Recently we were lucky enough to find ourselves exploring Québec City with my family! And as someone who grew up right across the border from Canada but had not been there yet, it was really great to finally cross Canada off our travel bucket list!
We were also in for a treat as my parents were the travel agents and planners for this trip, so we just got to go along for the ride and enjoy our time in Québec City.
I wasn’t quite sure what to expect but I did see beautiful photos of the area as I looked up a few things before our trip. I truly felt like we had flown all the way to France instead of just up into Canada with how French everything was. The food, the language, the Old World architecture!
It was a really neat place to visit, especially if you like history.
If Québec City is on your travel bucket list, here’s what we did on our trip to help jumpstart some ideas for your travel itinerary!
Day 1
Citadel
We started our first morning in Québec City with a military history lesson at the Citadel (in French: Citadelle de Québec).
This 300-year-old historic site sits atop Cap Diamant in Old Québec and is in a star-shape to offer the most protection to the city. We took a guided tour in English to visit some of the towers and overlook points before checking out the on-site museum.
We were lucky our tour was at 11 a.m. as we were still touring when the set off the cannon at noon. It was pretty cool!
Bello
After walking around the Citadel, it was time for lunch and we opted for Italian on our first day with a visit to Bello. We got some wine, arancini, and Rick and I split a fantastic duck pizza.
Parliament
After lunch, we went to visit Parliament and learn more about Québec’s (and Canada’s) political system. The buildings were designated a historic site in 1985 by the Québec government and they are quite fun to explore.
It was free to do the self-guided tour and they do have guides to help you along your exploration. There was only one room we couldn’t visit as it was being used for official business at the time.
Fair warning, you do need photo ID, such as a passport, in order to get into the building and you will go through security. And reservations are required.
The Horizons experience at the Observatoire
After strolling around Parliament, we were off to the top floor of the Observatory or Observatoire.
The experience offers 360-degree views of the city and has some fun facts about Canada and Québec specifically throughout, as well as a few immersive (read: video) experiences.
The views are incredible as you are 725 ft. or 221 meters above the city. I love doing things like this where you can see the city from above as it’s such a different viewpoint, so I was happy we did this!
Le Projet
Up next was a stop at Le Project to sample some beers and ciders and of course dig into some much needed poutine! We were in Canada after all!
The bar has a great and varied drink menu, though once I tried this kolsch-blonde concoction, I was hooked on that particular beer from this place.
Even though we had a few beers at Le Projet, we still managed to head back to the hotel and have some wine to round out the evening.
Day 2
Explore outside Old Québec
On our second day in the city, we had booked a car service to take us outside the city center and we went to the Saint-Anne Cathedral. Our driver told us about his life in Québec and pointed out interesting sightseeing opportunities and even drove us over to the island to see where wine is made and just explore more of the area.
Lunch
After we were dropped back off at our hotel we went and found a little spot for lunch so we could sample some smoked meat sandwiches, French onion soup, and of course, have a few more drinks. We were on vacation!
We stopped at Pub L’Oncle Antoine and the food was really good. The only thing that could have made our visit better was being able to sit outside, but we were a party of six so it’s understandable why we couldn’t.
Ride the funicular
After lunch, it was time to keep adventuring around the city. Québec City is quite hilly, a bit like San Francisco, and so we opted to try the funicular to rest our legs and get a cool view of the city from above.
Musee des Ursulines
Next up was a self-guided tour of the Musee des Ursulines. This art and history museum preserves artifacts from when the sisters taught girls at a boarding school.
It was a unique look into the past and a very different lifestyle than the ones everyone in our travel party leads. Everything was in French and English, making it easy to explore on our own.
Dinner
We had dinner that night at St. Malo, which was fantastic if you love French food, which I do.
Most of our party had some form of duck (cassoulet for me and duck confit for Rick), and of course I ordered some escargot for the table. I don’t even want to know how many glasses of rose we had before it was time to head off to our next activity.
Ghost tour of Québec City
Another ghost tour added to the books!
That night, we opted to do a ghost tour/dark history tour of Québec City. I’d definitely say it leans more toward the dark side of the city and the macabre instead of a straight up ghost tour, but it was still really fun.
