Quebec

Québec has a vast road and air network that makes it easy to travel between cities. You can travel by car, bus, plane, train, bike or boat (http://www.bonjourquebec....).

By road

Québec’s winding, scenic secondary roads are ideal for a motorcycle ride. However, in southern Québec, the best season for travelling by motorcycle is limited to between May and October. In remote areas, the nicest season is two months shorter than that, running from June to September. In the last few years, taking to Québec’s roads by motorcycle has become increasingly popular. The province boasts several motorcycle clubs [2], and visiting tourists can rent motorcycles.

Québec’s motorcyclists share a special fraternity and team spirit. If your motorcycle breaks down, you certainly won’t remain stranded on the roadside for long before another motorcyclist stops to help. So don’t be surprised to see other motorcyclists wave to you on the road or spontaneously engage in conversation at a rest stop.

With Amigoexpress, Allo-Stop Or Quebec-Express

For people travelling in small groups and wanting to keep their costs down primarily students, Amigoexpress (http://www.amigoexpress.com/), Allo Stop (http://www.allostop.com) and Quebec-Express (http://www.quebec-express.com/) are a great alternative to any of the transportation methods mentioned above. They are ride-sharing networks serving most of Québec’s major cities. To access this service, simply register online or at one of the offices (registration costs $6 for Allo stop). Then you can reserve your spot in a car belonging to someone who is travelling to the same destination as you—sometimes for up to half the price of the bus. The only inconvenience with this system is that it doesn’t serve every city, so some areas are not accessible using this method.

By car

Renting a car and driving around Canada poses no particular problem, even in the cities. However, it is best to arrange the rental from where you are coming. Read the rental contract carefully, particularly the section on insurance. Often, you can rent a car in one city and return it in another without prohibitive costs. Rental companies are Viau (http://www.locationviau.com) Montréal, Enterprise (http://www.enterprise.com).

Québec has a good network of toll-free highways connecting all the main cities and surrounding areas.

A note for European tourists: in Québec, the highway speed limit is 100 km/h generally tolerated up to 120 km/h when passing a radar.

The Québec highway code is similar to that practiced in most of Europe. A couple of differences are that traffic lights are often located across the intersection, not at the side, and you are not allowed to turn right on the Island of Montréal or where otherwise indicated. At stop signs, every one advances in turn, based on the order in which the cars arrived at the stop sign. Roundabouts are very rare.

By train

VIA Rail Canada www.viarail.ca is Quebec's only intercity passenger train carrier, while AMT www.amt.qc.ca runs Montreal's commuter trains to the suburbs. Trains run infrequently compared to Europe. There are no high-speed trains in Quebec. Busses are usually cheaper, with more daily connections.

Other Information

VIA Rail (http://www.viarail.ca) offers train service along the St. Lawrence river, up the Saguenay and in the Gaspé Peninsula.

Within cities, public transit tends to be good by North American standards, though showing the signs of funding cuts in recent years.

"La route verte" (http://www.routeverte.com...) comprises 3,600 kilometres of bikeways linking the various regions of Québec.

By ship

Numerous cruises are also available on the St. Lawrence River, one of the world’s biggest waterways (http://www.bonjourquebec....).

By bike

Québec’s regions boast an impressive network of bicycle paths, totalling more than 3,400 km 2,111 mi. This means you can visit several regions by bicycle and find local accommodations near the bike paths Route verte (http://www.routeverte.com/rv/ang/index.lasso).