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Description
Bonjour! We operate from May to October! YOU CAN APPLY ALREADY FOR MAY - OCTOBER 2025 FOR THE LAST HOUSEKEEPING POSITION.
We prefer to have a long-term stay of at least 2 MONTHS, we give priority to those participants who can stay the longest and to those who are BILINGUAL in French and English. When communicating please state clearly how long and when you want to come right from the start.
I am François, a former teacher, who loves the outdoors and interacting with people. After living all over Canada, I returned to my roots in Ile d'Orleans, 15km from Quebec City. I run a seasonal vintage motel with on-site scooter/bike rental and ebike guided tours.
The island is the cradle of the French presence in North America (1645) and one the first European settlements in North America. The whole island is protected by the Ministry of Culture of Québec. Québec City (1608) lies in front of us and it is the most European city in North America, protected by the United Nations World Heritage Fund.
We look for outdoorsy, optimistic, energetic, and outgoing people who are eager to explore the island and make new friends.Types of help and learning opportunities
Art ProjectsLanguage practiceHelp with Eco ProjectsGardeningDIY and building projectsCreating/ Cooking family mealsHelp around the houseGeneral MaintenanceHelp with Computers/ InternetCultural exchange and learning opportunities
If you are a curious person, appreciate nature, and enjoy community living, you'll fall in love with the island!
Ile d'Orleans is 71km / 50 mi of vineyards, farms, historical architecture and a creative art scene.
Amazing scenery, hiking paths in the forest and the St. Lawrence River beach for swimming or water sports! There is a little theatre as well as a few art galleries. Plus, you'll get a big chance to learn some Quebec french every day.
When the bikes, ebikes or scooters are not rented you can cycle around for free.
(We get so many requests so to make sure you read this far please type TONI THE PIZZA to the title of your message)
Quebec City is only 15 km / 9.5 mi away and you can reach it on Uber or a less frequent bus (PLUmobile that can pick you up at the bank Desjardin on the island, bringing you downtown and back) you must verify their schedule since it can change every summer.
To many volunteers, the atmosphere here feels like a small family after a short time. Some of them have extended their stays or come back for several summers, so do not plan your travel too tight, leave yourself some flexibility to enjoy your time here with the other volunteers, exploring the beautiful surroundings.
The island is not a party place since most businesses close around 6-8 pm. If you feel the urge to be in a city almost every day, you may consider volunteering in a city instead.Host offers payment in line with the minimum wage
This host offers accommodation and payment.
Help
I'm looking for positive and motivated people to help me with :
*Bike person:
June-September. Start early in the morning, plug in e-bikes, fill up scooters with gas, change oil, pump tyres, and make sure they are in good condition overall. Show customers how to use an e-bike, scooter, check bike rental bookings, and show them the map. Must know at least how to fix a regular bike, change tyres, put chains back on, grease and fine-tune gears, etc.
*️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️ Housekeeping and maintenance:
Main role, all season long. Cleaning rooms, making beds, vacuuming and folding fresh laundry, starting from the morning until afternoon. This includes watering the flowers, cleaning our rental bikes and scooters and just making sure the property looks neat and inviting. You should be focused in order on the task and care about details.
* Motel/Rentals front desk:
July-August, may vary. This person would help out renting bikes, e-bikes, and scooters, answer the phone, show the map, check guests in and out, etc. Ideally, you already have Front Desk experience and a suitable personality to work with the public. You'll learn how to use our booking systems work.
This is a good opportunity if you plan to study tourism/business administration, or you'd like to learn more about it, as you'll experience many aspects of owning a small business, working with the public, housekeeping, renting sports equipment, etc.
*5 hours a day 5 days a week, schedule can vary depending on the month of the season.
*Two days off per week, not on weekends, maybe not consecutive. We listen to requests though.
*University/future employment references.
*Remuneration will be provided.Languages spoken
English: Fluent
Spanish: Fluent
French: FluentAccommodation
LODGING: We host up to 4 volunteers at the same time, depending on the busyness of the season. Volunteers stay in the loft, a small place next to the motel where you share bunk beds, a kitchen and a washroom. Towels, pillow cases and bed sheets are provided.
