Getting around without a car in the city where you’re studying might seem limited, but going car-free is eco-friendly, and there’s always public transport! Whether you want to explore your neighbourhood, be healthy, or find new ways to spend time with friends, there are plenty of exciting activities that don’t require a car.
Before we start, I want to mention that the city of Sherbrooke has its own public bus transportation service, and they accommodate disabled people too. The fare is 3.50$ if you have a bus pass, or it is 3.75$ if it’s in change. Also, the Sustainable Development Office at Bishop’s offers some subsidized bus passes each semester. There’s also an app called Transit that gives you information on bus lines close to you or can make a bus route for your destination.
Entertainment
For the students looking for entertainment, we have La Maison du Cinéma situated in downtown Sherbrooke. The cinema has historic significance as it opened in 1910 and is the oldest cinema in Sherbrooke. They offer new movie releases in English and French, and offer French-Canadian movies from time to time.
Very close to La Maison du Cinéma is the Escaparium – Le Jeu d’Évasion in downtown Sherbrooke. This is an escape room centre that offers different themes for their rooms that change regularly, and can take two to ten people per room. You can take the bus line #2 to access these activities.
This one is a little further than most activities, but there is the O-Volt amusement centre. Open seven days a week, this indoor activity provides a trampoline park, indoor playgrounds, and agility courses for all ages. You can buy an hour in the amusement centre for 20$ or two hours for 28$. You can take bus line #1 and get off at Boul. de Portland / Northrop-Frye stop.
Outdoor activities
The Mont-Bellevue Park, which is made up of Mount Bellevue and Mount John-S. Bourque is a great option for students seeking outdoor activities. The park offers facilities for tennis and archery under a subscription to their clubs (Flechivore and Gestion Loisir Plus). There are also hiking trails and mountain biking for the spring, summer, and autumn. For the winter, the activities offered are skiing, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, and fat bike trails. But note that you will need accessories for the activity, and no facility rents out equipment. You can access the location by taking the #11 bus and getting off at Kingston/Raoul-Bruneau bus stop.
Another great option for hiking is Le Bois Beckett, situated in the north of Sherbrooke and completely free. These woods are a part of Sherbrooke’s history, as in 1834, the lands were bought by Major Henry Beckett and were passed down until the city bought them back in 1963. The woods offer nine trails that can be combined to make your hike longer or shorter. These trails are known to have little animals (birds, squirrels, foxes, coyotes, groundhogs, snowshoe hares, etc), so be careful! For this activity, it takes about an hour bus ride to get there. You take the #2 bus, then, depending on timing, you can take bus lines numbered three, four, 17, or 57. Finally, you take number 16 bus and get off at Bois Beckett bus stop.
Museum outings
Sherbrooke has 2 prominent museums: Musée de la nature et des sciences de Sherbrooke and Musée des beaux arts de Sherbrooke. The Musée de la nature et des sciences de Sherbrooke proposes various expositions on history, science, animals, geology, and much more. The exposition can be interactive and changes quite often throughout the year, so I suggest looking at their website first. This museum is situated in downtown Sherbrooke, and you can take the number two bus to get there.
Very close to this museum is the Musée des Beaux Arts de Sherbrooke. Similar to the other museum, the exhibitions there also change, but there is one that is permanent. The exhibitions come in different forms (like paintings, sculptures, photos, videos) and are done by local artists or invited artists. For this museum, you must take the lines #2 and #9, then get off at the Musée des Beaux-Arts bus stop.
