A Few Hours North Of Maine's Border Is Canada's Charming Seaside Escape With Art, Local Bites, And Trails

Grand-Métis in Québec has beautiful landscapes and a laidback, peaceful vibe, making it the perfect place to slow down and relax. Take in the views from along the river and make sure to take time to explore the impressively landscaped gardens that have helped put this area on the map.

This small community of just over 200 people is on the northwestern edge of Gaspé Peninsula near where the St. Lawrence River starts to broaden into the St. Lawrence Bay. It's just about three and a half hours' drive north from Caribou, Maine, the most northeastern city in the U.S. It's also about a four-hour drive from Québec City, which is where you'll find the closest major airport.

One can't-miss destination when you're visiting Grand-Métis is the Jardins de Métis, aka the Reford Gardens. Starting in 1926, Elsie Reford transformed a 20-acre section of land into stunning gardens over 30 years. She brought in rare plants, including Himalayan blue poppies, and she created a garden unlike anything else in the area. You can walk on trails through Elsie's gardens and see living art in the form of 3,000 varieties of plants spread over 15 different gardens.

At the heart of the Reford Gardens in Grand-Métis is Villa Estevan Lodge where you can learn more about Elsie Reford and how the gardens were built. You can also tour the Museum of Tools where form and function meet in an exploration of historic tools and gardening implements. The lodge is also home to a restaurant that serves dishes made with produce grown in the gardens, and at Café Bistro Le Bufton you can get coffees, local beers, wines, ice cream, and other treats. The restaurants are open seasonally through summer and the cafe stays open into early October. The entire gardens shut down to daily visitors during winter, opening again in May, so make sure you have the timing right for your visit.

It's a truly beautiful place. One TripAdvisor reviewer said, "The international section was spectacular, and the adjacent winding gardens made for a lovely walk. The house was most impressive and helped me to understand appreciate the garden's Elsie Reford, the person responsible for the original gardens."

Reford Gardens is also one of the main destinations for the International Garden Festival, "the largest contemporary garden festival in North America." It runs from early June through early October, and artists and landscape architects put together a mix of interactive and innovative installations for visitors to explore. Each year is a different variation on a theme. For 2026, that theme is "Mapping the Senses," and it will "invit[e] visitors to engage with the world through perception, emotion, and lived experience."

Along with the few miles of trails through the Reford Gardens in Grand-Métis, you can hike in Parc régional de la rivière Mitis. The park runs along the banks of the river, and you can check out a variety of landscapes on its eight trails. As one reviewer on TripAdvisor noted, "We like to do the hiking trail which is short and beautiful, goes from forest to [the] gulf view at the top of a tower, then swings back up the mouth of the river." 

This area of Quebec along the St. Lawrence River and Mitis River has long been known for good fishing, specifically fishing for salmon and trout. You can also take a canoe or kayak out on the river at the park, and it has 10 tent campsites if you really want to soak in the scenery. One thing to note, the camping and visitor center at the park are closed for 2026, and they're expected to open again in 2027. If you have a bike and you're looking for a longer adventure, Grand-Métis is a part of the Route Verte, which is a cycling network that takes you through Québec, including following Route 132 along the north side of the Gaspé Peninsula.

If you're planning a road trip in the region, Just 10 minutes away from Grand-Métis is Mont-Joli, another quiet, hidden gem on the river. A bit further afield is the stunning artsy Quebec village of Kamouraska, boasting picturesque coastal views. It's about a two hour drive southwest along the St. Lawrence River from  Grand-Métis. And while you're on Canada's eastern coast, on the north side of the St. Lawrence River, you can look for whales as you drive Route 138.