate-trained, you are allowed to leave them; if they’re barkers while crated, though, expect to cut your ski morning or dinner short to return to your room
- The restaurants, pool area and terrace are all off-limits (service animals are exempt)
- Damage and noise complaint’s are the owner’s responsibility
I can’t underscore this enough: Fairmont Tremblant staff LOVE dogs. Like, really love them. Don’t be surprised if someone hands you freshly baked, chef-made dog biscuits during your stay. And don’t be surprised if you can’t make it 10 feet without a staff member petting your pup. It’s awesome. Enough said.
The last time we visited, there was a “house dog” who lived at the Fairmont (with his bed in the lobby!); he was as likely to greet you when you arrived as a doorman. We didn’t see him this time around, and I didn’t want to break my kids’ hearts by asking why, so let’s leave it at that and hopefully there will be a house dog again down the road.
A final note here: as someone who loves dogs but was not a dog owner for the first few Fairmont Tremblant visits, I appreciate that the hotel has designated dog floors.
Dog-friendly Tremblant hotel rooms at the Fairmont
We’ve stayed in a couple of different room types at the Fairmont Mont-Tremblant property. There’s more than enough room to unpack, get comfortable and move around, but the bathrooms are typically on the small side.
Bedding is unreal, with fabulous sheets and pillows and a mattress that was probably handcrafted by fairies.
The decor is traditional and should probably be updated soon — or at least fluffed with some modern touches.
I love how soundproof all of the rooms are, especially when you consider people above you could be stomping around in their ski boots or if you’re on a dog-friendly floor. We are truly never disturbed here by other guests.
We have had a variety of views while staying here. Looked out over the front entryway and onto Lac Tremblant is really pretty at night:
But the best view, in my opinion, is looking out at the mountain itself. Just be mindful of changing clothes without closing your curtains!
Fairmont Tremblant cost & perks
With basic rooms (two double beds) starting at around $400 per night, you expect top-notch customer service. The great news is that the Fairmont Tremblant delivers; your five-star price gets you five-star service and amenities. Forgot your razor? No worries — one can be delivered to your room or picked up at the front desk, complete with shaving cream. Comfy robes await you in your bathroom, and — since our previous visit — you no longer have to call down and ask for slippers! YAY!
There are Nespresso coffeemakers with enough complimentary K-cups for your stay (these machines make pretty delicious coffee). Bottled water is provided free of charge with every housekeeping visit (see the next paragraph for more on that). Le Labo Rose 31 toiletries are supplied as needed. Want a high chair? Crib? Hypoallergenic pillow? Forgot a dog bowl or need a spare poop bag? They’re all just a phone call away. You don’t always get what you pay for at hotels, but you do here.
You’ve gotta love a hotel with twice-daily housekeeping. If you choose to have housekeeping services, the rooms are cleaned both morning and around the dinner hour, when there’s also turn-down service. Not that I need or expect someone to fold down the side of my duvet so I can slip my princess-y arse into it at night, but it’s certainly a nice touch.
Want to jazz things up for someone special? Add the macaron platter to your tab and have it delivered to your room while you’re out. These macarons are Parisian quality and super flavourful without being too sweet, and they’re a pretty way to say “I love you.”
Dog-friendly Tremblant hotel: the spa
Someone else hanging with the pooch? Great — make your way to Moment Spa. On the second floor of the hotel (just above the terrace level), you’ll find a clean, contemporary spa welcome and you’ll leave feeling like a million bucks.
Make no mistake, like any hotel spa, you’re going to be splurging on services. But between our tandem massage with two very skilled massage therapists, the very cool post-massage NeuroSpa experience and chilling with prosecco in the hot tubs and pools afterwards, it would be a great way to get in on some Fairmont action even if you weren’t staying here. Access to pools, Jacuzzis, the Finnish sauna, steam bath and fitness centre is included with the purchase of a spa package or two hours or more.
Pro Tip: If you’re not a hotel guest, you can enjoy both the spa AND restaurants thanks to the free valet parking offer.
Looking for other Tremblant lodging? Check out my feature reviews of Sommet des Neiges, the Holiday Inn Tremblant, Le Westin Tremblant, Les Manoirs or Tremblant Les Eaux — or find them all under one roof with even more Tremblant hotels in my ultimate hotel Mont-Tremblant guide.
DISCLAIMER: This review is based off of several stays at the Fairmont Tremblant, some of which were hosted and some of which we paid for. As always, opinions are my own.
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