Always handy to know about, this rest stop in Rivière-Beaudette (on the EAST-bound 401) doesn’t just have gas pumps, a Dépanneur, Tim Horton and a St-Hubert Express; but there’s also a really extensive Tourisme Québec office with a plethora of pamphlets, maps, and even a colouring station for the kids to play at while you ask the SUPER helpful and friendly employees your 3000 questions.
And outside? An awesome playground!
Last time we drove west down the 401, we stopped at a ton of the new OnRoute rest stops, and after hours in the car it was disappointing that the kids didn’t have a safe place to play. There’s nothing worse than unstrapping them from their car seats and then trying to get them to sit still in a restaurant seat.
We’ve now seen a few of Quebec’s highway rest stops (Here’s another one going to the Laurentians) and I LOVE that they’re including playgrounds.
This one in Rivière-Beaudette has the bug-inspired Xyrä-1 from Quebec-based Jambette, two spring riders, and a slide with stairs inside a safely fenced area. There is just one opening to the patio where there are picnic tables with umbrellas.
I sat at the table and sipped on the boys’ raspberry lemonades while they frolicked around on the other side of the fence. Win-Win!
There is also a grassy area with more picnic tables but cars were whizzing past after gassing up, so it’s not the best spot for a serene picnic with little ones.