Grande-Vallée and Petite-Vallée

Grande-Vallée and Petite-Vallée are two small villages next to each other on the north shore of the Gaspé Peninsula. Grande-Vallée is home to about 1,100 people (2011), while about 180 live in Petite-Vallée.

Petite-Vallée is home to Le Festival en Chanson, a music festival held in late June.

History
In 1691, Governor General Frontenac granted the area to François Hazeur, a prosperous merchant from Quebec City. The seignory, called La Grande-Vallée-des-Monts, stretched from Rivière-Magdeleine Seignory in the west to the Saint-Hélier portage in the east. It was inherited by Hazeur's son-in-law, Michel Sarrazin, a surgeon, biologist, and doctor of the King.

No colonization took place until the 1830s, when fishermen of Saint-Thomas-de-Montmagny occupied the place during the summer. In 1842, Alexis Caron and his family, also from Saint-Thomas-de-Montmagny, became the first permanent settlers. In 1846, the mission of Saint-François-Xavier-de-Grande-Vallée was founded. In 1872, the post office opened.

Get in
Grande-Vallée and Petite-Vallée are on Route 132, about 95 km (59 miles) and 86 km (54 miles) west of Gaspé, respectively.

By plane
Gaspé is where you will find the nearest airport: Michel-Pouliot Airport is served by daily flights from Montreal, Quebec City, and the Îles de la Madeleine on Air Canada Express.

By bus

 * Operates a route daily between Gaspé and Rimouski including stops in Grande-Vallée, Sainte-Anne-des-Monts, Matane, and Mont-Joli.  Route follows the St. Lawrence River along the north side of Gaspé Peninsula.