Insight Guides Explore Quebec (Travel Guide eBook)

By Insight Guides

Insight Guides Explore Qubec

Travel made easy. Ask local experts.
Focused travel guide featuring the very best routes and itineraries.

Discover the best of Qubec with this unique travel guide, packed full of insider information and stunning images. From making sure you don't miss out on must-see, top attractions like Muse d'Art Contemporain de Montral, La Seigneurie lavender farm and Centre des Sciences de Montral to discovering cultural gems, including taking in the historic remnants of Qubec City, exploring the beautiful gardens of Domaine Joly-de Lotbinire and going whale-watching off Tadoussac, the easy-to-follow, ready-made walking routes will save you time, and help you plan and enhance your visit to Qubec.

Features of this travel guide to Qubec:
- 13 walks and tours: detailed itineraries feature all the best places to visit, including where to eat and drink along the way
- Local highlights: discover the area's top attractions and unique sights, and be inspired by stunning imagery
- Historical and cultural insights: immerse yourself in Qubec's rich history and culture, and learn all about its people, art and traditions
- Insider recommendations: discover the best hotels, restaurants and nightlife using our comprehensive listings
- Practical full-colour maps: with every major sight and listing highlighted, the full-colour maps make on-the-ground navigation easy
- Covers: A Walk in Vieux-Montral, Montral: Downtown and Quartier des Spectacles, The Laurentians, La Route des Vins (The Wine Route), Pedalling the Cantones de L'est: Grandes Fourches, The Centre: Montral to Qubec City, A walk around Vieux-Qubec (Old Qubec), L'le-d'Orlans Loop, Cote-de-Beaupre and the Charlevoix, Saguenay Loop, the Cte-Nord, Bas-Saint-Laurent (route des Navigateurs), Gaspe Peninsula Loop

Looking for a comprehensive guide to Canada? Check out Insight Guides Explore Canada for a detailed and entertaining look at all the country has to offer.

About Insight Guides: Insight Guides is a pioneer of full-colour guide books, with almost 50 years' experience of publishing high-quality, visual travel guides with user-friendly, modern design. We produce around 400 full-colour print guide books and maps as well as phrase books, picture-packed eBooks and apps to meet different travellers' needs. Insight Guides' unique combination of beautiful travel photography and focus on history and culture create a unique visual reference and planning tool to inspire your next adventure.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Insight Guides
• Release date: Nov 2, 2021
• ISBN: 9781839053061

Insight Guides

Insight Guides wherever possible uses local experts who provide insider know-how and share their love and knowledge of the destination.

Book preview

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How To Use This E-Book

This Explore Guide has been produced by the editors of Insight Guides, whose books have set the standard for visual travel guides since 1970. With ­top-­quality photography and authoritative recommendations, these guidebooks bring you the very best routes and itineraries in the world’s most exciting destinations.

Best Routes

The routes in this book provide something to suit all budgets, tastes and trip lengths. As well as covering the destination’s many classic attractions, the itineraries track lesser-known sights. The routes embrace a range of interests, so whether you are an art fan, a gourmet, a history buff or have kids to entertain, you will find an option to suit.

We recommend reading the whole of a route before setting out. This should help you to familiarise yourself with it and enable you to plan where to stop for refreshments – options are shown in the ‘Food and Drink’ box at the end of each tour.

Introduction

The routes are set in context by this introductory section, giving an overview of the destination to set the scene, plus background information on food and drink, shopping and more.

Directory

Also supporting the routes is a Directory chapter, with our pick of where to stay while you are there and select restaurant listings; these eateries complement the more low-key cafés and restaurants that feature within the routes and are intended to offer a wider choice for evening dining. Also included here are some nightlife listings and our recommendations for books and films about the destination.

Getting around the e-book

In the Table of Contents and throughout this e-book you will see hyperlinked references. Just tap a hyperlink once to skip to the section you would like to read. Practical information and listings are also hyperlinked, so as long as you have an external connection to the internet, you can tap a link to go directly to the website for more information.

