Visions of pirates danced in our heads as we enjoyed our first night’s sleep at the Club Med Charlevoix. We’ll be here for five nights, a special treat after the one- and two-night stops we had in Namibia during our Antarctica to Zimbabwe trip. We even unpacked!
We woke close to 8 am for our 8:30 am meeting with the Mini-Club coordinator to discuss the unexpected closure of Passworld (teens club), which had left our son quite disappointed.
Club Med initially claimed that there were few teens present this week, but eventually revealed that they were short staffed. We hoped that they might be able to make some minor accommodations, like an occasional teen-focused event.
But even these modest expectations were not to be met – the G.O (gentle organizer) running the Mini-Club informed us that no teen activities would be offered this week.
My wife and kids left for breakfast, but the decision still rankled so I went up to the Lounge again to speak with our concierge. No manager was available at present, but our concierge said I’d get a call as soon as they got in.
Down to breakfast. I forgot to take photos, but it was standard breakfast fare – omelettes, hashbrowns, sausage, pineapple. My wife found the egg station, so I’ll likely go there next time. It’s easy to eat poorly while on these trips, and no amount of hiking will diffuse the cholesterol bombs on offer.
We went back to the room to get ready to go hiking. No call yet, so I went down to the main reception desk in search of the elusive manager. There was a ten-minute wait while a woman attempted to move an $11 charge from one bill to the next for reasons that remained murky even after 10 minutes of eavesdropping. She eventually gave up, and I was asked to wait while the manager finished up his a meeting.
Time ticked on, but I was eventually met by the manager and one of the concierges from the Exclusive Spaces floors. I led off gently but firmly: “We were very disappointed to hear that Passworld has been cancelled, and that there would be no mountain biking this week. Passworld was one of my son’s favourite activities. It’s a large part of why we booked this trip. This isn’t the vacation we expected.”
To the manager’s credit, he immediately informed me that Passworld would be reinstated. He further offered to meet with the G.O running Passworld to confirm details. We elected to push that meeting to later this afternoon so it didn’t interfere with our hike. He passed along his WhatsApp contact details and confirmed that I had the right number – all very thorough and professional.
So – it looks like our chief problem might be solved. Our son is certainly thrilled. But we won’t count it sorted until he’s safely ensconced inside Passworld.
Off on our hike – close to an hour later than we originally intended. We decided to reprise L’Ancestrale, the same route that we attempted during our last visit. Hopefully this time the trail will prove less icebound and waterlogged.
On the way, I snapped a few shots of Club Med’s exterior:
And – it was a lovely route:
The temperature was pleasant, if just a bit on the warm side.
There were surprisingly few insects given the late spring season.
There’s camping – and yurts – in the area for those who prefer a more rustic experience.
We made it further than last time, but not all the way to the top. It was 400 metres in elevation change, and most of us – myself included – were out of practice.
I tried using All Trails on my Apple Watch with mixed success. It did an excellent job of indicating what direction we were heading, and where the trail could be found – but it also killed the watch’s battery in under an hour. Next time I’ll try loading the watch app only when I need to double-check my navigation, though it might just be as easy to check my phone instead.
As before, we split the adults between the kids – one of whom was moving faster than the other – so that we could all move at our own respective paces. We also moved in a zig-zag up steeper sections, and picked modest but achievable goals – just another 25 steps, or just to the bend around the corner. Small tricks that helped us get further than we otherwise might have managed.
But there was no denying it – this was a steep route:
But beautiful despite the difficulty. Everywhere we looked, there were signs of new life and renewal:
We doubled back at around the 2 km and 2.5 km respectively for the two different groups, having gained between 200 and 250 metres of elevation.
It was a great way to shake off the rust after sitting in a car for hours on end.
Back to Club Med for a late lunch of chicken, calamari, fries and onion rings:
I finished my meal with my usual dessert – a tiny cone of chocolate gelato:
Passworld was closed at this stage so I texted the manager to see about setting up a meeting for when it reopens at 3 pm. He confirmed almost instantly.
Off to the pool, only to discover that it closes over lunch and doesn’t reopen til 1:30 pm. Not sure if that was the case during our initial visit, but we only had to wait 10 minutes. No big deal, but we’ll keep a closer eye on the schedule next time.
The pool was more-or-less deserted, with one woman doing lengths and another lounging in a hammock.