FOOD: Once a week you'll get (almost) everything you need from the supermarket since we order groceries online and pick them up on the designated date. This covers up to 3 meals a day, including your days off.
In general, you'll spend most of your time with the other volunteers in the loft, hanging out on the terrace or cycling around the island. You must get along together with other people since sharing is a staple of this workaway.
I will be onsite every day too and available in case of questions or problems, but we are mainly busy with keeping the project running. We will try our best to spend time with you, but we work intensely during the day and most evenings, so we just go home and recover. This is why we appreciate mature and independent personalities.
*If you have special dietary requirements you'll prepare your own meals.
*Please do not apply if you are a smoker. All our premises are 100% non-smoking.What else ...
HOW TO GET HERE:
From Montreal arrive to Quebec City Main Station GARE DU PALAIS by AmigoExpress (car sharing) or Orleans Express (bus) or VIARail (train).
From Quebec City Airport YQB take a taxi to Quebec City main station GARE DU PALAIS.
From Quebec City Main Station GARE DU PALAIS, there is a public bus, called PLUmobile to our island ILE D'ORLEANS.
Please look up their schedule online; they only run Mon - Fri.
Once on the PLUmobile bus, tell the bus driver to let you get off the bus at the snackbar at the intersection of CHEMIN ROYAL AND ROUTE PREVOST, after leaving the village of SAINTE PETRONILLE. You may walk uphill on ROUTE PREVOST
If arriving on weekends/holidays or with HUGE luggage: From Quebec City Main Station GARE DU PALAIS, get on the public METROBUS 800, direction BEAUPORT until CHUTES DE MONTMORENCY.
Uber or Taxi are always easier.A little more information
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
Can host families
Can host digital nomads
This host has indicated that they love having digital nomads stay.
Space for parking camper vans
This host can provide space for campervans.
Can possibly accept pets
We can accomodate traveller with pets, but needs to be discussed beforehand.
How many Workawayers can stay?
More than two
Feedback (49)
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Accuracy of profile:
(4.7)
Cultural exchange:
(4.8)
Communication:
(4.7)
The island is beautiful during the… read more
Minnie was not only hardworking but… read more
If you think you are good at something, you are probably not as… read more
I can definitely recommend to work and stay in the Motel and on this incredible… read more
I set foot in Ile d'Orléans a year ago and found it so good that I returned this year.
The island is a heavenly place, full of tourists with many restaurants, apple, blackberry, strawberry farms and more, in short you certainly can't get bored.
The work is not difficult at all;
Sometimes when the… read more
François was a great host, gave us clear instructions and answered our questions. It was always understandable what we had to do and on which days we had to work for how long.
In the beginning (which was the beginning of May, so it was before the season started) we… read more
Francois is an easy going, interesting and fun guy who is passionate about the area and is great to work with. He really gets the idea of workaway and the balance of work and travelling/fun.
I worked mostly on… read more
The work to do was very dynamic, there are defined periods to help with the motel like assist the customers, housekeeping, gardening, chopping wood, light maintenance; moreover… read more
Le travail est facile à comprendre et pas épuisant.
Nous avons été à l’aise dès le départ.
Lorsque les vélos sont disponibles, il est possible de les emprunter pour pouvoir parcourir l’île, ce qui est vraiment un plus.
Nous recommandons vivement ce workaway ! :)
Encore merci à… read more
It's almost impossible to describe with words what we experienced!
The island is a magic place , full of shops and stores and restaurants that you will visit during your stay!
The work is fun , I get to know many families and people fromi literally every part of the word , repairing… read more
Every person I met was interesting and caring to their core, making me feel at home from my very first day.
I learned much more than I ever thought possible in such a short period, both about myself and Quebecois culture.
If you want the experience of a… read more
Travaux divers et variés de rénovation et motel en constante évolution avec des projets intérressants, puis remise… read more
Plus... we did a lot of running and training ! Thanks for all the work… read more
J'ai amélioré mes compétences de peintre et je peux potentiellement participer au prochain marathon de Paris !
Ici c'est du travail dans la bonne humeur avec Renaud en fond musical. Bref que demander de plus ?
C'était un plaisir d'aider et de participer à l'ouverture du motel… read more
But this experience was really amazingly unexpected.
