mari_manso

Im going to Canada in Dec/Jan. Im planning to spend 5 nights in Quebec city. Is it too much? Would visit any other city nearby like La malbaie or Baie Saint Paul?

travelingmad

Hi,

If I were you, I would spend 2 days in Québec and 3 in Montreal. The train is a fabulous way of moving from one city to another.

Now, if you HAVE to stay in Québec area for the whole 5 days, I would ensure you prepare your week very well. As such, I recommend you contact the Québec tourism office
http://www.quebecregion.com/e/ as they will probably know what exhibits and events are to take place.

(I have read from another post that you are from Rio. I sincerely hope for your well-being that you will have brought with you a winter coat, winter boots (or at least something warmer than beach sandals!), hat and mitts for your hands...) The chance of getting snow in December is not 100% but it could very well be quite cold for what your body and mind are used to, i.e. minus 13 to minus 20 (all celcius). If you arrive in January, temperature could get quite colder, reaching minus 25).

So, if I were you, I would get prepared. If you are well equipped, you will love the snow and the cold. If you are ill-prepared, you will hate it.)

mari_manso

In my trip I will visit toronto,Niagara Falls, Ottawa, Montreal, Mt Tremblant and Quebec. For Quebec I planned 5 days , and I was wondering if it was too much... Im visiting the other cities anyway... but is there any other place that you'd reccomend, near Quebec city?

travelingmad

Québec is a gorgeous city, really, but it is quite small. Around Québec city, in the winter, I doubt there will be much to see. Tourism season spans between April (at the earliest) to October (at the latest).

That being said, I'm a "big city / metropolis" type of person and, as such, I get bored rapibly in small cities. Not that I can't appreciate them, just not my cup of tea. Similarly, in art, I don't like the Baroque period in painting with those little angels and pastel colors. I can appreciate the work, I just don't like it much.

I would contact the Quebec tourism office as they will probably be the best ones to guide you in your decision.

If you are to visit Ottawa make sure you go have diner at Domus (http://www.domuscafe.ca/). Trust me, it is probably one of the very best meal you will get for a very reasonable price tag. And the owner takes much pride in promoting locally-based producers.

zootsi

As others have mentioned, Quebec City is fairly small, and can be seen in 2-3 days. The Charlevoix area (La malbaie, Baie Saint Paul) is beautiful and rural. Unless you ski, I'm not sure there is much to do there in winter. This is a VERY cold part of the world in January! Baie Saint Paul is a small town with lots of art galleries and shops, but I don't know what will be open in winter.

LouisP

Quebec City is very nice in the winter, but 5 days is a long time...

If you would like to try skiing, go to Baie Saint-Paul and ski at Le Massif. It is really fabulous.
There are also many winter activities to do at La Malbaie as Manoir Richelieu is a big resort: snowmobiling, dogsleding, X-country skyiing, snowshoeing, casino, etc...

You don't have to stay at the Manoir
Richelieu, there are many small fine hotels right next door to it.

NorthwestMale

If I were going to QC in Dec/Jan... and had the luxury of 5 days there... I think I might look at the sights for 2 or 3 of those, and then take the liberty of just thawing out in a hotel room for perhaps the 48 hours that would be needed to fully do the job.

QC in March found snow drifts twice the height of cars on some streets, and the wind and chill factor was very uncomfortable then.

I think the arctic blast will be enough to make you not want to have too much on your itinerary.

Good luck!