Where to stay in La Petite-Nation, from inns to teepees

A day trip to La Petite-Nation is nice. Staying over is better. You eat without checking the time, you get up to see the mist on the lake, and you make the Saturday market without leaving Ottawa at 6 a.m.

There's just about every way to spend the night out here. We sorted through our directory to help you pick your style. It's not exhaustive (there are dozens of cottage rentals), but it'll get you started.

The Château

Fairmont Le Château Montebello. The huge log château on the Ottawa River. Hotel, restaurants, spa, golf and around forty activities in every season. Even if you're not staying, go look at the fireplace in the lobby. If you are, you've got three restaurants on site, from Aux Chantignoles to Nymark.

Inns

For a real room, a real bed and someone to say good morning.

• Auberge Montebello: an old Victorian house and a newer pavilion on rue Notre-Dame.
• Manoir Chamberland, Montebello: a boutique hotel in the middle of the village, with gardens and a hot tub.
• Le Salon des Inconnus (Maison Favier), Namur: an inn in an 1898 Victorian house that also hosts artists in residence and events. Our favourite for character.
• Auberge Couleurs de France, Duhamel: log walls, a restaurant on Petit lac Preston, and deer feeding near the windows.
• Auberge Montagne Noire, Ripon: eight renovated rooms in the village, with a bar, pool table and terrace.
• Auberge et Club de golf Héritage, Notre-Dame-de-la-Paix: pine logs, 30 air-conditioned rooms including four apartments, and an 18-hole course.
• Auberge Petite-Nation, Saint-André-Avellin: affordable, open year-round, right on the trails. The room is cheaper if you buy a show ticket.

B&Bs

A B&B is somebody's house, and often a house with a story.

• Gîte aux Auvents Rouges, Montebello: four colourful rooms across from the Manoir-Papineau entrance, including two suites with balconies over the Château woods.
• Le Petit Château, Montebello: steps from Manoir-Papineau.
• Gîte Gil-Ann, Saint-André-Avellin: a Victorian house from around 1889, recognized as a heritage building, on rue Principale.
• Château Saint-Émile, Saint-Émile-de-Suffolk: a former rectory from around 1937, restored, with a spa.

Motels

Simple, clean, no fuss. Good for snowmobilers, hunters and one-night stopovers.

• Motel du Lac-Simon, Duhamel: open for more than 50 years on the 321, air-conditioned rooms, pets welcome.
• Refuge Boréal, Montpellier: a renovated motel with a big lot for trailers and direct access to snowmobile and ATV trails.
• Motel Bel-Eau, Montebello: on the Ottawa River, in the village.

Lakefront cottages

The region's specialty. There are rentals around almost every lake, from Lac Simon to Lac des Plages. A few places with several units:

• Domaine du Lac-des-Plages: twelve two- to four-bedroom cottages lined up on a private sand beach, with a shallow swimming area for kids.
• Chalets aux Crocollines, Lac-Simon: six cottages named after birds and 150 feet of private beach.
• Domaine Graham, Les Bouleaux Blancs, Namur: seven cottages on four sites and more than 20 km of private trails.
• Chalets Lauzon, Val-des-Bois: three cottages on Lac de l'Argile, in the village.
• HMS Découverte: four cottages between Bowman and Val-des-Bois.

For a big group, Manoir du Lac-Simon has six lakefront units with a heated indoor pool, open year-round. Domaine Forêt d'Eau sleeps up to 16 in a log chalet with a hot tub.

Something different

• Parc Oméga unusual lodging: teepees, prospector cabins, a stilt house and cottages with a view of the wolves. Yes, the wolves.
• En Piste Trailside Cabins, Lac-des-Plages: renovated village buildings, including the old 1886 post office, and cabins right by the trails.
• Domaine Lockbow, Lac-Simon: sixty acres on the Petite Nation River with Lockbow falls on the property, unusual stays and rustic camping.
• Origine Aventure, Ripon: mini-cabins in the forest and rustic camping. Pets welcome.
• Le Loft de l'Atelier, Montebello: a loft above the La Shed qui tourne pottery studio.

Camps and retreats

• Camp Ozanam, Saint-Émile-de-Suffolk: a charitable family camp that rents simple cottages outside the summer season. Your stay helps.
• Camp Sajo, Saint-Sixte: 250 acres of forest, a lake and four cottages for rent year-round.
• Centre de vie Ripon: a nature retreat with sauna, yoga and snowshoe trails.

Camping and outfitters

We have full guides for these. For tents, trailers and ready-to-camp units, see our campground guide. For a fishing or hunting cabin in the woods, it's the outfitters guide.

Bringing the dog? Motel du Lac-Simon and Origine Aventure take pets, as do several cottages. Read the rules on each listing before you book.

All the lodging on one map

Run a B&B or cottage that's not in the directory? Write to us.

MontebelloSaint-André-AvellinRiponNamurDuhamelLac-SimonLac-des-PlagesNotre-Dame-de-la-PaixNotre-Dame-de-BonsecoursMontpellierSaint-Émile-de-SuffolkSaint-SixteVal-des-BoisBowman

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