Exploring Quebec City and Ottawa: A Winter Day Trip from Montreal

Intro

Montreal had been a great winter escape, but now, we had to explore 2 cities around on these 2 one-day trips to Quebec City and Ottawa. I had been to Quebec City on a Thanksgiving Trip many years ago, and despite being literally trapped outside in a snowstorm for like more than an hour, I loved this city. It is like the most European place in North America. Really, really loved Quebec City. On the other hand, Ottawa, the capital of Canada, was completely new for me. In this post I will show you how I got to each city and my first impressions for these trips.

From Montreal: Quebec City VIP Day Trip with Hotel Pickup

That was the name of the tour I got on Viator: “From Montreal: Quebec City VIP Day Trip with Hotel Pickup“. Unfortunately, the tour I had gotten and paid for on GetYourGuide, had cancelled the day before, when I was just adjusting myself in Montreal, and had to rush to book a new one in another website.

Since I had already paid for this expensive tour for 2 people, my mom and I, I was expecting a refund, but nothing happened until after I came back to New York City, and decided to call GetYourGuide and get a refund. They were sorry about the situation, but if I had not called, the tour company would have kept my money. So unfortunate.

On the flip side, I was hoping this new tour company and tour were going to be great, and me and my mom would have a great time in Quebec City.

They picked us up very early, so early, we could not even get Starbucks, since it was still closed. We were picked up in small cars, and then transferred around Chinatown to a bigger bus, from where we departed moments later. The tour guide was nice, and surprisingly, he offered the tour in 3 languages: English, Chinese and Spanish, which made my life easier, since I did not have to translate everything to my mom lol.

We started going North, and the sun was finally rising with very orange and red tones over the sky. I have always said that the Winter sunrises and sunsets are just the best.

We passed by the Parc Jean-Drapeau, where we had a view of Le Monstre in La Ronde Amusement Park, all closed for the winter.

And on the other side, the sun continued to rise, giving us an spectacle.

Looking back and now almost done with pont Jacques-Cartier, we could see the Biosphere, Environment Museum and the partially frozen St Lawrence river.

On the way to Quebec City, and after a long time of hearing the tour guide giving us great info, we stopped at a gas station for the bathrooms, where we were able to get coffee and breakfast at the McDonald’s. It was probably the best McDonald’s breakfast I have ever had. But we had to rush since it was time to get back into the bus.

Hôtel de Glace

The first stop before getting into Quebec City, was to visit the Hôtel de Glace, included in the tour. The resort looked great and the Ice Hotel section was located on the back. We presented our tickets and proceeded inside, a free roaming around the frozen rooms of this hotel.

I think it was my first time experiencing something like this. The tour was already worthy.

They played with ice, snow, natural and artificial lights to give a great effect on the sculptures and different rooms of the Hôtel de Glace.

It was freezing tho. Wear your best winter clothes for this, and gloves, scarves, hats, everything to keep you warm. But at least we found the bar, where we were able to get some drinks, served in an iced up whoa.

Then we did a quick tour of the rooms. Most of them had a specific theme, like for example this one was the Science room. But there were many other types, some of them allusive to Quebec.

The exterior was amazing. The hotel is usually open till late March, and it is worth visiting. The ice hotel is recreated each year from scratch, with construction beginning once temperatures dip below freezing for one full week and there’s at least a meter of packed snow on the ground. 

The Valcartier Resort (where the Hôtel de Glace is located) is beautiful too, giving me Las Vegas or Disney World vibes, and it offers a lot of activities during the summer as well, like an entire water park.

Montmorency Falls

We got back into the bus, and the next stop was Montmorency Falls. This is a majestic waterfall that surpasses the height of Niagara Falls, offering a breathtaking spectacle with its dramatic cascades and diverse activities like cable car rides, a suspension bridge, and even via ferrata route.

Many of these activities were close due to the weather, and we did not have much time to get closer. Also, this is the coldest I had ever been in my life, with temperatures dropping to -1 F with a sensation even lower with the wind. We were freezing, and I felt bad for my mom, but we quickly went into the room after taking the required pictures.

Vieux Quebec

We were finally arriving to the Old Quebec in proper Quebec City. We were dropped off close to Museum of Civilization, and from there a Quebecois tour guide walk us to the most important places of the Old Quebec. We were freezing, and I felt my toes were getting numb, but the explanations were worth it. He only gave the tour in English though, so I had to translate everything to my mom. This is the part of the city that made me fall in love. I came here on a Thanksgiving, and all the Christmas decorations, lights, trees, and narrow streets captured my attention forever.

Surprisingly many of the Christmas decorations were still up, despite it being the end of January.

Next on the walk was La Fresque des Québécois, which depicts figures from 400 years of Quebec City history. Twelve painters from France and Quebec contributed to the mural.

