Quebec Points of Interest and Places to Visit

One of Montreal's most enduring symbols, the Notre Dame Basilica occupies a site rich with three centuries of history, with its most recent claim to fame being the baptism of Céline Dion's son. Inside, one of the highlights is the altar, which displays 32 bronze panels representing birth, life, and death. The west tower houses one massive bell, which when rung, vibrates right up through your feet. The Chapelle du Sacré Coeur (Sacred Heart Chapel) located behind the main hall is nicknamed the Wedding Chapel and is so popular that there is a two years wait to tie the knot. Tuesday through Saturday, an evening sound and light display called "Et la lumière fut" ("And then there was light") uses cutting-edge technology to tell the story of the church and the city.

When Quebecois want to soak up the sun or enjoy a family picnic, they head to the Plains of Abraham, contained within Battlefields Park. Within the park’s sprawling 267 acres/108 hectares are grassy knolls, fountains, monuments, trees, and lush sunken gardens all for residents and visitors to enjoy. Like other sites in Vieux Quebec, the Plains of Abraham is a looking glass into the city’s history. But though it was the site of many clashes for supremacy between the French and British Empires, the park you see today is what Central Park and Hyde Park are to New York and London. Spend an afternoon wandering its walking trails, checking out its historical monuments, and marveling at its landscaping. Throughout the year, the Plains of Abraham is the site of many outdoor concerts and events.

On the edge of the St Lawrence River, Old Montreal (or Vieux Montréal) is the city’s birthplace with picturesque squares, grand old-world architecture, and a dense concentration of locals and visitors. The narrow Rue St-Paul, the old main street, teems with art galleries, shops, and eateries. The broad concourse of the Old Port is lined with green parkland and cafes along Rue de la Commune. The area’s pulsating center is Place Jacques-Cartier. From here, its center promenade slopes down from rue Notre-Dame to Old Port, lined with 18th century stone buildings. At the base of the plaza are horse-drawn carriages, outdoor cafes, and street performers. Nearby are such highlights as the Bonsecours Market and the Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours Chapel. West of Place Jacques-Cartier is Place d’Armes, dominated by the Notre-Dame Basilica. As you walk south, you’ll reach the Place Royal and the St. Lawrence River, which is completely taken up by Old Port (Vieux Port). Here you’ll find maritime facil

While the actual mountain range stretches roughly from Ottawa to Charlevoix, the “Laurentides” refers to a mountainous region just north of Montreal. Other than being a nature’s lover idea of paradise, thanks to lush forests, the Laurentians are actually one of the oldest mountain ranges in the world - it contains rocks deposited before the Cambrian Period 540 million years ago. The region is very popular with Montrealers wanting to escape the city’s hustle for a weekend, as well as visitors with a thing for hiking, rock climbing, rafting, cycling, canoeing, zip-lining, golfing and a host of winter activities like snowshoeing, alpine and cross-country skiing, dog sledding, ice skating and many, many more. In fact, the Laurentians are home to some of the best ski resorts in the province, top-notch golf courses, world-class Nordic spas and a 230-kilometer-long (140 miles) linear park. The first ski lift in North America was actually built in Shawbridge back in the 1930s!

The mountain is the site of Mount Royal Park, the work of New York Central Park designer Frederick Law Olmsted. It's a sprawling, leafy playground that's perfect for cycling, jogging, horseback riding, picnicking; in winter, miles of paths and trails draw cross-country skiers and snowshoers. On clear days, you can enjoy panoramic views from the Kondiaronk lookout near Chalet du Mont Royal, a grand old white villa that hosts big-band concerts in summer; or from the Observatoire de l'Est, a favorite rendezvous spot for lovebirds. En route you'll spot the landmark Cross of Montréal, which is illuminated at night. Other features of the park include Lac des Castors (Beaver Lake), a sculpture garden, a lush forest, with numerous sets of stairs, and two cemeteries.

