Pet-Friendly Hotels in Saguenay: 3 Stays in Chicoutimi
If you are driving to Saguenay with a dog, sleep in Chicoutimi: all three pet-friendly hotels are in that borough. They are OTL Gouverneur Saguenay at 1303 boulevard Talbot, Hotel Chicoutimi, affilié à Hyvi, at 460 rue Racine Est downtown, and Auberge le Parasol at 1287 boulevard du Saguenay Est, beside the river. Each one charges a pet fee, so the question is less whether your dog is welcome than which base suits your days. Together they score 8.2 on average from 3,721 reviews. Below: the daily walks that work with a dog, the fjord park rules that catch many visitors out, and which hotel I would pick for which trip.
Saguenay is a working city first: the 2002 merger of Chicoutimi, Jonquière and La Baie, French-speaking, with the fjord as its backyard rather than its postcard. Hotels serve business travellers on weekdays and road-trippers on summer weekends.
Where a dog fits in Saguenay
Saguenay is a city of three boroughs spread along a fjord, and a dog changes which one makes sense. Chicoutimi has the hotels that take pets, the riverside boardwalk and the shortest drive to the north shore of the fjord.
Three Saguenay hotels accept pets, and all three are in Chicoutimi. Chicoutimi is the borough with the downtown, the Zone portuaire on the river and the commercial strip of boulevard Talbot, which leads straight onto Route 175 towards Quebec City. If your plan is to stay in La Baie for the bay or in Jonquière for its canal and old industrial district, you will drive there for the day and come back to sleep. Saguenay-Bagotville airport, in La Baie, is about 13 km from Chicoutimi, so flying in still means a short drive to a pet-friendly room.
The Zone portuaire de Chicoutimi is the largest urban park in the region, with a boardwalk of about one kilometre along the Saguenay River. It is the obvious morning and evening loop from Hotel Chicoutimi downtown and an easy drive from the other two. In summer the site hosts water games and events that draw crowds, so a nervous dog does better there early in the day. Keep your dog on a leash: the city bylaw on animals applies across public places. Hotel Chicoutimi sits on rue Racine, steps from Cathédrale Saint-François-Xavier, a short walk from the waterfront boardwalk.
Saguenay announced in 2019 the opening of a dog park in Jonquière, in the Mont-Fortin sector, then the second one on its territory. For a dog that needs to run off the leash after the long drive up Route 175 from Quebec City, that is the place to aim for, about a twenty-minute drive west from the Chicoutimi hotels. Do not count on a fenced dog park within walking distance of your hotel. Jonquière has its own downtown along rue Saint-Dominique, so the run can share the outing with lunch in the other borough.
Parc national du Fjord-du-Saguenay is the reason most people come, and it is run by Sépaq, whose rules on pets vary by park and by sector. The park has three sectors: Baie-Éternité, Baie-de-Tadoussac and Baie-Sainte-Marguerite. The campground of the Sentier maritime du Fjord near Rivière-Éternité states that pets are not allowed. Check the Sépaq page of the sector you plan to hike before you leave Chicoutimi, because the drive to Baie-Éternité is long enough that being turned back costs you the day. Baie-Éternité lies on the south shore of the fjord, reached by Route 170 through La Baie.
A traveler's takeI would book OTL Gouverneur Saguenay with a dog: it has the highest score of the three, 9.1 from 2,155 reviews, and boulevard Talbot gives easy parking and a direct exit onto Route 175. I would pick Hotel Chicoutimi instead if I wanted to walk to dinner and to the Zone portuaire without moving the car, and I would ask for the pet room when booking, since the hotel asks for advance notice. Auberge le Parasol, at 7.5, is the one I would keep for a short stop by the river. None of the three suits a traveller who wants off-leash space at the door: that means driving to Jonquière.
4.6OTL Gouverneur Saguenay
Pet-Friendly · 2155 reviewsLuxury hotel with spa, saltwater pool, and pet-friendly rooms near Bagotville Airport
Why guests love itOTL Gouverneur Saguenay has a saltwater indoor pool, the feature I would mention first to families, since it keeps children happy in any season in Saguenay. Parents can use the hot tub, the steam room, the spa facilities and the fitness centre. Rooms look onto the garden or the city, and the modern steakhouse on site makes dinner easy after a day out. Pet-friendly options are available, and Bagotville Airport is 12 km away for those flying in.
4.0Hotel Chicoutimi, affilié à Hyvi
Pet-Friendly · 410 reviewsSki-in/ski-out boutique hotel with fjord views and a wellness center
Why guests love itHotel Chicoutimi has more on site than most Saguenay hotels: three restaurants, a health centre and a gym, which helps families on cold evenings. Many rooms look out on the Saguenay Fjord and are decorated with regional artwork, and the bath products come from the hotel's own soap shop. Pets are accepted. I would choose it for families who want a full-service hotel with character; check the ski access claim directly, as it is unusual for a city hotel.
3.8Auberge le Parasol
Pet-Friendly · 1156 reviewsHilltop hotel with Saguenay Fjord views, outdoor pool, and on-site dining
Why guests love itAuberge le Parasol sits on a hilltop three kilometres from downtown Chicoutimi, and I would recommend it to families who want views of the city and the Saguenay Fjord. The outdoor pool is the draw in summer, and the on-site restaurant and free WiFi cover the basics. Rooms are bright with cable TV and a hairdryer, and the front desk is open around the clock. You will want a car to reach downtown.
Local tips
- 1Tell Hotel Chicoutimi about your dog when you book, not at check-in: listings for the hotel say pets must be requested in advance, so a walk-in with a dog may not get a room.
- 2Plan the Route 175 drive from Quebec City as one stretch: it crosses the Réserve faunique des Laurentides, where services are few, so walk the dog before you leave and at the rest area midway.
- 3Use the Zone portuaire boardwalk early in the morning in July and August: water games and summer events fill the riverside later in the day, which is hard on a dog that dislikes crowds.
- 4Drive to the Mont-Fortin dog park in Jonquière for an off-leash run: it is the fenced run the city opened in 2019, and no fenced dog park sits within walking distance of the three hotels.
- 5Before hiking in Parc national du Fjord-du-Saguenay, read the Sépaq page of the exact sector: the Sentier maritime campground near Rivière-Éternité does not accept pets, and rules differ between sectors.
- 6In winter, ask your hotel where you can walk a dog safely: Saguenay sidewalks are cleared but salted, and paws used to mild climates may need booties after a few minutes outside.