After walking around with the group and freezing, we almost bailed out, but then he said the last part of this mini-tour was ahead. This is when we started walking dozens of steps into the Dufferin Terrace, an esplanade at the level of probably the most important visual reference of Quebec City, and that you can see at the back of this picture: Fairmont Le Château Frontenac.

Fairmont Le Château Frontenac

Climbing the steps was no easy task in the cold for my mom. We had to help her, thanks to a new Colombian friend that was traveling alone and joined us on this adventure. We made it to the top, and after a short explanation of the Fairmont Le Château Frontenac, he freed us and we were able to explore for a bit more than one hour in our own, before having to return to the bus.

The view from up here was amazing, with the St Lawrence River, the same that crosses Montreal, completely covered in ice and snow.

Fairmont Le Château Frontenac, a landmark hotel in Quebec City, is a grand, Châteauesque-style hotel with breathtaking views of the St. Lawrence River, renowned for its historic charm, luxurious accommodations, and exceptional dining experiences. It is so iconic, that even the Canada Pavilion in Epcot has a copy of its own.

We had to find a way to the bottom again, since the bus was down there, and also, we wanted to find a place to have lunch. So after getting a hot coffee and resting on the Starbucks of the hotel, we went down the Funiculaire du Vieux-Québec, and quickly reached this part of town. No stairs required, only $5 which I think it is too expensive for the short short ride.

The end of the tour and return to Montreal

Down in Le Vieux Quebec, we found this place that the tour guide had recommended earlier: Le Lapin Sauté, something like Sautéed Rabbit, which mostly specialized in this animal. I was not too hungry, but still got the rabbit with beans.

And my mom got the rabbit poutine, which I think was the better idea. I should have gotten that, because the beans were a little bit too strong for me on this day. And it looked so delicious too lol.

We finished eating, and went back to the bus, walking through the little streets of the old Quebec, saying bye to this beautiful city. I hope to visit it sometime during the summer, and maybe stay one night.

Once on the bus, it was a long ride back to Montreal, but it was worthy.

On the way to Ottawa

Two days later, and after exploring Montreal for a day, we went by ourselves to Ottawa. We chose to do it by train from Montreal, since it did not seem to complicated. We bought the tickets online on VIA Rail, a Canadian train company, and woke up very early to catch the first one to Ottawa.

We arrived at the station way before the departure time of 9:00 am to a surprised delay on the trains. VIA Rail sent multiple e-mails announcing the delays of their train: “Please note that train 33 was delayed because a freight train stopped with mechanical issues that was blocking the rail on which that train is travelling. The train is currently delayed by 1 hour and 30 minutes.
Rail network is very busy because our passenger trains are sharing tracks with freight trains and we are dependent on the access we are granted by the owner of the infrastructure. We will do our very best to stay as close as possible to our schedule.”

This really was a shock because we already were going to spend too little time in Ottawa, taking advantage of the scarce daylight of the winter. The train finally departed almost two hours later. At least it was really cool.

Although we thought that all the problems had been fixed, but no. Apparently the freight train was still in front of us blocking the way to Ottawa, and the train could not run properly. The 2 hours delay became a 4 hours delay. Inconceivable. I was thinking we would not have time to do anything in the capital. But we eventually made it there.

Fortunately Ottawa is small, and the subway goes from the train station into the city, very convenient.

Exploring Ottawa

Ottawa, Canada’s capital, is a vibrant city known for its blend of urban and natural beauty, a strong sense of community, and its role as the seat of the federal government, featuring landmarks like Parliament Hill and the Rideau Canal. First thing we did was to walk to National Gallery of Canada and Maman sculpture.

And then we entered the Notre Dame Cathedral Basilica, where my mom got some bottles of holy water lol. The cathedral itself was really beautiful. The blue ceiling reminded me of the one in Montreal. Was this on purpose? Same architect?

Fortunately, everything was super close, and after getting some coffee from Tim Hortons at the CF Rideau Centre Mall, we walked towards the Rideau Canal Skateway. I was in shock to see the frozen river. I dared my mom to walk it in order to go to our next destination, and that we did lol. It was kind of fun walking in the frozen canal, and not tripping or falling.

It was very cold but manageable, and the time to our return train was coming up, so we rushed to Parliament Hill just to see the Confederation Building and the House of Commons.

Very beautiful pieces of Gothic Revival architecture.

The sunset was upon us. The train delays had been a very unfortunate event, but it is something that could happen and should be considered into account. Maybe take a bus next time if this ever happens? Anyways, we walked to the closest A&W Canada to get some food, and took the metro back to the train station.

This time the train was not delayed and we got to Montreal at the proper time. For now our trip to Canada had ended, but I expect to visit this country hopefully very soon.