Locals bestow Place-Royale as the spiritual and historical heart of Vieux Quebec, for this spot is not only the birthplace of French Civilization in North America but also one of the continent’s oldest settlements. And that history resonates, as the site has the largest surviving ensemble of 17th and 18th century buildings in North America. One of the highlights here is the Centre d’Interpretation de Place-Royal, an interpretive center with illuminating exhibits on the individual people, houses, and challenges of setting up a town the shores of the St. Lawrence River. Walk past the center to see a trompe-l’oeil mural of people from the early city. Dominating the plaza is the oldest church in Quebec, Notre-Dame-des-Victoires. It’s worth taking a peek inside at the paintings, altar, and the large boat suspended from the ceiling. When not soaking up the history, duck in and out of the boutiques and restaurants that are sprinkled throughout the Place-Royal.

To truly experience Montreal’s melting pot of cultures head to Chinatown. Dating back to the 1860s when Chinese immigrants went to Canada to work on the railroad and in the mines, the neighborhood has preserved its Asian culture for over 100 years. Walking the streets, it’s not uncommon to hear French, English, Vietnamese, Cantonese, Mandarin and other Asian dialects spoken on the same block. Moreover, Chinatown is where you’ll find a range of unique experiences you won’t find anywhere else in the city. Conveniently, Montreal’s Chinatown is located in the city center, so you’ll be able to continue exploring. Enter on Saint Laurent Boulevard to walk through a traditional Chinese gate to get you in the right mindset. No trip to Chinatown would be complete without sampling the cuisine, especially as the food here tends not only to be delicious, but budget-friendly.

Vieux Québec is the crown jewel of French Canada and if you're coming for the first time, look out - there's simply no other place like it in North America. Narrow cobbled streets are lined with 17th- and 18th-century houses and almost every step will bring you to another historical plaque, a leafy park with a battery of 18th-century canons, a grand 17th-century plaza, and other historical sites. In fact, wandering around Vieux Québec is like exploring an old European city. Vieux Quebec is compact and easily walkable. On a daytime stroll, you can browse the shops along Rue Ste-Jean, wander among the grassy knolls in the Plains of Abraham, climb to the top of the Citadel, walk the Fortifications, then follow the river boardwalk (the Promenade des Gouverneurs) down to the Victorian waterfront. From there you get the classic view of Quebec City’s most famous building, the Chateau Frontenac.

Site of the 1976 Olympic Games, Olympic Park is now a family-friendly destination packed with sites and activities. The four attractions are the Olympic Stadium (State Olympique), the Montreal Biodome (Biodôme de Montréal), the Botanical Garden (Jardin Botanique), and the Montreal Insectarium (Insectarium de Montreal). Plus, they are all within walking distance of each other. Olympic Stadium is mainly used for baseball, festivals, fairs, and shows. It’s one of the most visited stadiums in the world. A platform at the top affords panoramic views of Montreal and its surroundings. At the Montreal Biodome, you can an amble through a rainforest, the Arctic Circle, rolling woodlands, or along the raw Atlantic oceanfront - all without ever leaving the building. Inside the Botanical Gardens you can wander around 10 large, fragrant conservatory greenhouses, each with a theme, from orchids and begonias to ferns and rainforest flora.

Stretching from the Rue Notre-Dame in the north to the Old Port in the south, Jacques Cartier Place (Place Jacques Cartier) is the famed cobbled square at the heart of Vieux Montréal. In this lively carnival, you can watch lively street performers, have your portrait painted, or watch the unfolding pageant of colorful people. Under Nelson’s Column, a popular market sells arts, crafts, flowers, and souvenirs. You can see all the action from a table in one of the inviting street cafés that line the square. Sip a glass of beer or wine and soak up the atmosphere, relax and let the afternoon go by, enjoy people-watching at its best. Afterward, you can stroll down the slope toward the Old Port, while marveling at the opulent 19th century townhouses and mansions.

As one of the longest and most historic rivers in the world – penetrating 3,058 kilometers into North America- the St Lawrence River is omnipresent everywhere visitors look. Stretching from the mighty Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes of Ontario, the land on either side of it has been occupied by Native tribes for almost 10,000 years. And although many studies suggest Vikings were the first European explorers to navigate its waters, the river was only officially discovered by Jacques Cartier in the 16th century – which turned out to be one of the most important turning points in North American history. Indeed, the Saint Lawrence River served as the main route for European exploration of the North American interior in order to establish a lucrative colonial empire resulting from the trade with the Montagnais, the Etchemin and the Algonquin people.

