Quebec City: Travel Tips
Quebec City Travel Tips
Quebec City runs on French more than Montreal does, under Bill 96, and that single fact shapes most of the practical advice below more than anything else on this list.
Language
Quebec is French-first, but the tourist core of Old Quebec is bilingual and English works fine in hotels, restaurants, and shops. Opening with “bonjour” before switching to English changes how you’re treated in smaller shops and family-run restaurants outside the main circuit, more so here than in Montreal.
Money and tax
Prices exclude tax at the point of sale: GST of 5% plus QST of 9.975%, about 14.975% combined, gets added at the register on nearly everything, including restaurant meals. Tipping runs 15-20%, and the local convention is to tip on the pre-tax subtotal, not the total after tax. Cards and tap are accepted almost everywhere; carry some cash for smaller market stalls.
Entry requirements
US citizens need a valid passport; no visa or eTA is required. Visa-exempt non-US visitors arriving by air, including UK, EU, and Australian passport holders, need an Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA), currently CAD $7, applied for online before flying. Travelers arriving by land or sea skip the eTA. The Advance Declaration through ArriveCAN is optional, not mandatory.
Winter is a draw here, not a warning
Temperatures run -10 to -25°C from December through March, and the hills between Upper and Lower Town ice over, so real winter layers and grippy footwear matter. But this is also when the city performs: the Carnaval de Quebec (February 6-15, 2026) and the Hotel de Glace ice hotel are the reason many people plan a trip for winter specifically rather than in spite of it. See Quebec City: Festivals & Events for the full calendar.
Getting around
Old Quebec is compact and walkable but genuinely hilly; the funicular or the Breakneck Stairs connect Upper and Lower Town. A car helps only for day trips like Montmorency Falls or Ile d’Orleans; parking inside the walls is limited and expensive, so most visitors rely on walking and the RTC bus network for everything else.