Quebec City and Beyond

Welcome to Montréal, Canada’s French-speaking cultural capital, where historic Old Montréal, elegant boulevards and a dynamic food scene give the city a character all its own. After arriving, settle in before meeting your Travel Director and fellow travelers. This evening, join the group for dinner and get to know the people you’ll be traveling with as you’re introduced to the journey ahead.

Discover Montréal with your Local Specialist as you explore the city’s historic heart. Continue to the Old Port, once the city’s gateway to the St. Lawrence River, then head to Place Jacques-Cartier, one of Old Montréal’s best-known public squares. The rest of the day is free for you to explore further, whether that means strolling the cobbled streets of Old Montréal, browsing Bonsecours Market or finding a terrace along Rue Saint-Paul for a leisurely meal.

Leave Montréal and travel north to Charlevoix, a region shaped by the St. Lawrence River, rolling farmland and an ancient meteorite crater. Follow La Route des Saveurs (the Flavor Trail), known for its strong agricultural identity and local producers — one of Québec’s key food regions. In Baie‑Saint‑Paul, join a Be My Guest lunch with wine at Au Poulailler, where a former commercial hen house has been transformed into a greenhouse and community food space. Then visit Hydromel Charlevoix to learn more about mead production, from honey harvest to bottling, before a tasting. Later, continue to La Malbaie and your Stays with Stories experience at Le Petit Manoir du Casino.

Spend the day in La Malbaie, a town on the St. Lawrence River known for its long connection to Québec’s resort history and its setting between river and mountains. You can explore at your own pace, whether that means walking the Pointe-au-Pic area, taking in the river views or enjoying time at your Stays with Stories experience. There is also the chance to join an Optional Experience to Baie-Sainte-Catherine for whale watching, where the meeting of the St. Lawrence River and Saguenay Fjord creates one of the province’s best-known marine environments.

Leave La Malbaie and cross by ferry to Isle-aux-Coudres, a small island in the St. Lawrence River known for its rural landscapes, long food traditions and slower pace of life. Explore the island before visiting a local bakery and cider house, continuing your journey along Charlevoix’s flavor trail and getting a closer look at the producers that shape this region. Back on the mainland, stop at the Basilica of Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré, an important place of pilgrimage in Québec, before continuing to Québec City.

See more of Québec City with a sightseeing tour of Old Québec, where fortified walls, historic squares and landmark buildings reflect the city’s French heritage and long strategic importance. Get your bearings as you explore one of North America’s oldest urban centers, then enjoy time to discover the Upper Town more at your own pace. You might stop by Château Frontenac, stroll along Dufferin Terrace for views over the St. Lawrence River or spend time along Rue Saint-Louis, one of Old Québec’s historic streets. This evening, there is the chance to join an Optional Experience to Montmorency Falls and Île d’Orléans, with dinner and live music at Le Moulin St-Laurent.

This morning is yours to explore more of Québec City, or you can join an Optional Experience to the Cuivres d’Art Albert Gilles Museum to discover a family legacy of copper craftsmanship. If you choose to spend time in the city, you might take the Old Québec Funicular or one of the historic stairways down to Lower Town, where Place Royale, the Petit-Champlain district and the Musée de la Civilization offer another side of the city’s history. Later, visit Wendake for your MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experience at the Huron Traditional Site, where you’ll learn more about Huron-Wendat history and culture through a guided visit. Continue your MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experience at Sagamité, where Huron-Wendat cuisine and traditional storytelling come together as you raise a glass to your journey over dinner with your fellow travelers.