When my daughter was at school at UVM we drove there from Burlington. If you are going in early fall for 10 days, flying into Burlington to see northern Vermont on your way to Montreal might be a plus. I do know Canadians like flying into and out of Burlington because it is cheaper than flying into Montreal. It’s about a 2 drive from Burlington to Montreal. About 3 hours from Montreal to Quebec City.
@UCDAlum82, that is VERY helpful.
Have any of you used airbnb? It occurred to me that it might be more cost effective, but I admit that I have a fear of being either ripped off, or finding a place that’s nothing like the advertised accommodation.
Not in Quebec City But i have definitely used airbnb (as well as vrbo, homeaway, etc). Of all the times I’ve used it (dozens) I’ve only had one less than expected experience. Definitely look for reviews from others and read carefully and make sure there are plenty of photos. Don’t be afraid to ask any questions you might have before committing.
For me, 7 days in Quebec City would be too long. I’d do 3 or 4 nights.
If you are interested in non-city sight-seeing, you could combine Quebec with the Gaspe Peninsula, which is reportedly specctacular.
Thanks, guys. DH has expressed concern that we might be considering too many nights in Quebec City.
Quebec City is my favorite North American city. I agree with doschicos, in that 3 or 4 nights is enough. I’d only give Montreal 2 or 3 nights. One time we took the train between cities.
7 days in Quebec City would be long. I think we had 3 nights in Quebec City, 3 nights in Montreal and 3 nights in Charlesvoix. We arrived in the early am in Quebec picked up our rental and headed towards Charlesvoix. The countryside was pretty and most of the road we had a view of the river. We stopped at a small village with many art galleries. In Charlesvoix the Fairmont had bikes to use free of charge. That portion of our trip we encountered almost 100% French speakers.
@mom60, that itinerary sounds intriguing. What order did you do that, and did you fly into and out of different airports?
Okay, I see you flew into Quebec city and drove from there into Charlevoix.
We flew into Quebec and out of Montreal.
@Consolation - The Gaspe peninsula is on my list. The last time we went to Quebec City, we thought we might drive up there but we ran out of time. I just mentioned to my dh that I still want to get there. I wish we lived closer as I love that part of Canada.
It would be fairly easy to incorporate some time in Charlevoix with a trip to Quebec City. Gaspe would be more difficult as it is much further away. Charlevoix is beautiful but Gaspe is spectacular. Highly recommended.
I think we will not have time to do Gaspe, but I believe I will schedule a couple of days in Charlevoix. I never would have known about it had it not been for this thread!
I think 3 nights each in both Montreal and Quebec City would be sufficient but everyone is different. Some people like to sleep in on vacation and have long leisurely lunches, others like to march through a city and tour intensely, some are into shopping… so hard to recommend. For DH and I we like to meander but also plan to tour but take our time at the sites we are exploring, not interested in shopping so much, enjoy a nice breakfast and dinner, lunch can be stopping at a café. We don’t laze around too much in the morning but usually will like a little relax time before dinner, especially if the hotel has an indoor pool. We sort of rough out our plans for the day and if we haven’t pre-reserved dinner, part of the time will be checking out menus and planning where we will have dinner.
This came through my email today - 15-30% off Fairmont hotels. They have many in Canada including Quebec City and Montreal:
So we have booked our air, and found a nice loft apartment just a short walk from the old district in Quebec City. I am going to grab a room at the Fairmont in Charlevoix, so that just leaves our Montreal hotel. Should we stay downtown or in Vieux Montreal? Any particular recommendations?
Last time I was in Montreal was about 2 years ago and we stayed in a very comfortable brand-new, had been open a few months Courtyard Marriott. It was a great location, easy walk to Vieux Montreal, right near the concert hall/performing arts complex a block from the Hyatt. Easy in and out parking, nice sun roof deck and pool, walking distance to a subway. I also have stayed at the Bonaventure several times but many years ago. When we did stay at the Bonaventure I remember it was easy subway access as well as easy walk to major shopping street.
I can’t imagine not being able to fill up a full week in either Québec City or Montréal. But then again, my wife and I are the sorts of people who wander through cities and go to every little fun-looking museum and shop we can find and go through it in depth (if the guidebook says a museum will take two hours, it’ll take us siz; if it says four hours, we may need to come back on a second day), plus do things like wander around the non-tourist parts just to be able to comment on, say, the local residential architecture to each other. So how long to spend there really depends entirely on your own holidaying style, naturally enough.
We have decided to do two nights in Charlevoix, four nights in Quebec City, and 2 nights in Montreal. We decided on an extra night in Quebec City so that we could do a couple of days in the city, and two days of excursions (the Falls and possibly a Whale watching excursion). I’m kind of like @dfbdfb above, where I can easily and leisurely explore a city for days, rather than trying to cram as much as possible into a couple. I wish we had an extra night in Montreal, but DH’s business ventures call and he has trouble giving up more than a week or so.
Thanks for all the good pointers. If anyone has any restaurant recommendations, please let me know!
We are staying at the Fairmont in Charlevoix http://media.travelnetsolutions.com/890b50450b3183c8c60f199815afb466/large.jpg
Les Lofts St-Joseph apartment hotel in Quebec City
https://media-cdn.tripadvisor.com/media/photo-s/07/c4/d8/06/les-lofts-saint-joseph.jpg
https://media-cdn.tripadvisor.com/media/photo-s/07/c4/d6/b4/les-lofts-saint-joseph.jpg
Hotel le Saint James in Old Montreal (my bff is a travel agent and got us a good deal with one of her hotel partners)
http://montreall.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/hotel-le-saint-james-montreal.jpg
Sounds like a wonderful trip, @Nrdsb4! Please post a trip recap when you arrive home.