Hotel le Pharillon

First; be warned: The Tripadvisor page says this is "#2 of 7 motels in Gaspe" and gives a Gaspé address. Google Maps will show you that this is 41 km -- a 33-minute drive -- from the city of Gaspé. If you're looking for restaurants, stores, etc., FYI: what reviews say about this being in a remote place are true. But that long drive is beautiful! My room facing the water was spotless and quiet. The hot water was hot and the cold was delicious. It had lots of electric outlets, though only a limited one for electric razors (not hair dryers) by the washbasin. The Wi-fi would be very fast for quite a while, then the signal strength on my laptop would move back and forth from four arcs to none multiple times. I didn't try the TV. My cell phone had no service. Its Wi-fi Calling feature, which makes regular phone calls via Wi-fi, worked well (though it might have dropped a call if I used it when the Wi-fi was weak/missing). I could use SMS and MMS (text and photo messges) too, though I'm not sure all phone companies have Wi-fi Calling that works for these. I saw several other places along the north side of the peninsula with rooms away from the highway, next to the coast. But the ones I saw were in villages. What makes this place special is the peaceful drive into Gaspé, mostly away from buildings.

The place and the rooms are very old. But over that the area is beautiful and the service is good.

We stayed here while exploring nearby Forillon National Park. One of the motel's major selling points is that it is right on the ocean and a very short drive to the park. On a nice day, you can sit outside your room and watch the waves. The rooms were dated but clean and comfortable. Beside the queen size bed was a table and two chairs, which were both an advantage and disadvantage. We ate in the room one night, so that's an advantage. However, it made the room feel a bit cramped otherwise. We arrived on a Sunday afternoon and left on a Wednesday morning. Through one of the reviews here, I was aware of a restaurant in L'Anse-au- Griffon and we headed there for dinner Monday evening. However, we discovered it was closed Mondays and Tuesdays. The only nearby option was Casse-Croute La Molliere, down the road from the motel, which turned out to have good pizza, poutine, and excellent ice cream. I mention this, because if you're planning on being there on a Monday or Tuesday, you should bring something with you for breakfast or maybe dinner. (There's a small refrigerator in the room where we could keep milk and yogurt.) By the way, the tour of the Cap-des-Rosiers Lighthouse was excellent, and well worth doing, especially on a clear, sunny day. It's a short ways down the road from the motel.

We had booked a single night in a room with a Seaview. The greeting was friendly and ebullient and the check-in system smooth and efficient. The room itself was a little bit old and dated, but was perfectly clean and with a view like this would beat a modern building anywhere else. We were advised to use the cafe 10 minutes drive up the road to the west for breakfast and supper, and that was good advice. The place is perfectly located for an early morning trip into the park to see the sunrise. (You cannot buy the ticket at that time of the morning, so just pop back to the park entrance later in the day to settle your conscience.). Or, if you are feeling lazy you can see the sunrise by just opening the curtains on your room (assuming you don’t have one of the rooms facing the road). Fully recommended.

Love love this place. We have been coming for 25 yrs now. Some rooms have access to other rooms. The mountain view room have kitchenette, so we made sure we had connecting rooms. Had the best show of northern ganettts they were by the thousands diving right in front of the motel. Very clean and friendly staff new owners this year and they are super nice. So close to Forillon park.