Voyages Coste: solidarity alive and well in Minganie

  In December 2010 in Natashquan, Minganie, representatives of socioeconomic, tourism, municipal, government and business organizations gathered for a forum. They concluded that a cooperative approach would allow the community to coordinate more effectively and develop a tourism offering beneficial to visitors and the region itself.

Jacques Lachance, one of the people who initiated this process of reflection and coordination among local and regional forces, arrived in Natashquan in the early 1970s with his sheep, after spending time as an antiques dealer and horse-drawn-carriage driver in Vieux-Québec. A lover of heritage, the Saint-Laurent and nature, he had travelled widely and worked in many fields before settling where his heart drew him.

 

Now a consultant, producer and project lead in tourism development and promotion, he says the Coopérative de solidarité en tourisme équitable (CoSte) serves as a catalyst for political and socioeconomic stakeholders throughout Minganie and even across Côte-Nord, thanks to its original, energetic approach to showcasing the region and its attractions.

During our meeting on the terrace behind CoSte’s head office, he described with energy and conviction what led him to join an undertaking of which he is now very proud. He lives in Rivière-au-Tonnerre and remains regularly involved in the agency’s tourism activities, notably as a guide accompanying groups to destinations across Minganie.

  
Since 2006, the Agence coopérative de solidarité en tourisme équitable, or CoSte, has organized and marketed tourism experiences in Minganie and Basse-Côte-Nord. It showcases the natural environment and local people, gives travellers lively, dynamic, authentic and memorable experiences, and maximizes positive benefits for communities.

The travel agency has a visitor reception office and offers accommodation at L’Escale Lam-Air in Rivière-au-Tonnerre. Its packages and tourism services cover Côte-Nord, particularly Minganie, Anticosti Island and Basse-Côte-Nord. ‘CoSte contributes to the growth of local communities by encouraging sustainable, responsible and equitable tourism,’ Lachance says. It offers a wide range of services: flight reservations, cruises in the golfe du Saint-Laurent, tailor-made packages and à-la-carte products.

 

Initially housed in a small building near the church, the cooperative received an unexpected ‘gift’ in 2013. The owners of the motel in the centre of the village were retiring and, recognizing the importance of CoSte’s work and achievements, donated the property to the cooperative. The waterfront complex offered an ideal opportunity to expand its services and packages.

With Alberte Marcoux arriving as the new executive director that same year, CoSte established its head office in the front section of the building and also took over management of L’Escale Lam-Air’s dining room and 13 guest rooms. The gift certainly acted as a wonderful boost for the organization and its members.

   

‘Voyages CoSte received start-up funding, but the cooperative has been completely self-supporting since 2016,’ Jacques Lachance explains. ‘We have received no public operating funding for nearly 10 years. The assistance we do receive is essentially tied to specific development projects, such as purchasing a minibus or carrying out a collaborative digital transition with 40 member businesses.’ The collectively owned enterprise supports itself through sales and belongs to members based mainly in the MRC du Golfe du St-Laurent and MRC de la Minganie, including Anticosti Island.

CoSte has received support and encouragement from Tourisme Québec, the ministère du Développement économique, de l’Innovation et de l’Exportation, the Centres locaux de développement (CLD) in Minganie and Basse-Côte-Nord, the Conférence régionale des élus de la Côte-Nord and Emploi-Québec. These partners contributed in various ways to the start-up phase. The cooperative also works with other local and regional partners to deliver projects and its diverse range of tourism services.

They see this community-born initiative as an enterprise that could, over time, become a model of collective development and local empowerment for northern Québec communities.

Many Canadian agencies, meanwhile, believe CoSte opens a vast and little-known territory to travellers in an original and respectful way. Without it, the region would remain difficult to reach and offer relatively few options for trouble-free travel. CoSte places the experiential character of its packages at the forefront, matching the expectations of a new generation of travellers seeking experiences.

One thing is certain: CoSte occupies an increasingly important place in Minganie tourism. Guides GQ representatives saw this directly and used a few of its services and packages last August and September. (See ‘Eight Days Exploring Minganie.’)

Voyages CoSte
voyagescoste.ca
454, Jacques-Cartier
Rivière-au-Tonnerre, QC G0G 2L0
1.877.573.2678 or 418 465-2002

Republished on March 20, 2026