Quebec City

Currency

Quebec taxes — 5% federal and 9.975% provincial — are added at the till, and tips are 15-20%. English is understood in the tourist quarter and less so outside it, but an attempted bonjour is met with warmth rather than the coolness Paris might offer.

ATMs & cards

Desjardins, RBC and BMO machines in and around the old town. Avoid the white-label ones in souvenir shops. Cards work everywhere; cash is for the market and the sugar shacks.

Wherever you are: if the machine offers to charge you in your home currency, decline. That is dynamic currency conversion and the rate is set by the ATM's operator, not your bank.

Safety

Among the safest cities of its size anywhere, and the crime rate is genuinely low. Winter is the whole risk list: −15°C, ice on cobbled slopes, and a wind off the river that finds every gap in a coat. The Carnaval in February is wonderful and cold in a way that visitors consistently underestimate.

Our own assessment, not a sourced index.

Entry & visa

Health & emergencies

Required to enter

No vaccinations are required for entry from Europe or North America.

Worth having

• Routine vaccinations up to date

Getting treated

Excellent, and expensive for visitors — there is no reciprocal arrangement with most countries, and an emergency admission runs to thousands of dollars. Travel insurance with a high medical limit is essential. In the Rockies, mountain rescue is coordinated by Parks Canada and is not billed, but the helicopter and hospital that follow are.

Wildlife and weather rather than illness. Carry bear spray on trails and know how to use it. Hypothermia is possible in any month at altitude, and snow closes passes well outside winter.

Orientation, not medical advice. Entry rules change and what you need depends on your own history and where you have been — check with a travel clinic or your national health service four to six weeks before you go.

Food tip

Quebec country cooking in the city: tourtière, pea soup, maple everything, and cheese from the island farms. Go to a cabane à sucre in March if the timing works. The old town restaurants are priced for tourists — walk out to Saint-Roch or Saint-Jean-Baptiste for what locals eat.

Getting around

• Walking — the old town is small, cobbled and steep, and there is no better way to see it
• Funicular — links the Upper and Lower Towns for a few dollars and saves the Breakneck Steps
• RTC buses — cover the wider city; the old town needs nothing but shoes
• Ferry to Lévis — ten minutes across the St Lawrence for the classic view back at the Château
• Airport: Jean Lesage is 20 minutes out, with a bus and taxis; many visitors arrive from Montreal by train in three hours

Internet speed

Broadband here runs at 2.1× the global median of 128 Mbps. Mobile runs at 81% of the global median of 110 Mbps.

Source: Ookla Speedtest Global Index · measured May 2026

Must-see

Things to do

• Walk the fortifications and the Plains of Abraham
• Take the funicular down to Petit-Champlain
• Cross to Lévis on the ferry for the view back
• Drive Île d’Orléans for the farms and cider
• See Montmorency Falls, which are higher than Niagara
• Come for the Carnaval, and dress for it properly

Nearby day trips

Say a few words

French (Québécois)

• HelloBonjourbon-ZHOOR
• Hello / hi (Montreal)Bonjour-hibon-zhoor HI
• PleaseS'il vous plaîtseel voo PLEH
• Thank youMercimer-SEE
• Yes / NoOui / Nonwee / non
• Excuse meExcusez-moiex-koo-zay MWA
• How much is it?C'est combien ?say com-BYEN
• Corner shopDépanneurday-pa-NEUR
• CheersSanté !son-TAY
• You’re welcomeBienvenuebyen-ve-NOO

Open with bonjour and the whole interaction changes, even where everyone speaks English. In Montreal you will be greeted with "bonjour-hi" and may answer in either; in Quebec City, French comes first and the effort is noticed. The accent is not Parisian and neither is the vocabulary — a corner shop is a dépanneur and a car is a char.

Religion

Christian majority, and secular

Christian by heritage with a fast-growing share reporting no religion. Indigenous spiritual traditions are recognised, and their sites carry protocols worth respecting.

Do's and don'ts

Do

• Queue properly, hold doors, and apologise reflexively — it really is the norm
• Tip 15-20% in restaurants and for taxis; staff wages assume it
• Carry bear spray on Rockies trails and know how to use it
• Take note of which province you are in — rules on alcohol, cannabis and driving differ

Don't

• Do not assume Canada is a variant of the United States; it lands badly
• Do not approach or feed wildlife, and never get between a bear and its cubs
• Do not underestimate distances — the Rockies are far bigger than the map suggests
• Do not litter or leave food out at a campsite; it is both a fine and a genuine danger