We learned what would happen if the early citizens were found guilty of treason, a cursed captain, the tortured executioner, a witch and her interesting confinement, haunted homes built on top of smallpox cemeteries, and the horrifying story of a woman’s worst nightmare come to life in the graveyard.
This is a walking tour and Québec is hilly, so wear comfortable shoes and be prepared to walk for this one!
Day 3
Immersion Québec
On this day we were off to really experience the city’s history at Immersion Québec. This was a VR-based experience that walked you through the area’s history, starting with the First Nations people that called the land home and then the eventual fighting over the area between the British and French.
It was interesting and a cool way to learn about the city’s history, but I’m not sure it’s a need-to-visit. Plus, if you get motion sick I may not recommend this as the video zooms in and out and you have to turn around to see things and I could feel my stomach not loving the experience.
Museum of Civilization
We also explored history and enjoyed a cultural activity at the Museum of Civilization.
The museum had some neat exhibits, including Love Me Gender, This is Our Story, Inspiring Nature, Inspired Technology, and René Et Lévesque.
Lunch
We opted for lunch at Sapristi where we shared some much needed sangria on the hot day, plus some steak tartare and pizza. After lunch we walked around until we found dessert in the form of Beaver Tails!
Check out our foodie guide to Quebec City!
Art Galleries
After lunch our group split up and we did our own things. Rick went to the hotel to catch up on some sleep and I opted to visit the many art galleries around our hotel. Sadly, I did not purchase anything even though I had my eye on several stunning pieces.
Dinner at Echaude
We all met back up for some dinner at Echaude where again we all seemed to gravitate toward the same menu item, this time halibut. This restaurant was fantastic and I’d highly recommend it!
Nighttime ferry ride
We ended our evening with a ride on the ferry over to Levis so we could see the city lit up against the starry sky and get a different perspective of Québec City. It took probably an hour all in all and I do wish we had explored Levis a bit, even just to get a nightcap, but we did not.
Day 4
Notre-Dame de Québec Basilica-Cathedral
We started our morning off with a tour of Québec’s Notre-Dame Cathedral. My dad is really into churches and religious buildings and it was a beautiful church, but it did make me miss paying a visit to Notre-Dame in Paris!
Art on Rue du Tresor
After visiting the church, we wandered and shopped for a bit before strolling Rue du Tresor to see some local artists put their work up on display (and for sale!).
Lunch at Polina Pizzeria
Pizza was back on the menu for lunch today as we stopped at Polina Pizzeria. It was a cute pizza place and the thin crust pizza was very tasty.
Morrin Center
After lunch, we were off to the Morrin Center to learn more about the city’s first jail (which happens to be haunted), and Morrin College.
Not that I would expect to go to jail, but I am so thankful I live now as I can’t imagine the conditions at a modern jail are anywhere near as bad as they were when this building was used as the jail.
Hearing about the history of the school – that also has ties to our home state of Colorado! – was also fascinating. Women were allowed to attend, which is pretty progressive for the time period.
Chateau du Frontenac + 1608
We wound our way around the historic center before stepping inside the most famous and most photographed building in Québec City: Chateau du Frontenac! This impressive hotel is a must-see and it has some neat exhibits in the lower level, plus some shops where I got an adorable gnome to add to my collection.
We also got to the 1608 bar right as they opened so we could drink some great wine and have a light snack before dinner. I’d definitely recommend checking out 1608!
Dinner
It was time for our last meal together on our Québec City trip and we opted to dine at Chez Jules. Honestly, I was still full from our charcuterie board so I opted for a salad with foie gras and cold duck. It was still fantastic! Plus, I snuck a few of Rick’s frog legs and fries from his plate. You can bet your bottom dollar we also had more French wine!
It was a wonderful four-day exploration of Québec City and I’m so thankful we were able to go with my family. It really did feel like we made it all the way to France without having to cross an ocean. It was charming, the people were friendly, and it had a very relaxed vibe about it.
Have you been to Québec City? Tell us what was on your travel itinerary that we may have missed (and might need to add to our plans should we return)!