The first day I arrived Stephanie was at the reception already waiting with a big smile and a hug, ready to welcome me.
From the beginning on it felt like home.
The motel is on a little hill, perfectly… read more
François et Stéphanie sont remplis de bonne énergie et ils la propagent autour d'eux, le travail en soit n'est pas fatiguant et c'est meme un grand plaisir… read more
One of those few volunteers who will actually care about your business and want to help you improve. She was very hardworking, understood her tasks and executed them with ease and confidence. Furthermore she was an absolute pleasure to… read more
The work was enjoyable and efficient.
Franck and Stephanie were easy going, funny and very kind.
I had the chance to attend to a guided tour on a eletric bike, this was amazing.
They also listen to our needs and trust us right away
I might come… read more
we helped them get the motel ready for winter.
they're lovely people and completely fair about the hours and workload.
it's a amazing and beautiful spot to spend your time.
one minor disadvantage: for groceries you have to leave the island.
Thanks a lot Stephi and François, we really enjoyed our stay… read more
Le motel est superbement situé… read more
This was our first Workaway experience, and some of the pluses were… read more
We loved to see her extending her stay with us and would love even more to have her back again one day here with us!
The team is amazing not only to work with but also to live with. From shared meals, walks in the forest, tiny bike excursions to salsa Nights, I had an… read more
I don't remember exactly the time that I passed because the time went so fast, but if you are looking for a wonderful place around… read more
If you like the quiet and some cleaning this is the place for you. You have a bike if you need one to move around on the island, which is beautiful to visit. I liked being close to nature, but you still have the city on the other side of the bridge.
I had a great time and recommend this… read more
I am sorry for my late review! My account was offline, but I recovered it now.
Thanks you guy for the experience in the hotel! I highly recommend this place for those who are independent people. It important to know how to manage your time (: After work, I had a lot of free hours to move around this amazing island. I even lost some weight… read more
François and Stephanie are really nice and always made sure that we had anything we needed to enjoy our stay. They gave us money every week to go to the supermarket. We cooked our own food, we ate really well. We also… read more
In July, I stayed two weeks in the motel and enjoyed my time there a lot. Stephanie and Francois were very kind and respectful and always ready to help with planning my day trips etc. They always made an effort to make my stay very nice :) The other staff members are very friendly too.
The place has a very beautiful view of Quebec City… read more
Stephanie and François have still something to learn about hosting...the basic food wasn't always provided (0nce we have stayed without bread for five days) and the working time very often went beyond 5 hours/day, without shorter days though.
The cultural exchange aspect is lacking since we… read more
He is hands-on and pro-active, loves what he's doing and projects this happiness to his entire environment. It was a huge pleasure having him around, we would always… read more
Martina and I (see her feedback) stayed with Stephanie and François for 10 days, while they were renovating their motel in order to open it. It was our first experience with workaway, and it was exciting!
There was a lot of staff to do and we worked a lot, having fun with others workawayers.
I worked as electrician installing lamps and… read more
You could tell she loved our place, as she took over the initiative when needed and managed every situation in a very mature way. We could always count… read more
I stayed whit Stephanie and François ten days this may, it was my first experience whit Workaway and it was very nice. They are kind people, very joyous and simpaticol :) i worked in their motel doing different things like cleaning and preparing room for the guest or odd jobs :) they will be provided with basic food,like they said… read more
Ce fut un réel plaisir de rencontrer ce mec qui est devenu un ami...
Que du positif !
We were working 4 or 5 days a week with Emanuele to try the motel being ready for the opening. Stéphanie and François are both very friendly and warmfull. They are very flexible with their schedule, we asked them several times to change our days off to have… read more
Emanuele stayed with us 3 weeks, working hard in the coldest spring in QC history !!
A real pleasure to work with such a guy !- We would have kept you for months
You now have friends in QC City - merci et a bientot ! Francois et Steffie
We stayed at Stephanie's workaway for two weeks from the end of March 2017 on. It was a good stay.
We started to renovate their inn.
Our tasks included painting, sort out old stuff and translating (for the motel's website).
Stephanie and Francois both have a huge knowledge of the sourrounded area and interesting places to visit and… read more