What it's like to stay at a First Nations village in Quebec City

Just 15 minutes from the fortified walls and stately facades of Old Quebec, the landscape gives way to forests, rivers and a small village of low-slung buildings. This is Wendake, a self-governing enclave that’s home to the Wendat Nation. And stretching low and wide along the banks of the Akiawenrahk River sits the Wendat-owned Hôtel-Musée Premières Nations. The Wendat were among the first Indigenous communities on the continent to welcome Europeans in the 17th century, and have harnessed their long history as guides and traders to turn their land into a hub for Indigenous cultural tourism. Inspired by traditional longhouse dwellings, their hotel has become a hub for curious travellers.

The hotel’s decor is grounded in natural materials, with wood surfaces, dark glass and earthy tones, while Indigenous art features throughout, including animal hides and photographs. Rooms face the river or gardens, and their palette of deep greens brings the warmth of the surrounding forest inside. Book a window table at restaurant La Traite, where seasonal tasting menus make use of First Nations ingredients like corn and maple in dishes such as bison filet and hearty sagamité stew.

Tourism is a source of community pride beyond the rooms, too, providing hundreds of jobs and ample opportunity for visitors to engage in local culture. The hotel shares an entrance with the Museé Huron-Wendat, which chronicles the nation’s history and can be explored with a guide. Outside, the reconstructed Ekionkiestha’ national longhouse hosts storytelling evenings around a fire where community members drum, sing and tell tales about the creation of the world. The Wendat also offer hands-on workshops to visitors, including jewellery making with Andicha, an Elder who uses materials such as leather, wood and bone. And if you’re here in June, don’t miss the Wendake Pow Wow, a festival that celebrates the heritage of the community through dance, song, drum competitions and traditional crafts.

More First Nations experiences

Shop crafts

Onquata is a Wendat company known for its beautifully crafted, hand-painted paddles. At its boutique in Wendake, browse these and other pieces handcrafted by artists from different Indigenous nations.

Discover art

A short walk outside Old Quebec, you’ll find Ahkwayaonhkeh, the first Wendat-run artists’ centre. From September to June, it presents temporary exhibitions by contemporary artists from Wendake and other communities.

Try new flavours

Try the signature yatista dish at Old Quebec’s Sagamité, sister to a long-running Wendake restaurant of the same name. Cuts of game are hung from tripods on tables then flambeed — a nod to fire’s cultural significance to the Wendat.