Maps

All key attractions and sights mentioned in the text are numbered and cross-referenced to high-quality maps. Wherever you see the reference [map] just tap this to go straight to the related map. You can also double-tap any map for a zoom view.

Images

You’ll find lots of beautiful high-resolution images that capture the essence of the destination. Simply double-tap on an image to see it full-screen.

© 2021 Apa Digital AG

License edition © Apa Publications Ltd UK

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Table of Contents

Recommended Routes For...

Art Lovers

Children

Escaping the Crowds

Foodies

History Buffs

Island Fun

Manors and Gardens

Nature Lovers

Explore Québec

Geography and layout

History

Climate

Population

Local customs

Politics and economics

Food and Drink

Québec cuisine

Montréal

Maple syrup and sugar shacks

WHere to eat

Chain restaurants

Food halls and markets

Drinks

Beer

Québec wine

Ice cider

Entertainment

Bars and clubs

Live music

Theatre and cultural performance

Comedy

Outdoor Activities

Outdoor activities

Long-distance hiking trails

Skiing and other winter sports

Cycling and Mountain Biking

Water sports and activities

Spectator sports

A Walk in Vieux-Montréal

Place d’armes

Basilique Notre-Dame

Rue notre-dame

Place vauquelin

Hôtel de Ville

Place jacques-cartier

Musée château ramezay

Chapelle notre-dame-debonsecours

Rue st-paul

Marché Bonsecours

Vieux-port

Musée d’archéologie et d’histoire de montréal

Place d’youville

Montréal: Downtown and Quartier des Spectacles

Square dorchester

St George’s Anglican Church

Basilique-Cathédrale Marie-Reine-du-Monde

Les cours mont-royal

Golden square mile

Musée des beaux-arts

Michal and Renata Hornstein Pavilion for Peace

Claire and Marc Bourgie Pavilion

Rue ste-catherine

Christ Church Cathedral

La Place des Arts

Musée d’Art Contemporain de Montréal (MAC)

MEM (Centre des Mémoire des Montréalais)

The Laurentians

Day 1: saint-jérôme

Saint-sauveur

Val-david

Day 2: sainte-agathe-desmonts

Prud’homme covered bridge

Mont-tremblant

Mont-Tremblant Village

Mont-Tremblant Resort

Parc National du Mont-Tremblant

Day 3: la macaza

Mont-laurier

La Route des Vins

Day 1: bedford

Stanbridge east

Domaine du ridge

Vignoble pigeon hill

Frelighsburg

Day 2: vignoble de l’orpailleur

Union libre cidre & vin and dunham

Vignoble de la bauge

Vignoble la grenouille

Day 3: bromont

Vigneron léon courville/domaine les brome

Knowlton

Boutique Canards Du Lac Brome

Société Historique du Comté du Brome

Theatre Lac Brome

Pedalling the Cantons de L’est: Grandes Fourches

Marché de la gare de sherbrooke

The magog river valley

Le Jardin Fruitier

North hatley and lake massawippi

Massawippi river valley

Mine Capelton

Lennoxville

Uplands Cultural and Heritage Centre

Saint-françois river valley

Sherbrooke

Musée des Beaux Arts de Sherbrooke

Musée d’Histoire de Sherbrooke

Musée de la Nature et des Sciences de Sherbrooke

Promenade de la Gorge de la Magog

The Centre: Montréal to Québec City

Day 1: the north shore: le chemin du roy

Centre d’art Diane-Dufresne

Maison Rosalie-Cadron

Vignoble Aux Pieds des Noyers

Chapelle de Cuthbert

Magasin Général Le Brun

Cabane A Sucre Chez Dany

Day 2: trois-rivières

Cathédrale de l’Assomption

Manoir Boucher de Niverville

Musée POP-La Culture Populaire du Québec

St. James Church and Musée des Ursulines

Musée Boréalis

Cirque du Soleil

Day 3: the south shore - route des navigateurs

Sainte-Angèle-de-Laval

Moulin Michel de Gentilly

Bleuets & Cie and La Tomaterie

Domaine Joly-de Lotbinière

Parc des Chutes-de-la-Chaudière

Walk around Vieux-Québec (Old Québec)