Higher than the Niagara Falls, the impressive Montmorency Falls stand 83 meters (272 feet) tall. The falls form at the mouth of the Montmorency River, where it drops over a cliff into the St. Lawrence River. On summer nights, the plunging water is illuminated; during July and August, the falls are enhanced by a spectacular international fireworks competition. Montmorency Falls is surrounded by Parc de la Chute-Montmorency, where visitors can see the falls while having a picnic. If you want to get a close-up view of the falls, you can take the staircase, which takes you from top to bottom, or take a suspension bridge over the crest of the falls, which enables you to see both sides of the park as well as the thundering water.

Bonsecours Market, in Vieux Montreal, is a bustling gallery of shops selling arts and crafts, leather goods and garments. The sprawling 19th century neoclassical building - with its long facade, a colonnaded portico, and a silvery dome - makes a visit worthwhile. Since it was built, the imposing structure has been everything from a farmers market to a concert theatre to a brief stint as city hall. Inside, shops stock everything from Inuit art and locally made jewelry to luxurious made-in-Canada beaver coats. Over at the Diffusion Griff' 3000 boutique, you can browse the creations of some of Québec's finest designers. Also here is an exhibition hall, which showcases displays on history and culture; three restaurants, which line the facade on rue St-Paul; and a dozen or so art galleries.

As the only park in the province entirely dedicated to preserve and enhance an exclusively marine environment, the Saguenay-St Lawrence Marine Park understandably boasts exceptional whale watching opportunities. The limpid waters of the biggest estuary in the world, the St Lawrence River, joins those of the longest fjord in Eastern Canada, the Saguenay Fjord; the marine park that is created in the process is abundant in natural treasures and biological diversity, including some of the world’s most impressive cetaceans like the furtive blue whales, belugas, the harbor porpoise, the minke whale, the fin whale and the humpback whale as well as three types of seals and 150 species of birds. Stretching over 1,245 square kilometers, the park requires an entire day to visit, if not more! It offers a myriad of activities like scuba diving.

At the base of the Château Frontenac, Quebec City’s Terrasse Dufferin promenade looks out across the St Lawrence River from its clifftop perch atop Cap Diamant. Named after Lord Dufferin, who was Canada’s governor between 1872 and 1878, come in summertime when green and white-topped gazebos fill the 425-meter-long boardwalk and street performers entertain. Time your visit for the early evening, and you’ll also get to see the sun set over the Laurentian Mountains to the north. In winter, Dufferin Terrasse is especially popular for its Les Glissades de la Terrasse toboggan run, which wooshes people up to 60 mph down an 82-meter slide. Just underneath Terrasse Dufferin, by the statue of Samuel de Champlain, you can visit the archaeological site of Champlain’s second fort which dates back to 1620.

Known as the artistic and hipster hub of Montreal, the Mile End is a neighborhood situated in the Plateau-Mont-Royal borough of Montreal. This is where most fashionable eateries, speakeasy bars, vintage shops, and underground music venues are located, along with plentiful Hassidic Jewish and Portuguese communities – which just goes to show just how diverse Mile End really is. In fact, the neighborhood’s ethnic composition has changed a great deal ever since its beginnings in the late 19th century when the transcontinental railway station was built, and retains a strong international yet very local flair, as most ethnic groups have been living alongside each other for decades.

Just 18 miles (30 km) outside of Quebec City stands one of the most important pilgrimage sites of Canada and the Catholic word: the Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré Basilica. This Catholic sanctuary receives more than half a million visitors every year, which represents quite a lot of people for this modest village. The reason why this basilica is so famous—even more so than its Montreal counterpart—is because it is credited with many miracles, especially when it comes to curing the sick and disabled. Initially built as a shrine to Sainte-Anne, the basilica, whose history goes all the way back to 1658, got its healing reputation when Louis Guimont, a local carpenter suffering from rheumatism, came to help with the construction of the first chapel and was miraculously healed after its completion. Even nowadays, the pillars in the front entrance of the basilica are covered in crutches from people who are said by the parishioners to have been miraculously cured by Sainte-Anne.

