I’d heard Mont Tremblant, QC, would feel a bit like Disney created a ski resort. That concept isn’t far off—things at eastern North America’s hippest ski destination are spiffy as can be, like the Quebec country village that doesn’t quite exist anyplace else except our minds. But while the “village” oozes romance, the mont(short-French for “mount”), with its skiing and boarding, is what draws me to the Laurentian Mountains.

Tremblant’s ski season rolls right into springtime, when TELUS Spin keeps skiers, boarders and all partygoers interested for 10 days and nights. There are snowboard competitions you normally only see on TV—crazy stuff like “snowboard-cross” with riders racing each other down the hill or the “T4,” which combines the unlikely teams of skiers and riders.

The village buzzes with nighttime action. Bands take to the open-air stage in Place St-Bernard (past years have seen the likes of Canadian electro-pop guy DEE and Francophone rockers Malajube). Visual art is another cool part of the atmosphere, and past years have even included montages where you add your touch.

Snappy events aside, Tremblant is a skier and rider’s hill—and the mountain keeps me interested for two full days of schussing, helping break in my new Nordica boots as I chase myself down run after run, hell-bent on sampling the entire mountain. I’m not quite sure I hit all 95 runs (loved pistes called Géant and Action), but I made a damn good dent in the Quebec snow.

What else I liked? The cool art galleries in Tremblant Village. Côté Créations was a standout.

Best meal I had: Dinner at La Petite Cachée—outside the village, and worth every penny of the $8 cab ride. Wild boar? Oh, yeah….

www.bonjourquebec.com