Mont Cascades

As part of #Outaouaisfun this summer, Lara and I are checking out so many great places to visit with our kids in the Outaouais region. Visit Outaouais Tourism for more information and follow along with the hashtag #Outaouaisfun on Facebook and Twitter! Disclosure: I was provided with free passes to visit Mont Cascades, but all opinions are my own.

Slip Slidin' Away

I've visited Mont Cascades once, when my daughter was 3 years-old. I was hugely pregnant at the time, and the morning ended in disaster when I let my daughter go ahead of me on the slide (hey, other kids her age were going alone!). She landed face first into the water at the bottom, and refused to try the slides again.

The Kiddie Slides for those 48" and under. My almost-6 year-old liked these the best

This past weekend was a much better experience. Now almost 6, my daughter and her younger sister (2) had a great day at Mont Cascades. Pictured above are the kiddie slides, and Big Sister worked up the courage to do the slides by herself. There was rarely a line-up, and we went up and down the slides many times.

My favourite part about Mont Cascades is that you can do the kiddie slides with your children. Other waterparks will not allow parents to go down the kiddie slides, which is disappointing for toddlers who aren't big enough (or brave enough) to do it themselves.

The Kiddie Pool

The Kiddie Pool was a lot busier, so we had a quick splash in there before stopping for lunch.

Seating area with lots of shade

There is TONS of seating at Mont Cascades, but a lot of it is in full sun. I highly recommend you get there early (we arrived at 10:30 am, and most spots were gone) to snag a shady spot. It makes a big difference when you're trying to eat your food before it gets fried under the summer sun.

Enjoying our picnic lunch

Our biggest mistake of the day was taking both girls down Black Magic. I saw so many other parents coming out of the tube slide holding onto their little ones, so I thought "hey, that looks like fun!" I didn't realize that a) the slide is SO fast; and b) it's really dark (duh, "black magic"). I was probably more scared than my daughter, and I think the entire park heard my screams of terror (in my defense, I was worried that the tube would flip and I would lose hold of my little one - even with a life jacket on, eek!)

SO, if you have young children who are generally cautious little beings, I would recommend avoiding the larger tube slides. Instead, you can check out the new Splash Forest for families and kids of all ages. A huge red bucket fills up slowly and then dumps all over the unsuspecting people below. The slides are small, but fun enough for older kids.

A terrible picture (the angry clouds had rolled in!) of the new Splash Forest, exclusively for families and kids of all ages. 

Another great plus for Mont Cascades is that it's affordable (prices updated for summer of 2023) - seasons passes go for $59-69 depending on height!! A single pass is $27.99-32.99 depending on height and kids 2 and under are free. This makes it a great destination for families who can't afford some of the pricier attractions in our area.

So make the drive up to this beautiful part the Gatineaus and have a splash! (bonus points if you stop for ice cream at Le Cigale on your way home)

Have you been to Mont Cascades? Share your experience in the comments!