14 Tips I Wish I Knew Before Visiting Quebec City, Canada
everybody always says that Quebec city is the most European town in all of North America and that’s true but there’s some mistakes that I made that I wish I had known about so I’m going to share everything with you today first thing to know is that the hills are real be ready to embrace that European walk-in culture and make sure you bring the right shoes because the hills are for real be prepared for that second thing is do not be the uncultured American who walks into a place and says hello I’m here no start with a simple banjo everybody speaks French up here now that doesn’t mean that you need to speak French but it is a sign of respect to just greet somebody with that bonjour now you can move on to English and ask them hi do you speak English I don’t speak French they’ll gladly change but don’t start with English respect their culture and start with French the next thing to keep in mind is that if you’re an American you should probably start lowering the voice just a little bit yeah this is kind of that European culture you don’t need to use that outside voice really anywhere not even outside this is a quiet City a slow pace of life that nice charm so be somebody who contributes to that charm don’t be that loud person that is kind of bugging everybody so keep that in mind the next thing to not is that well yes Oldtown is absolutely stunning you should absolutely make sure that you schedule some time to just wander cuz it’s a great place to just walk and get lost in don’t make the mistake of just exploring Oldtown yes Oldtown is going to feel most European it’s going to be that Charming area but but this area right here is sometimes completely missed by tourist and this is where most of the locals are at and it has a completely different feel and one of the benefits to being down here is some of the cheaper accommodations and best and most affordable food is down in this area but I got some really important tips around restaurants one of the biggest mistakes that I made as a foodie was not making my reservations in advance look because this is a smaller City and there’s a lot of tourists and people just know their food these restaurants fill up quick and they all pretty much require reservations so probably my biggest regret on the trip was not doing my research not making those reservations ahead of time cuz it meant I didn’t get to eat at some of the best places but don’t worry I’ll still have some food recommendations coming up in just a second but another really important thing to know around dinner and just food in general is that this is a little bit more old school it’s not just show up whenever you want it felt like most restaurants actually have first service and second service felt like first service was taking place between 5:30 and 6:30 second service around that 8:00 range so just keep in mind those service times so you can align things correctly the next thing you’re probably wondering is hey is this a place where I’m supposed to tip the answer is yes about 15% is standard if you have exceptional service you can go up to that 20% range so it’s a smidge smaller than in the US but definitely still a tipping culture 15% and you’ll be all set now I do have some food recommendations for you the first one is a great Cafe called Cafe Olive this is in that local area of town just wonderful people made some great coffee had some little sweet bites that were just awesome loved the setting just felt like that truly authentic feel it’s what I’m looking for in a coffee place so you might enjoy it as well now if you’re looking more for a proper dinner there’s a place called hono Ramen and this place was phenomenal I know Ramen up in Quebec City it was one of the best meals that I’ve had in a long time highly recommend that place but recognize that the reason I found that place was because I was actually trying to get into their sister restaurant which shares a building I couldn’t get in there because again I didn’t make my reservations in advance so my fault there but hey great Ramen spot if you’re looking for it and if you do have a sweet tooth there is a wonderful spot called Patisserie shaket I probably bought that pronunciation cuz I don’t speak great French actually hardly any other than bonjour but this place is a bit more accessible to the Oldtown great stuff we had uh like three four pastries we couldn’t help ourselves it was that good definitely a spot that uh I highly recommend you’re not going to be disappointed but let’s talk about a couple other things that I just don’t think you should Miss I’m not going to cover all the tourist highlights there’s plenty of places that do that but I want to give you some practical tips uh one of the places that I definitely don’t think you should Miss are the plains of Abraham it’s basically this huge Park out in this area it is really easy to walk to from Old Town just set aside an afternoon early morning if the weather is nice gosh it is just a beautiful Park you’re looking at the water you’ll come across multiple different like Vantage and like viewpoints it’s just a beautiful place gets away from all of the people and again has that really local feel I just feel like anyone would be making a mistake not saying that so definitely make sure you add that to your list next up is a lot of people always want to know should I go to Mont Mor and see Falls and if you’re not familiar it’s this big waterfall that is just like 10 15 minutes outside of Quebec City and the answer is yes you should definitely go but I have some practical tips that you’re definitely going to want to follow on this so one of the first things that you’ll notice is there is a finic that will get you to the top because the waterfall is really really big and you’ll also notice this just ginormous staircase going up like what looks like the side of a mountain yeah this is where those tips come in so there are two drop off points there’s a top location bottom location this one is the top this is where I recommend getting dropped off if you’re taking an Uber or arranging any other public transit the reason for it is well yes you can take that finic ride up if you’re wanting to splurge with the money if you’re wanting to save money if you get dropped off at the top here you have just a straight walk along the waterfall like across this bridge and then you can take that giant staircase down so you’re never going up any stairs if you get dropped off at the bottom well it’s going to be the opposite you’re going to be the one climbing up that staircase which there are a lot of steps but they did a wonderful job setting up that whole area for tourist I highly recommend it wouldn’t miss it at all but if you want to know what my unfiltered thoughts are on Quebec CU I definitely have some you can watch that right here but I hope this was helpful if you have any questions leave them down below and we’ll catch you guys next time
✅ Here’s the exact list I share with friends visiting Quebec City (my free guide): https://bit.ly/Quebec-City-Guide-Camden
☕️ Every Tuesday, I share a travel tip you’ll actually use — like advice from a friend who travels nonstop — https://bit.ly/TheTuesdayTravelTip
These 14 tips to know before visiting Quebec City are what I wish I knew before my trip to Quebec City, Canada. Hopefully these travel tips will help you from making some of my mistakes when traveling through Canada!