Place royale

Église Notre-Dame-des-Victoires

Quartier du petit-champlain

Funiculaire de Québec

Terrasse dufferin

Château frontenac

Place d’armes

Rue du Trésor and Les Artisans de la Cathédrale

Cathedral of the holy trinity

Place de l’hôtel de ville

Basilique-Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Québec

Côte de la Fabrique

Musée du monastère des augustines

New barracks

Parc de l’artillerie (artillery park)

Porte st-jean

Île d’Orléans Loop

Sainte-pétronille

Saint-laurent

La Forge à Pique-Assaut

Parc Maritime de Saint-Laurent

Confiturerie tigidou (tigidou jam factory)

Saint-jean

Manoir Mauvide-Genest

Saint-françois

Sainte-famille

Maison Drouin and Fromages de l’isle d’Orléans

Maison de nos Aïeux

Saint-pierre

Espace Félix-Leclerc

Côte-de-Beaupré and the Charlevoix

Parc de la chutemontmorency

Au trois couvents

Basilique de sainte-anne-de-beaupré

Canyon sainte-anne

Day 2: baie-saint-paul

Musée d’art contemporain de Baie-Saint-Paul

Parc national des grandsjardins

Day 3: pointe-au-pic

Parc national des hautes-gorges-de-larivière-malbaie

Saguenay Loop

L’anse-saint-jean

L’Anse-de-Tabatière

Parc national du fjord-dusaguenay: baie-éternité

Hiking Trails

Boat Trips

Day 2: la baie

Lac saint-jean

Val-Jalbert

Musée du Cheddar

Parc National de la Pointe-Taillon

Day 3: fjord-du-saguenay: northern shore

Baie-Sainte-Marguerite

Rivière-Sainte-Marguerite

Tadoussac

The Côte-Nord

La haute-côte-nord

Baie-comeau

Day 2: godbout

Port-cartier

Sept-îles

Day 3: the mingan coast

Havre-Saint-Pierre

Basse côte-nord

Baie-Johan-Beetz

Natashquan

Kegashka

Bas-Saint-Laurent (Route des Navigateurs)

L’islet

Saint-jean-port-joli

Saint-roch-des-aulnaies

Kamouraska

Day 2: rivière-du-loup

Parc national du bic

Discovery and Visitors Centre-Rioux Farm

Le bic

Day 3: rimouski

Pointe-au-père

Pointe-au-Père Lighthouse National Historic Site

Gaspé Peninsula Loop

Parc national forillon

Cap-des-Rosiers Lighthouse

Visitor Information & Discovery Centre (North Area)

Grand Grave

Les Graves trail and Cap Gaspé

Fort Peninsula

Penouille Visitor’s Centre

Gaspé bay

Gaspé

Day 2

Musée de la Gaspésie

Percé

Parc national de l’Île-Bonaventure-etdu-Rocher-Percé

Mont-Sainte-Anne

Day 3: new carlisle

Bonaventure

Carleton-sur-mer

Accommodation

Montréal

The Laurentians

Cantons-de-l’Est and the Route des Vins

The Centre

Québec City

Côte-de-Beaupré and Charlevoix

Saguenay Loop

Côte-Nord

Bas-Saint-Laurent

Gaspé Peninsula

Restaurants

Montréal

The Laurentians

Cantons de l’Est and the Route des Vins

Québec City

Île d’Orléans

Côte-de-Beaupré and Charlevoix

Saguenay Loop

Côte-Nord

Bas-Saint-Laurent

Gaspé Peninsula

Nightlife

Bars and taprooms

Live music venues

Theatre

Books and Film

Books

Film and tv

COVID-19 Updates

While travelling in Canada, be sure to heed all local laws, travel advice and hygiene measures. While we’ve done all we can to make sure this guide is accurate and up to date, be sure to check ahead.

