5 Reasons to Take a Road Trip to Quebec City

5 Reasons Why You Should Visit Quebec City

Quebec is 400 Years Old!

Although Canada just celebrated its 150th birthday, the capital city of Quebec celebrated an even bigger anniversary back in 2008 – its 400th birthday!

Although Jacques Cartier first arrived on what is now Quebec City in 1535, it wasn’t until Samuel de Champlain arrived in 1608 that the first wooden structure was erected and thus, the city was born.

As a tourism centre, Quebec City’s biggest draw is its annual winter carnival in February. It is also close to some amazing skiing destinations. But this vibrant city keeps the joy flowing all year round. As the oldest French-speaking community in all of North America, this is where you’ll experience the uniquely French Canadian joie de vivre, and where you will find many reasons to keep going back, year after year.

5 Reasons to Take a Road Trip to Quebec City

Here are our top 5 reasons you should take a road trip to Quebec City this summer:

1. The Plains of Abraham - History… and a party!

Once the site of a painful defeat for New France, the French community of Quebec has taken back the Plains of Abraham as a place of celebration. This historic site is now the location of the city’s annual St. Jean Baptiste festivities.

Battlefields Park (which houses the Plains of Abraham) was Canada’s first national historic park and is probably the most famous of the city’s 37 national historic sites. Today, you can tour the museum and former battlefields, stroll through the beautiful gardens and learn the significant history of this site.

Or, you can visit on June 24 to join in the St. Jean Baptiste celebrations!

2. They have a chocolate museum

I mean, we could just leave it at that, right?

Érico Creative Chocolate Shop and Chocolate Museum are well known through the city, and for good reason. The two chocolatiers who run the shop and museum live and breathe chocolate, making everything by hand alongside their dedicated staff.

The museum takes you through the history and magic of chocolate and allows you to watch the chocolatiers at work. And of course, there’s the chocolate itself. There are a variety of filled chocolates, pastries, hot chocolate and even homemade ice cream. The hardest part will be not eating everything you meant to bring home!

3. Montmorency Falls

Located within the Chute-Montmorency National Park, Montmorency Falls is approximately 30 metres higher than the famed Niagara Falls.

You can stroll through the park and take in its beauty, or… you can get adventurous! Because what good are waterfalls if we don’t try to get up close? In addition to gorgeous hiking trails, there is a 300-metre zip line that crosses the cove, a panoramic circuit that includes a suspension bridge where you feel the roaring water beneath your feet, and a via-ferrata circuit, which is a hiking trail built into the rock wall. It’s kind of like hiking and rock climbing rolled into one.

For the less adventurous, there are beautiful gardens to visit, playgrounds for children and plenty of picnic spots.

A post shared by Jean-Dominique Bertoni (@jdbertoni) on Jan 28, 2018 at 9:16am PST

4. The Festival d’été de Québec draws BIG names

Remember how we said Quebecers had taken back the Plains and Abraham, making it a place of joy and celebration? That isn’t relegated to St. Jean Baptiste Day celebrations.

The Festival d’été de Québec, or summer festival, is an annual music festival held on the Plains that draws big names in music and even bigger crowds. The 2018 festival will feature The Weeknd, Lorde, Neil Young, Air Supply (I know, right?), Chromeo, The Chainsmokers, Foo Fighters and so, so many more.

If you’re a music lover, this is a festival not to be missed.

5. All. The. Food.

O.M.G. The food! Naturally, there are plenty of incredible, mouthwatering, decadent French restaurants including the amazing Légende, which blends local Canadian fare with French cooking techniques, Saint-Amour, which is a must if you’re there with your significant other (so romantic!) and Chez Rioux & Pettigrew, which is vegetarian-friendly (a rare find among French cuisine). And those are just a few!

If you’re looking for something a little different, there’s the delectable Chez Boulay, featuring trendy, upscale Nordic cuisine, La Pizzaio, which is pizza, but like…. amaaaaaazing pizza, Aux Anciens Canadiens, which resides inside one of the historic houses on the even more historic rue Saint Louis and serves up incredible Canadian cuisine, Le Billig crêperie, which is another French restaurant, but crêpes should really stand on their own, shouldn’t they? Oh, and so, so many more.

Bon appetit!