From Matane the F.-A.-Gauthier sails either to Baie-Comeau (about 2 h 20) or to Godbout (about 2 h 10), never both on the same trip, and which one depends on the day of the week. Between 14 September 2026 and 3 January 2027 there are one or two departures a day from Matane, none on 25 December or 1 January. A car up to 6.4 m costs $81.25 with the driver included.
STQ 2026-2027 schedule (English V3 and French V4 PDFs agree): 14 September 2026 – 3 January 2027, then 4 January – 31 March 2027; checked 2 October 2026 Société des traversiers du Québec – Matane–Baie-Comeau–Godbout schedule 2026-2027 (PDF) · 2026-10-02
Set the two north-shore ports side by side and they behave like two separate routes sharing one ship. Baie-Comeau gets the longer crossing, about 2 h 20, and the most days: this autumn there is a Baie-Comeau sailing every day except Saturday. Godbout is the shorter run by about ten minutes and gets four days a week (Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday). On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays the F.-A.-Gauthier does both, one after the other, so the departure time from Matane decides where you end up.
The fare does not change with the destination. An adult on foot pays $23.60, and a car up to 6.4 m long is $81.25 with the driver already included, without any sales tax added. Compared with the BC coast, where the driver is a separate ticket, that makes the headline car price here the real price for a solo driver.
The timetable that matters now runs from 14 September 2026 to 3 January 2027, and the next one, from 4 January to 31 March 2027, is already published. Both are in the tabs below, with every time tied to its day.
Unlike most Canadian car ferries, the STQ prices a private vehicle with its driver included: $81.25 one way for anything up to 6.4 m long, and each passenger then pays the foot-passenger rate for their age. All fares are exempt from sales taxes, and they are the same whether you land in Baie-Comeau or Godbout.
You pay at the ticket office on board during the crossing, booked or not, in cash, by debit card, Visa or Mastercard. Tickets are non-refundable.
| Age 0 to 5 | Free |
| Age 6 to 15 | $ 14.50 |
| Age 16 to 64 | $ 23.60 |
| Age 65 and over | $ 19.90 |
| Bicycle or e-bike | Free |
| Vehicle up to 6.4 m total length | $ 81.25 |
| Each extra metre over 6.4 m | $ 23.10 |
| Electric or plug-in hybrid with a Quebec green licence plate | $ 23.60 |
| Rebate for a driver aged 65 or over | $ 3.70 |
| Deposit for a car, RV, motorcycle or ATV (refundable until 15:00 the day before) | $ 20 |
Fares in force from 1 April 2026 (STQ French fare page; the English page shows the same amounts under an older "2023-24" heading) Société des traversiers du Québec – Tarifs, traverse Matane–Baie-Comeau–Godbout · 2026-10-02
Matane sits on the south shore of the St. Lawrence, in La Matanie in the Bas-Saint-Laurent region. Across the water the ship lands either at Baie-Comeau, to the west, or at Godbout, further east in the same Manicouagan area of the Côte-Nord. The STQ gives a crossing time rather than a distance: about 2 h 20 to Baie-Comeau and 2 h 10 to Godbout.
The south-shore terminal is on rue de Matane-sur-Mer by the port, and it is also where the STQ's local administration office sits, open on weekdays. Drivers wait in the vehicle lanes; with a car or motorcycle you are expected 45 minutes before departure, and anything over 6.4 m long 60 minutes before.
Foot passengers have more slack, but the boarding doors shut 10 minutes ahead of departure.
Baie-Comeau's terminal is at 14, route Maritime, in the Marquette area of the town. It handles the longer of the two north-shore crossings and, this autumn, most of the departures: six days out of seven have a Baie-Comeau sailing.
The third terminal, at Godbout, is at 117, rue Pascal-Comeau, further east along the Côte-Nord. Its sailings are listed under each tab of the timetable below.
Reservations are not compulsory but the STQ strongly recommends them for drivers. Call 1 833 677-5039 (toll-free in Canada and the US), 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily, from three months up to three hours before departure.
Transport Canada rules forbid remaining in your vehicle during the crossing; everyone goes up to the passenger decks.
You can leave an animal in the car, where the vehicle decks are temperature-controlled, or use the closed kennel on deck 5 with cages supplied.
Smoking is allowed only in the marked outdoor area at the rear of deck 7.
Tell the staff on arrival or when booking. A companion travels free on presentation of a recognised card such as the CAL or Access 2.
The 2026-2027 timetable is a deliberate reshuffle. When it announced the year's fares and schedules on 31 March 2026, the STQ said it had studied ridership and needs and cut the high season to 8 June – 13 September (it had previously run from 20 May to 13 October). For this autumn the change falls on Tuesdays, which now go to Baie-Comeau only, and a new winter period from 4 January 2027 leaves Mondays with a single Baie-Comeau round trip and Wednesdays with a single Godbout one.
Fares rose on 1 April 2026 under Quebec's cap on indexing government tariffs, which held the increase in base fares to 2.05%.
Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays until 3 January 2027: from Matane at 08:00 (14:00 on Wednesdays), returning from Godbout at 11:00 (17:00 on Wednesdays).
No. Between 14 September 2026 and 31 March 2027 Saturday's only sailing is the 08:00 to Godbout, back at 11:00.
It covers the vehicle and its driver. Every other occupant pays the passenger fare for their age, from free for under-sixes to $23.60 for adults aged 16 to 64.
No. The STQ states that the fares on this crossing are exempt from all taxes.
No. The ship does not sail on 25 December 2026, nor on New Year's Day 2027.
From three months ahead until three hours before the ship leaves, by calling 1 833 677-5039. A $20 deposit is taken on a credit card and refunded if you cancel by 15:00 the day before.
On board, at the ship's ticket office during the crossing. The reservation only holds your place.