Watersports
If you're an outdoorsy type, you can enjoy a variety of watersports, from white-water rafting (especially on the Rivière Rouge) to gentle boating. Canoes, kayaks and sailboards are available to hire in many provincial and national parks. The St Lawrence River has excellent facilities for sailing.

Cycling
La Route Verte (the ‘Green Circuit') boasts over 4,000km (2,485 miles) of marked paths and roadways. The St Lawrence River Valley is good for moderate cycling, while the hilly Laurentians region is more challenging. Mountain bike enthusiasts head for parks and nature reserves, especially Parc de la Jacques-Cartier and Mont-Sainte-Anne, both within easy reach of Québec City.

Skiing and snowboarding
Québec boasts outstanding winter sports facilities, a long season, plentiful snow and around 80 ski centres. The main regions are the Laurentians, the Eastern Townships and the Greater Québec/Charlevoix area. Cross-country skiing is very popular, as are snowmobiling, snowshoe trekking, ice fishing and ice climbing.

Whale watching
From May to October, whale-watching tour passengers can see up to 12 species including humpbacks in the St Lawrence. In early March, thousands of harp seals give birth on the ice floes of the Magdalen Islands. You can take a helicopter ride over the area. Be forewarned that this is also the season of the controversial seal hunt, so you may encounter both hunters and activists.

Taste treats
Québec is home to countless food and drink festivals, such as the many events celebrating the maple syrup harvest from March until mid April. Érablières (maple farms) and cabanes à sucre (sugar shacks) are sprinkled through the province. You can watch the harvest and sample maple toffee (made by pouring molten syrup onto fresh snow).

Wild western Québec
The Outaouais region of western Québec, near Ottawa, is home to aerial parks where you can walk or zip line through the forest canopy, white-water rafting spots, caves, bungee jumping sites, unspoiled Gatineau Park and Omega Park (a drive-through animal preserve), as well as one of the largest log buildings in the world (now the Fairmont Le Château Montebello hotel).

Carnival
Québec City's Winter Carnival (www.carnaval.qc.ca), held in January/February, is the third-largest Lenten festival in the world. It is a thrilling spectacle of parties, ice baths, dog sled races, ice palaces, sculptures and snowmobile races. 

Culture in Montréal
Place des Arts is the home of the Montréal Symphony Orchestra and several theatres offering year-round drama, music, ballet and opera. Both the Montréal Museum of Fine Arts and the Museum of Contemporary Arts of Montréal have good collections.  

See Contact Addresses for further tourist information.