10 Best Outdoor Adventures in Quebec City

Jacques-Cartier National Park is an iconic park and nature preserve north of town where you'll find opportunities for activities among trails and rivers. You'll find 62 miles of hiking trails here along with 19 miles of biking trails among massive acreage.

The Jacques-Cartier River runs through the park, and it offers extensive opportunities for kayaking, fishing, and tubing. If you visit during the winter, you can enjoy a bit of skiing as well. It's located about 31 miles north of city centre Quebec City.

Parc de la Chute-Montmorency is a scenic waterfall and park area that features a cable-car ride, hiking paths, and thrilling zip lines over the plunge pool. The waterfall here is quite impressive, being taller than Niagara Falls, and the double zip-line setup is stretched across the area nearby offering a stunning view.

The zip lines are suspended well over the falls at about 984 feet, so you can enjoy impressive sights along the high-speed ride. Or you can relax in the cable car to take in the sights at a more leisurely pace. You'll find it about 15 minutes northeast of Old Quebec.

Canyon Sainte-Anne is an impressive canyon carved into bedrock that's home to scenic views, flying experiences, and a treasure hunt. The canyon was carved into bedrock that dates back more than a billion years, and you'll find plenty of hiking trails throughout the area including some that cross the canyon via suspension bridges.

If you're looking for an adventure that's a bit more exciting, you'll want to check out the AirCANYON experience. With this ride, you can soar over the canyon reaching speeds of up to 31 miles per hour. Try it out yourself a few miles northeast of Quebec City past Beaupré.

Île d'Orléans is a fun island that's best known for its charming agricultural character, but you'll also find activities like sledding and snowmobiling during the winter. Fortunately, you won't need any gear to take part, as everything you need is available on-site.

If you visit outside of the winter season, you can enjoy a more laid-back outdoor adventure. The island is home to numerous walking paths that will take you past vibrant greenery, colourful farms, and historic buildings. See it for yourself east of the city where the St. Lawrence River forks.

Marais du Nord is a natural park that's home to a diverse array of bird species that you can track on land or on the water. Around 160 different bird species call this park home, and you can also catch 33 different mammal species during your visit.

Traversing this park can be an adventure on its own thanks to the convenient 5 miles of footpaths available. Alternatively, you can take to the water in a boat, which is particularly useful if you're trying to see an aquatic bird like a heron. The park is located a few miles northwest of the city.

Stoneham Mountain Resort is a popular ski resort that offers both day and night skiing with a variety of slopes for various levels of experience. The night-skiing trails are a popular aspect of this resort, as it's part of the largest network of night skiing in Canada with 19 trails.

When you visit this resort, you'll find a peak elevation of 1,946 feet with a maximum drop of 1,132 feet. 41 trails are available, and they cover 4 different mountains. You can check out this resort by heading a few miles north of the city up Highway 73.

The Montmorency River is packed full of adventure whether you're looking to see the iconic falls or something more upstream by the lake. The falls tend to be a favourite, as they're larger than Niagara Falls and offer scenic views as you traverse the surrounding walking paths.

The falls have a lot to offer, but this river also lets you enjoy tubing, kayaking, and other activities on the water. It's even close to a golf course if you're looking to spend some time on the greens. You'll find the river just to the northeast of town around Boischatel.

The Saint Lawrence River defines the eastern edge of the city, and its mighty flow offers opportunities for a variety of activities both on and off the water. One of the most popular activities is taking a trip on the ferry from Quebec City to Lévis that lets you take in the sights from the river at a leisurely pace.

The river lets you get active as well with beaches and kayaking opportunities. Stand-up paddling is also common, with quite a few places along the coast offering all the gear you need. You'll find this river covering the entire eastern edge of the city.

Mont-Sainte-Anne is a ski resort that offers a wide variety of slopes, including some of the best verticals you'll find in the entire country. 71 downhill ski trails are available here covering all sides of the mountain, and 19 of those trails are available at night.

Night skiing is especially popular here thanks to one particular trail that has one of the highest verticals of all the night trails in the country. Most of the trails here are rated as difficult, but you'll find plenty of easy and more difficult trails too. Try it out about 25 miles northeast of town.

Lac Beauport is a lake where you'll find a relaxing atmosphere and opportunities for swimming and boating with a ski mountain nearby. You'll find plenty of boat rentals around the lake if you're looking to get on the water but don't have equipment of your own to do so.

Visiting during the winter will allow you to check out the nearby ski resort as well. With friendly yet thrilling slopes, you'll never be short of fun things to do by this lake. It's located about 15 miles north from city centre Quebec City.