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I've been through New Hampshire and Vermont during the peak fall foliage season and really loved the scenery. I've had Montreal and Quebec City on my potential travel list, so I'm wondering if late Sept/early Oct would be a good time to go there? Is the fall foliage in the Quebec area as vibrant as in New England? I loved seeing the deep red and orange shades of the maple leaves.
Are there any good foliage routes to drive through (as day trips from either city)?
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Would I enjoy Quebec for fall foliage if I liked New England?
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Hello traveler123,
In a word, yes.
Vibrant fall colours are every bit as present in southern Quebec as they are in New England. Early October in my experience is about right.
The Eastern Townships east of Montreal or the Laurentians north of Montreal would offer some nice "foliage" drives. But even Mount Royal, the hill close to downtown Montreal is lovely; I'm lucky enough to bike up it every day in the early fall.
Enjoy! Daniel
I would actually try it earlier in late Sept (17th - 30th). The color starts there and flows southward into New England as the temperatures drop with the air stream moving steadily southward.
My Brother in law who is french Canadian says fall color is very good up in the Montreal area. Call a few hotels and see what they recommend.
Jeff Foliage
www.yankeefoliage.com
Biking up Mont Royal every day, I decided to keep close track of when the best colours were and I wouldn't come as early as Jeff suggests. If last year were any indication... the 2nd week in October had the richest colours in the Montreal area. At least for Montreal, mid-late September I would describe as more "starting to turn"; pleasant, no doubt, but less colourful... although is perhaps better nearer Quebec City in September.
My opinion based on first-hand experience... 2nd week was best, 1st week in October I might go with if one wants to avoid hitting a surprise cold spell.
Thanks for your input. I'll definitely need to do some more research if my trip plans materialize.
Yes the fall foliage is as good, if not better, than New England. Late September early October works. www.BonjourQuebec.com has a section that monitors the peak leaf time. The Eastern Townships, specifically the Sutton region is amazing for foliage, running chair lifts to the top of Mont Sutton for an even better view. Also this is 15 minutes from the premier Quebec Wine route. Vineyards are open for touring and tasting with many activities. Lodging can be booked through Hebergement Sutton. Great chalets or condos, fireplaces etc.As a plus the US dollar goes farther in Canada. You can fly into Burlington, VT (1 1/2 hours by car to Sutton) often much better deals than Montreal (1 1/2 hours also)
BTW, for future leaf-peepers to Quebec, this year to my eyes we're getting our most gorgeous leaf colours here in Montreal NOW (I was especially impressed yesterday October 21st)! Magical orangy-reds, the occasional vivid cherry red... just magnificent. I bike up the mountain every day; late September/first days of October the trees were mostly green or rusty-coloured, starting to turn... I imagine early leaf-peepers would have been disappointed as the colours were very subdued. It's only in the past week or maybe two, that we've finally been getting these magnificent primary colours.
Best wishes, Daniel
I am so glad Daniel chimed in as we have just returned from a gloriously coloured trip through Quebec (from the Ontario border, across Montreal, via Drummondville to Quebec City and on to the New Brunswick border past Riviere du Loup and on to Edmunston and then to Nova Scotia). The further south we got the more we could see that the colours were JUST starting to be in their prime and I am talking October 9-18th as a time frame.