Recommended Routes For...

ART LOVERS

Artistic highlights include the Musée d’Art Contemporain de Montréal (route 2) in Montréal. Musée des Beaux Arts de Sherbrooke (route 5) and the Centre d’art Diane-Dufresne (route 6) also hold collections of fine art.

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CHILDREN

Go kayaking, hiking or beluga whale spotting along the Fjord du Saguenay (route 10). Head to the Vieux-Port of Montréal for the big wheel and the Centre des Sciences de Montréal (route 1).

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ESCAPING THE CROWDS

There are quite a few places covered in this book that can make you feel like you’re a long way from anywhere. To escape the crowds, you can only need to visit the isolated towns of Natashquan and Kegashka (route 11).

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FOODIES

Montréal’s restaurants are world-renowned (routes 1 and 2), while many of the vineyards of the Route des Vins (route 4) also knock out excellent food. Foodies should also spend time on the Île d’Orléans (route 8).

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HISTORY BUFFS

Québec City (route 7) was where New France got its start in 1608, and remains crammed with fine historic remnants. Trois-Rivières (route 6) was established next and remains a fascinating city to explore.

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ISLAND FUN

There’s lots of island fun to be had on this route. For starters, you can take a trip to the Île d’Orléans (route 8). The islands of the Mingan Archipelago (route 11) are stunning, as are the trails on l’Île-Bonaventure (route 13).

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MANORS AND GARDENS

The Domaine Joly-de Lotbinière features some of the most beautiful gardens in Canada (route 6). Île d’Orléans (route 9) also has some well-preserved manor houses, plus La Seigneurie, a lavender farm with beautiful gardens.

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NATURE LOVERS

Go whale-watching off Tadoussac (route 10) or Rivière-du-Loup (route 12), hike through Parc National Forillon (route 13) and Parc National du Mont-Tremblant (route 3), or kayak the waterways of Parc national des Hautes-Gorges-de-la-Rivière-Malbaie (route 9).

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Explore Québec

Snow-capped peaks, mesmerizing fjords and some of the finest food in the world. Québec is crammed with natural wonders, but also has its own rich cultural identity, blending French traditions with kayaking, lobster fishing and maple sugar shacks.

Canada’s largest province, Québec stretches from the temperate farmland in the south to the Arctic tundra in the north, covering over 1.3 million square kilometres. Beyond the major hubs of Montréal and Québec City nature rules supreme, with the relatively mild climate along the St Lawrence supporting a patchwork of farms and small towns, giving way to great swathes of wilderness in the interior – moose, caribou, wolverine and bears fill the forests and in many places humans have barely made inroads. From the language to the cuisine, Québec is distinct from the rest of the continent.

The Old Montréal

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Québec is the only French-speaking society in North America. After the colony was transferred to British rule, the Québécois were allowed to maintain their language and Catholic religion, which ensured large families and a prevalence of French-speakers – a political move termed the revanche du berceau (revenge of the cradle). Centuries later, the result is a unique blend of North American and European influence and a province with a fascinating dual personality.

COVID-19 Updates

In early 2020, COVID-19 swept across the globe, being categorized as a pandemic by the World Health Organization in March. While travelling in Canada, be sure to heed all local laws, travel advice and hygiene measures; flouting these means risking your own health but can also put a strain on local communities and their medical infrastructure. While we've done all we can to make sure this guide is accurate and up to date, permanent closures and changed opening hours are likely in the wake of coronavirus, so be sure to check ahead.

Geography and Layout

The area covered in this book is vast, much of it isolated wilderness hemmed in between Hudson’s Bay, the St Lawrence River and Canada’s eastern Atlantic