Photo credit: Tourisme Charlevoix
Our kids had no issues with acquiring hammocks of their own – though one had a sizeable hole in it. So best to get their early if anyone in your party – like ours – has strong hammock-related preferences.
Still stiff from our lengthy drive, I spent as much time as possible in their hammam (steam room), alternating with a few lengths in their not-too-cool pool. Then back to the room for a quick nap, and down to Passworld to (hopefully) get our son set up.
The Passworld G.O was waiting for us right at 3 pm. The manager wasn’t able to make it himself, but sent his assistant down to confirm that everything went smoothly. The G.O explained that Passworld would be closed on Wednesday as that was his day off, but would otherwise be open the remainder of the week. Fair enough – we’re expecting heavy rain on Thursday, so that’s the day when we really want childcare laid on.
I’ve often seen questions posted on various travel forums as to whether children younger than 11 are allowed in Passworld. This is generally discouraged, but there may be occasional exceptions made on a case-by-case basis. They should be accompanied by an older sibling and be generally self-sufficient – they should be able to head back to their room to get changed before swimming on their own, and to serve themselves food from the buffet, and be a good sport if they lose at the various games.
With childcare sorted, my wife and I headed up to the Lounge to get a bit of writing done, and watch the ships drift along the St. Lawrence:
We checked on the kids occasionally, but they seemed happy. So we simply let them be, and enjoyed the early evening charcuterie:
We also discovered our new favourite drink – the J’me Paqu’te La Fraise – with gin, lemon, strawberry, angostura and sparkling water. Pictures to come!
At around 6 pm, champagne was served and a magician came. We respectfully declined to take part, but we are going to try to bring the kids around for a future magic show at some point.
Our champagne was topped up by the Head of Village (the seniormost manager), and we strung out our afternoon time as long as possible. But eventually it was time for dinner, so we collected our kids and went back to the buffet.
I had a lovely – if eclectic – meal of gyozas with satay sauce, leg of lamb, rice and pesto salmon.
The attention to detail was exceptional – there was a tiny blot of pesto on the plate, which the chef cleaned before serving.
There are more exotic dishes for those so inclined, including the fish tiradito with asparagus:
Another detail that we recently noticed – a fully ‘baby space’ with high chairs, baby food, sink, and so on for the younger guests:
A lengthy game of Risk was underway at Passworld, so the kids were once more returned downstairs. We then all headed off to the Chromatica show, which bills itself as a “light and sound spectacular” – a fantastic show including dance, pyrotechnics, and acrobatics.
There also seemed to be some sort of underlying plot, in which time-travellers went into the future to deal with malfunctioning androids only to fall victim to the androids’ mind control before returning home victorious.
I attempted to unravel the plot via ChatGPT, and received the following reply:
There is no mention of character arcs, storylines, or dialogue involving sci‑fi tropes like time travel or robot mind control in:
• Club Med’s official descriptions, which focus on the show’s sensory spectacle and festival atmosphere , and
• Guest reviews, which highlight the performers’ talents, costumes, and overall vibe, but never reference any storyline.
It’s possible those narrative elements are part of a different show, or were ad-libbed by entertainers during select performances—but there’s no available evidence they’re part of Chromatica’s standard presentation.
So, there you have it. No plot, but plenty of great dancing and acrobatics.
The circus-type elements of the show were particularly well done. We wonder if that’s perhaps due to Charlevoix’s proximity to Montreal and the Cirque du Soleil?
One point to bear in mind for those attending this particular show – if you’re sitting near the couches by the window, be aware that they will need the nearest walkway in order to raise and low the acrobatic elements. So perhaps sit elsewhere if you’re planning to get up throughout the show to order drinks, use bathroom, and so on.
We were also surprised by how many of the senior staff participate in the shows – this particular show seemed to be at least 50% Club Med executives. The gentleman who’s front and centre – Harrison – is the Head of Village for Club Med Charlevoix:
He also pours a mean glass of champagne
This past day has reminded us about the ‘secret ingredient’ that makes Club Med so memorable – it is, and I say this fondly, just a little bit bonkers. Yes, the childcare is great and the food and drink is delicious. But where else can you watch the head of Human Resources – dressed in a skintight robot costume – enact a dance-based mind control ritual on her boss?
This wonderful, ludicrous show wrapped at around 10 pm, so the kids were exhausted at this stage. Off to bed – but with a late wakeup tomorrow. We’re planning on a lazy morning, then will take the gondola up to the top of the mountain for tomorrow’s hike.