Almost all of a visit to Québec City can be spent in the old city, because many accommodations, restaurants, and tourist-oriented services are based there. The colonial city was first built right down by the St. Lawrence at the foot of rearing Cap Diamant (Cape Diamond). It was here that the earliest merchants, traders, and boatmen earned their livelihoods; but due to unfriendly fire from the British and Amerindians in the 1700s, residents moved to safer houses atop the steep cliffs that form the rim of Cap Diamant and the Basse-Ville (Lower Town) became primarily a wharf and warehouse. That trend is being reversed of late, with several new auberges (inns) and small hotels, and many attractive bistros and shops bringing new life to the area.

Haute-Ville, or Upper Town, the Québecois later discovered, was not immune to cannon fire either, as the British General Wolfe was to prove. Nevertheless, the division into Upper and Lower Towns persisted for obvious topographical reasons. The Upper Town remains enclosed by fortification walls, and several ramp-like streets and a cliff-side elevator (funiculaire) connect it to the Lower Town.

Arriving

By Plane -- Jean-Lesage International Airport (tel. 418/640-2700; www.aeroportdequebec.com) is small, despite the grand name. It is served by Air Canada (tel. 888/247-2252), American (tel. 800/433-7300), British Airways (tel. 800/668-1055), Delta (tel. 800/221-1212), Northwest/KLM (tel. 800/361-5073), Lufthansa (tel. 800/563-5954), and US Air (tel. 800/432-9768). Bus service is no longer available between the airport and the city. A taxi to downtown Québec City is a fixed-rate C$25 (US$18).

By Train -- The handsome train station in Québec City, Gare du Palais, 450 rue de la Gare-du-Palais (tel. 418/692-3940), was designed by Bruce Price, who is also responsible for the fabled Château Frontenac. Unfortunately, the Lower Town location isn't central. Plan on a moderately strenuous uphill hike or a C$6 to C$8 (US$4.30-US$5.70) cab ride to the Upper Town. That's per trip, incidentally, not per passenger, as an occasional cabbie may pretend.

By Bus -- The bus station, Gare d'Autobus de la Vieille Capitale, at 320 rue Abraham-Martin (tel. 418/525-3000), is near the train station. As from the train station, it is an uphill climb or quick cab ride to Château Frontenac and the Upper Town. A taxi should cost about the same as from the train station, C$6 to C$8 (US$4.30-US$5.70) per trip, not per passenger.

By Car -- From New York City, follow I-87 to Autoroute 15 to Montréal, picking up Autoroute 20 to Québec City. Take 73 nord across the Pont Pierre-Laporte and exit onto boulevard Champlain immediately after crossing the bridge. This skirts the city at river level. Turn left at Parc des Champs-de-Bataille (Battlefields Park) and right onto the Grande-Allée. Alternatively, take Autoroute 40 from Montréal, which follows the north shore of the St. Lawrence.

From Boston, take I-89 to I-93 to I-91 in Montpelier, Vermont, which connects with Autoroute 55 in Québec to link up with Autoroute 20. Or follow I-90 up the Atlantic coast, through Portland, Maine, to Route 201 west of Bangor, then Autoroute 173 to Lévis. A car-ferry there, Traverse Québec-Lévis (tel. 418/644-3704), provides a 10-minute ride across the St. Lawrence River. Although the schedule varies substantially according to time of day, week, and season, the ferry leaves at least every hour (more often during rush hours) from 6am to 2am. One way, it costs C$5.10 or C$5.60 (US$3.65 or US$4) for the car, C$8.50 or $C9.85 (US$6.05 or US$7.05) for up to six passengers. Passengers without vehicles pay C$2 or $C2.50 (US$1.45 or US$1.80) for ages 12 to 64, C$1.40 or C$1.75 (US$1 or US$1.25) for ages 5 to 11, C$1.80 or C$2.25 (US$1.30 or US$1.60) for each passenger over 65, free for those under 5.

Visitor Information

The Greater Québec Area Tourism and Convention Bureau operates two useful provincial information centers in and near the city. One is in the Discovery Pavilion at 835 av. Wilfrid-Laurier (tel. 418/649-2608), bordering the Plaines d'Abraham, and the other is in suburban Ste-Foy, at 3300 av. des Hôtels (tel. 418/651-2882). They have rack after rack of brochures and attendants who can answer questions and make hotel reservations. Both offices are open daily 8:30am to 7:30pm from June 24 to Labour Day, 8:30 to 6:30 Labour Day to Thanksgiving, the rest of the year 9am to 5pm Monday through Saturday, 10am to 4pm Sunday. The website for the bureau is www.quebecregion.com.

The Québec Government's tourism department operates an Infotouriste de Québec office on place d'Armes, down the hill from the Château Frontenac, at 12 rue Ste-Anne (tel. 877/266-5687; www.bonjourquebec.com). It's open from 9:30am to 5pm late June to early September, and from 10am to 5pm the rest of the year. The office has many brochures, information about cruise and bus tour operators, a souvenir shop, a 24-hour ATM (guichet automatique), a currency-exchange office, and a free lodging reservation service.

From early June through Labour Day, university students pilot motorscooters through the tourist districts of Old Québec and near tourist sites in the Upper and Lower Towns, making themselves available to offer information to visitors. In French, it's called the Service mobile d'Information Touristíque, and their scooters fly flags bearing a large "?". Just hail them as they approach; they're bilingual.

Parks Canada operates an information kiosk in front of the Château Frontenac; it's open daily 9am to noon and 1 to 5pm.

For additional information, log on to www.quebecregion.com.

City Layout

Main Avenues & Streets -- Within the walls of the Haute-Ville (Upper Town), the principal streets are rues St-Louis (which becomes the Grande-Allée outside the city walls), Ste-Anne, and St-Jean, and the pedestrians-only Terrasse Dufferin, which overlooks the river in front of the Château Frontenac. In the Basse-Ville (Lower Town), major streets are St-Pierre, Dalhousie, St-Paul, and, parallel to St-Paul, St-André. There are good maps of the Upper and Lower Towns and the metropolitan area available at any tourist office.

Finding An Address -- If it were larger, the historic district, with its winding and plunging streets, might be confusing to negotiate. However, it's very compact, so most visitors have little difficulty finding their way around. Most streets are only a few blocks long, so when the name of the street is known, it is fairly easy to find a specific address.