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I briefly visited Sherbrooke back in 2017. It's quite a small city, perhaps not much bigger than Portland, Maine if even that. I didn't find the city itself that exciting though it does have its share of museums. The surrounding region known as the Eastern Townships is very fun however, especially for outdoor activities. If you're going to visit Sherbrooke you might as well do the whole Townships experience and visit Magog, North Hatley, Coaticook, Bromont, and Eastman to name a few nearby places. There are plenty of places to go hiking, biking, boating, skiing, and sightseeing in that whole region. Are you driving up from the U.S.? If so be sure to stop by the Haskell Free Library in Derby Line, VT/Stanstead, Quebec right at the end of Interstate 91 just before the international border. It is one of the very few places in the world where you can enter a building in the US and actually step into Canada without a passport .
I wouldn’t make a detour but if you’re thinking about visiting the Eastern Townships, it’s worth the stop.
Portland ME is a good comparison. Old city with good bones, nice downtown (Wellington St), very hilly, has beautiful neighborhoods NW of downtown (Quebec St, Ontario St, Domaine Howard), good parks along the rivers and lakes. Always struck me as a city that’s better to live in than to visit but it’s scenic. Nearby Lennoxville and Bishop’s University are quaint.
If you're going to visit Sherbrooke you might as well do the whole Townships experience and visit Magog, North Hatley, Coaticook, Bromont, and Eastman to name a few nearby places. There are plenty of places to go hiking, biking, boating, skiing, and sightseeing in that whole region. Are you driving up from the U.S.? If so be sure to stop by the Haskell Free Library in Derby Line, VT/Stanstead, Quebec right at the end of Interstate 91 just before the international border. It is one of the very few places in the world where you can enter a building in the US and actually step into Canada without a passport .
Thanks for the recommendations! I’d be driving up from Massachusetts, and I was hoping to stop at St Johnsbury. I’ve never been to the Northeast Kingdom area, either. Is there much to do in those smaller towns? Perhaps I should try to time my visit with the foliage?
I wouldn’t make a detour but if you’re thinking about visiting the Eastern Townships, it’s worth the stop.
Portland ME is a good comparison. Old city with good bones, nice downtown (Wellington St), very hilly, has beautiful neighborhoods NW of downtown (Quebec St, Ontario St, Domaine Howard), good parks along the rivers and lakes. Always struck me as a city that’s better to live in than to visit but it’s scenic. Nearby Lennoxville and Bishop’s University are quaint.
How much time do you think I should allocate for a quality trip to the Eastern Townships? Taking into account that I’d be driving up from Massachusetts..
How much time do you think I should allocate for a quality trip to the Eastern Townships? Taking into account that I’d be driving up from Massachusetts..
What do you like most? Scenic drives, hiking, antiques, quaint villages, museums?
Location: northern Vermont - previously NM, WA, & MA
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Sherbrooke is nice enough but I would kind of put it in the "It's just a city" category. I will echo other's recommendations to visit the surrounding Eastern Townships in Quebec. The town of Magog and Lake Mephremagog are particularly nice. There is a boat cruise on the lake out of Magog I did last summer that I really enjoyed. It's beautiful Lake.
St J in VT is really small, though interestingly enough I had Filipino food there which was pretty unexpected. There's some scenic mountain lakes in the NEK you might enjoy. It's the most rural part of the state and it has some towns that I would say are pretty..umm. well.....OUT THERE!
Walrus, if you're looking for a city other than Montreal or Quebec City to visit, you might consider Ottawa. It's just a couple hours beyond Montreal. In the summer nearby Gatineau Park has some nice lakes also. I found Ottawa to be really charming, worthy of a full day and couple nights.
Thanks for the recommendations! I’d be driving up from Massachusetts, and I was hoping to stop at St Johnsbury. I’ve never been to the Northeast Kingdom area, either. Is there much to do in those smaller towns? Perhaps I should try to time my visit with the foliage?
St. Johnsbury has a museum or two and that's about it. I pretty much drove through it. No, the whole objective of visiting or at least cutting through the Northeast Kingdom is to "get away from it all". It is one of the most pristine regions in New England where you can literally keep a distance from everyone. You mentioned foliage and yes Autumn is a wonderful time to head to the Northeast Kingdom where you can enjoy views of the countryside without the crowds as you would at a place like the Mohawk Trail or Kancamagus Highway. There are of course farms and orchards you can visit too. Be sure to stop by both ends of Lake Willoughby, this deep narrow glacially carved lake in the middle of the region that more resembles a river running through a gorge. This lake looks as if it belongs more in the Rocky Mountains and its views are spectacular for New England standards. As I mentioned before, be sure to visit the Haskell Free Library in Derby Line, right before the border with Canada. If you do, you can tell all of your friends how you legally walked into a building, crossed the border into Canada, and then walked back out into the U.S. without having to go through customs!
Yeah, both Laval and Gatineau are larger than Sherbrooke. Of course Laval is part of the Montreal area and Gatineau is part of Ottawa-Gatineau, though technically Gatineau has it's own metro area: Ottawa-Gatineau (Quebec part) is what it is called.
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