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DISCLAIMER: I only express my opinion based on my experience. Your experience may be different. Links above may include affiliate commission or referrals. I’m part of an affiliate network and I receive compensation from partnering websites. This video is accurate as of the posting date but may not be accurate in the future.
30 Comments
Hey friends — if you want all my Quebec City recs, here’s a free guide I made for you: https://bit.ly/Quebec-City-Guide-Camden
Thanks for this!! I am definitely excited to go
It's true, Quebecers do not like loud people, speaking loud and doing facetime in the street. We hate it, we are quiet
Love this, also FYI, if you are heading out to Montmorency Falls, also visit Ile d'Orleans, its the island just outside the city and they have excellent wineries, cideries, cheese farms, maple shacks, chocolateries, and bakeries.
Actually, "if you're an 'American'", you should not come to Quebec…. or Canada in fact. Save your greenbacks and vacation in Death Valley instead.
Dearest American tourist. Accept my kind criticism and please do not say sorry for trivial reasons anymore. Period. I have seen many of them telling me that you are sorry because they're standing on the street, between 15 cm and 1 meter from my physical or astral body (depending on your comfort zone). At best, you come across my mind as a funny weirdo. More annoying, like an obsequious moron. At worst as a paranoid and hostile character who wants to "politely" tell me to "get the hell out of my way."
Attack on Americans. 😂
1:00 Americas are sooooo sooo loud
That's right, a lot of idiots who has no respects to Quebec culture at all. Never mind to say hello in French just to show a respects .
Where ever the French go they build beautiful cities. Is that genetics?
As a Canadian feel free to say hello. We speak English in Canada. Don’t listen to these rebels
tipping can go up to 30% but not tipping can mean 2 things:
A) You are financially struggling, but you'll to admit it out loud and embarrass yourself. Then if they believe you, after you paid they will recommend you more affordable places, yes you still need to pay the regular price.
B) You are extremely angry or disappointed as the restaurant did something horrible like serving food that wasn't properly cooked or you found human hair that doesn't belong to you in your food. But again, you'll have to declare it verbally and you'll have to be honest because if you get caught doing it just to not tip, you may be arrested. Or at least get kicked out of the restaurant.
Thank you . With his hearing loss, my husband and I talk TOO LOUD. 😢 we’re going soon and as Americans 😢
I really want to make a good impression on the Canadian people 😊 appreciate y’all 💜
Really great tips thank you!
We don't call it "Old Town".
have never heard anyone say that about quebec city and it certainly is not a drawing point.
Shoo Ket
Did you visit in September or October? The fall colors are stunning!
Your video really saved me. I’m planning to bring my family to Quebec City for 4 days this August and have been racking my brain trying to figure out a good restaurant. The ones I found were either very expensive, bad reviews or not suitable for my very picky boys. Everyone in my family love Ramen, so this was perfect.
😬 Ok. I wont forget. Im from Puerto Rico, we caribbeans are a little loud, so. I'll remember this. Thx
You are mistaken. Speaking French is not necessarily a required form of respect if you are a tourist.
This applies to immigration.
Thank you for visiting Canada, hope you had fun. As a home-sick Canadian living abroad, thanks. Come back.
The Vizzini effect
Interesting and helpful video, but dude your highlighting skills are awful. Watching on a phone and the skinny little lines are indistinguishable.
"Bon" jour, is not like bon bon. It is more like bone.
We don't like loud people, especially in busses and public places, or people who talk on their phone with the speaker. This is very similar to what Japanese people find rude. We do speak quietly in public spaces, it's just basic respect for us. Do do it on the street where people are walking by either, because people will tell you to lower your voice, politely, but they'll still tell you.
– Put your garbage in the rubbish bin, because we like to keep our sidewalk and streets clean.
– Say "please" and "thank you" it's basic courtesy and it goes a long way. People will bend themselves backwards if you're polite.
– Don't fix people in the eyes, it's rude, and respect people privacy. People who lives there are coming home from work, or going to get their groceries, they don't want to be bothered or to do small talk with complete strangers, they just want to be left alone. Keeping your distances is seen as respectful. Obviously you can ask for directions or something, but keep things to the minimum.
Not true Be YourSelf / Un Local qui est née et 2:42 vie. 😂 Si c'est pas a ton goût ! Dit le
Ive been to old quebec a couple times (Im Canadian from Ontario), the last time was december 2024. Me and my wife love it. I particularly love it in the winter, before Christmas is amazing. The food is the best we've ever eaten….every restaurant we ate at is 5 stars in our books. Speaking french is not a must, but helps (Im biligual, my wife is not). We highly recommend it…and we're going back again this year, December 2025. 🙂
By any chance did you visit La Buche? It's a restaurant that specializes in daily caught game. It was amazing. D'Orsay, Portofino, and Le Lapin Sauté were also outstanding restaurants with the latter serving the most delicious rabbit poutine. And because I'm an idiot with a fear of heights AND vertigo, I talked myself into climbing the stairs at the falls. I held onto the rail and looked at my feet the entire time, counting the steps. And they are correct, there ARE 487 steps to the top. The disappointing part was when I got to the top and took the trail to the bridge over the falls, I noticed we were in a suburban area. I thought it would be the wilderness up there. Houses and stores. It made the falls almost seem man made. But that's a personal problem. We also rented a car and drove the perimeter of Île d'Orléans. Beautifully pastoral and so different than Quebec City. Ferme audet had the most delicious goats milk ice cream. I hope to go back soon.
I’m from Québec and i got married at Montmorency Falls! It was amazing! The view is also phenomenal at night. And another protip: go in fall! The park around the falls is gorgeous with the autumn colors