Quebec City Leisure

Quebec City doesn’t have any kind of spectator sports scene, so most of the leisure activities revolve around the great outdoors. The waters and hills around the city provide endless opportunities for recreation year-round. Quebec is a cold weather place and as such, many of the best activities are winter sports.

Spectator sports

Quebec has not had a professional sports team since 1995, when the NHL Nordiques left town. If you really want to watch a game, you can catch the Northern League’s Capitales baseball team play their home games at the Municipal Stadium for a good price. More interesting are the harness races which take place at the Hippodrome de Quebec. These fascinating horse races are held year round from Thursday to Tuesday, and admission is free.

Outdoor recreation

Just outside the city is a wealth of beautiful natural parks where you can indulge in all kinds of recreation. Quebec Province is full of unpopulated mountains, forests, rivers and lakes. Two areas in particular are within easy access of the city and offer plenty of summer and winter activity; the provincial Parc de la Jacques Cartier is just 30 minutes north of town by car, and the Parc Mont Ste Anne is just 20 minutes away.

From November to March, taxis participate in a winter shuttle programme called HiverExpress (tel: +1 418 525 5191), in which the taxis pick visitors up from 16 hotels around the city at 08:30 and take them to Parc Mont Ste Anne. The taxis then return to Quebec City at 16:30.

Dog sledding

There aren’t too many places in the world where you can mush a team of dogs. Aventures Nord-Bec (tel: +1 418 889 8001) offers dog sledding adventures just 30 minutes drive from the city. They have half-day up to five-day expeditions into the untrammeled wilderness of Quebec. The team of four dogs will pull your sled through an incredibly quiet, snowy world for an unforgettable experience.

Skiing

There are five downhill ski areas surrounding Quebec City. The most popular is at Parc Mont Sainte Anne, which encompasses the largest total skiing terrain in eastern Canada. Its 51 trails and 11 lifts are open from mid-November to the end of March, and the HiverExpress shuttle service can transport you there and back with ease.

Shopping

For some, shopping is a sport, and the fashionable streets of Old Quebec offer some lovely shops with a European flair. The small boutiques along the narrow streets of rue du Petit Champlain and rues de Baude and St Jean in the Latin Quarter will transport you back 200 years. Antique shops cluster around rues St Pierre and St Paul, if you’re looking for unique treasures.