Quebec Walking Tour with Audioguide on your Smartphone

The Ursuline Chapel preserves one of Québec City’s oldest ensembles of carved woodwork, created in the 1720s and 1730s. The Ursulines arrived in New France in 1639 and established North America’s first school for girls. Inside, gilded altarpieces and 17th- and 18th-century paintings surround the tomb of Marie de l’Incarnation, founder of the Québec community.

The Cathedral of the Holy Trinity is the first Anglican cathedral built outside the British Isles. Completed in 1804, it was modeled on London churches and reflects the growing British presence in Québec after the Conquest. Its restrained Neoclassical interior contrasts with the ornate Catholic churches nearby, while the cathedral remains the mother church of the Anglican Diocese of Québec.

Québec City Hall stands on the former site of the Jesuit College, once one of the most important buildings in New France. Designed by Georges-Émile Tanguay and inaugurated in 1896, it blends Neo-Romanesque, classical and medieval influences. Still serving as the seat of municipal government, its architecture was deliberately created to link Québec’s French heritage with its North American future.

The Cardinal Taschereau Monument honours Elzéar-Alexandre Taschereau, the first Canadian cardinal. Created by sculptor André Vermare and architect Maxime Roisin in 1923, it shows him facing the basilica-cathedral where he served. Bronze reliefs recall his work at Université Laval and his aid to Irish typhus victims at Grosse-Île in 1847.

Notre-Dame de Québec Basilica-Cathedral stands on a site used for worship since 1633. The present church traces its origins to 1647 and became the cathedral of the vast Diocese of Québec in 1674. Destroyed and rebuilt several times after wars and fires, it remains the spiritual heart of French Catholic heritage in North America and contains the tomb of François de Laval, Québec’s first bishop.

Rue du Trésor is a narrow pedestrian alley in Old Québec famous as an open-air art gallery. Its name dates to the French colonial era, when residents came here to pay dues to the royal treasury. In the 1960s, two artists began displaying their work along the street, soon joined by others. Today, paintings, prints and watercolours line its walls, especially from spring to autumn.

Château Frontenac opened in 1893 as a luxury railway hotel designed by American architect Bruce Price. Its towers and copper roofs were meant to evoke a grand French château and soon became a symbol of Québec City. During World War II, the hotel hosted the Québec Conferences of 1943 and 1944, where Allied leaders discussed military strategy.

The Saint Lawrence River is one of North America’s great waterways, linking the Great Lakes with the Atlantic Ocean. Québec City was founded at a strategic narrowing of the river, where ships and trade could be closely controlled. For centuries, the Saint Lawrence served as the main route into the continent and shaped the city’s development as a port, fortress and commercial center.

The Saint François de Laval Monument honours the first bishop of New France and founder of the Séminaire de Québec. Unveiled in 1908 for Québec City’s 300th anniversary, it was created by sculptor Louis-Philippe Hébert and architect Gustave Umbdenstock. The 13-metre monument shows Laval in episcopal robes above allegorical figures representing his religious and educational legacy.

Escalier Casse-Cou, or Breakneck Steps, is the oldest staircase in Québec City. A steep path linked Upper and Lower Town here in the 17th century, with steps and landings added around 1680. The old wooden stairway became so hazardous that English guides dubbed it “Breakneck Steps.” Rebuilt in iron in 1893 and renovated in the 1960s, its 59 steps now lead directly to picturesque Rue du Petit-Champlain.

The Fresque des Québécois is a vast trompe-l’œil mural painted in 1999 near Place Royale. Covering 420 square metres, it blends Québec City’s architecture, fortifications and changing seasons with portraits of important figures from its past. Look closely for Samuel de Champlain, Jacques Cartier, Félix Leclerc and other personalities woven into the illusion of streets and buildings.

Place Royale is considered the birthplace of French Québec. In 1608, Samuel de Champlain built his first settlement here, combining a residence, fort and trading post. The square later became a busy marketplace and gained its present name in 1686, when a bust of Louis XIV was installed. Today, its stone houses and Notre-Dame-des-Victoires Church evoke the atmosphere of New France.

The Old Quebec Funicular has linked Lower Town with Dufferin Terrace since 1879. Its cars climb the cliff at a 45-degree angle, offering views over Petit-Champlain and the St. Lawrence River. The lower station is inside Maison Louis Jolliet, a house dating from 1683. Originally powered by steam and water counterweights, the funicular was converted to electricity in 1906.

Maison Jean-Baptiste-Chevalier is one of the finest surviving examples of French colonial architecture in Old Québec. Built for merchant Jean-Baptiste Chevalier in 1752, it was restored after the British Conquest and later housed the London Coffee House. Its vaulted cellars, thick stone walls and steep roof preserve the character of an 18th-century merchant’s residence.