Run by the wife and family of the late, great coppersmith, Albert Gilles, the Albert Gilles Copper Art Museum showcases artwork by both Gilles and his family. Part of the economusee network of Canada, this small museum allows visitors to make their own copper memento, and groups with reservations will get to see live copper work demos. In the museum store, you’ll also find artworks and jewelry for sale. Albert Gilles was born in Paris in 1895, where an aunt taught him the craft of copper embossing. Crossing the Atlantic in the 1930s to make a new life in Quebec, Gilles quickly established a name for himself as a master coppersmith and created work for everyone from Walt Disney to Pope XII. Perhaps his most famous work is the copper doors he created for Ste-Anne-de-Beaupré basilica, 22 miles outside Quebec City.

Dorchester Square is a leafy and large urban park in downtown Montreal surrounded by boutiques and skyscrapers; it is bordered by René-Lévesque Boulevard to the south, Peel Street to the west, Metcalfe Street to the east, and Dominion Street to the north. The elegantly manicured alleys are shadowed by mature trees and lead to four statues, each representing a segment of Canadian history (Sir Wilfrid Laurier, Boer War Memorial, which is the the only equestrian statue in Montreal, Lion of Belfort, and Robert Burns Statue). From spring to autumn, it almost bursts to the seams with smartly dressed office workers enjoying fresh air during their lunch break. But what is currently known as Dominion Square used to be, in fact, two different squares: Dorchester Square and Place du Canada, which were both inaugurated in 1878. The recent reunification of the two created a new area just over 21,000 m2 (2.1 hectares), making it a focal point for pedestrian traffic in the district.

The oldest Christian parish north of Mexico, the Basilique-Cathédrale Notre-Dame-De-Québec has suffered everything from fires to battle damage to reconstruction and restoration. The opulent cathedral you see today is richly decorated with impressive works of art including stained glass windows. Most of the Neo-classic facade of the Basilique-Cathédrale Notre-Dame-De-Québec is from the reconstruction completed in 1771, though parts of the basilica date from the original construction, including the bell tower and portions of the wall. The neo-baroque interior is appropriately grandiose with neo-baroque, filled with ecclesiastical treasures, paintings, and a chancel lamp (a gift of Louis XIV), illuminated by the flickering light of votive candles. Below is a crypt, where some 900 people are buried including governors of New France, archbishops and cardinals.

Located at the confluence of the St. Charles and St. Lawrence Rivers, Quebec City welcomes over 4 million visitors each year. Strategically important early on as a gateway to the Great Lakes, it remains the only walled city in North America. It is also one of the oldest cities in North America, but the strong French influence means that you may feel like you have been transported to Europe as soon as you arrive. Cruise ships arrive at either Le Vieux Port (the Old Port) or Le Basse Ville (the Old City), both of which provide easy access by foot to many of Quebec City’s major sights. If you arrive at the Old Port, taxis are also readily available to take you to the Old City. Quebec’s Old City is divided into a Lower Town and Upper Town and a funicular connects the two. Start your visit in the Lower Town by strolling through the Quartier Petit Champlain, a delightful pedestrian mall lined with cafes and boutiques. Then head to the Place Royale.

Few people knew of Ville-Marie yet everyone has been; it’s the technical name for Montreal’s downtown area, and one of the most vibrant places in the world. It encompasses Old-Montreal, downtown Montreal, the Latin Quarter, the Gay Village, most of Mount Royal Park and the islands on the St. Lawrence River – indeed, it covers quite a lot of ground! It is therefore one of the most visited areas in North America, and one of the most densely populated too. Attraction-wise, Ville-Marie isn’t a bore. Three of the four Montreal universities are located within its boundaries, as well as the notable district of Old-Montreal (and its historic museums, chapels and quaint squares), the lively Gay Village and its drag-queen bars, the business and high street shopping oriented downtown core area and, of course, the luxuriant Mount Royal and its unobstructed view of the neighborhood.