2 days in Quebec City

Day by day

1. Day 1: Château Frontenac and Dufferin Terrace and Governors' Promenade

   Château Frontenac, Dufferin Terrace and Governors' Promenade, La Citadelle de Québec and Fortifications of Québec, then Rue Saint-Jean in the evening.

   1. Morning

      Château Frontenac

      Non-guests can walk through the lobby and bars, and guided tours of the hotel's history run through the year.

   2. Late morning

      Dufferin Terrace and Governors' Promenade

      Lawrence to Lévis and Île d'Orléans. Underneath it, the Saint-Louis Forts and Châteaux site shows excavated remains of the former governors' residence. The Governors' Promenade continues along the cliff up towards the Citadelle and the Plains of Abraham.

   3. Lunch

      Lunch: Poutine

      Casse-croûtes and late-night counters in Saint-Roch and Saint-Jean-Baptiste; many pubs on Rue Saint-Jean serve it too.

   4. Afternoon

      La Citadelle de Québec

      Guided tours cover the ramparts, the regimental museum and the Governor General's residence. In summer the changing of the guard takes place in bearskin hats and red tunics.

   5. Late afternoon

      Fortifications of Québec

      You can walk long stretches on top of the ramparts for free, with views over the old town and the Saint-Roch lower town. Parks Canada manages the walls as a national historic site.

   6. Evening

      Rue Saint-Jean

      Walk it from end to end: the stretch beyond Porte Saint-Jean is where locals eat and drink.

2. Day 2: Quartier Petit-Champlain and Place Royale and Notre-Dame-des-Victoires

   Quartier Petit-Champlain, Place Royale and Notre-Dame-des-Victoires, Musée de la civilisation and Old Québec Funicular, then Grande Allée in the evening.

   1. Morning

      Quartier Petit-Champlain

      The Breakneck Stairs (Escalier Casse-Cou) drop into it from Côte de la Montagne, and the Fresque du Petit-Champlain, a trompe-l'œil mural near the street's lower end, tells the quarter's history.

   2. Late morning

      Place Royale and Notre-Dame-des-Victoires

      The small Notre-Dame-des-Victoires church, begun in 1688, is one of the oldest stone churches in North America, with a model ship hanging from its ceiling. Nearby, the Fresque des Québécois mural depicts figures from four centuries of city history.

   3. Lunch

      Lunch: Tourtière

      Restaurants serving traditional Québécois menus in the old town, and bakery counters at the Grand Marché.

   4. Afternoon

      Musée de la civilisation

      Temporary exhibitions are often hands-on and child-friendly.

   5. Late afternoon

      Old Québec Funicular

      It saves the climb up the Breakneck Stairs and gives a quick view over the Lower Town roofs.

   6. Evening

      Grande Allée

      Big terraces, bars and clubs just outside Porte Saint-Louis; the busiest party street on summer weekends.

If it rains

• Swap in Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec (Montcalm and Grande Allée): Don't miss the Riopelle wing and the cells preserved in the old prison building.
• Swap in Notre-Dame de Québec Basilica-Cathedral (Old Québec – Upper Town): Visit quietly outside service times and look for the crypt tours, which run at certain periods of the year.
• Swap in Parliament Building (Montcalm and Grande Allée): Tours require security screening, so allow extra time and carry photo ID.

Where to stay for this itinerary

Pace and daylight

The sights in this plan add up to roughly 9–13 hours of visiting over 2 days, before meals and getting between them. Daylight runs from about 8.6 hours in December to 15.8 hours in June, so in winter start early and keep museums for the afternoon.

Getting between stops: Walking. Almost every sight in Old Québec, the Plains of Abraham and Saint-Roch is within a 20-minute walk, though the cliff makes some routes steep.

More or fewer days

• One day in Quebec City
• 3 days in Quebec City

Questions travellers ask