Whales on a cruise ship stop
Quebec City sees many cruise ships from late summer to October, and plenty of passengers hope to fit in a whale trip. The only one that leaves from the city takes 11 hours, longer than most port days. This guide sorts out which calls leave room for it and what to do with a shorter one.
A long trip for a short call
Quebec City's cruise terminals sit in the Old Port, below the walled upper town, and the busiest stretch for ships runs from late summer into October. Whales are not part of the view. The river at the city has not yet turned salty, and the whales keep to the cold estuary much further down, so seeing one means traveling about 130 miles (210 km) downstream to Baie-Sainte-Catherine or Tadoussac.
The only trip that makes that journey from the city with transport included is AML's full-day whale excursion, from ~$183. Its bus leaves at 9 am and returns at about 8 pm. Most port calls are shorter, and the ship would sail before the coach got back to town. If your ship arrives in the morning and leaves the same evening, this trip is off the table.
When the day trip does work
- An overnight call. If the ship stays in port overnight, you can ride the 9 am bus and still sleep on board after the 8 pm return. Check the all-aboard time for both days;
- Starting your cruise in Quebec City. Arrive a day or two early and take the whale trip before you board;
- Ending your cruise in Quebec City. Stay at least one night ashore and take the trip the following day. The morning you leave the ship is a poor choice, since the bus will not wait if disembarking runs late.
The coach leaves from the Fontaine de Tourny on Grande Allée, in front of the Parliament, and AML asks you to be there 30 minutes early. From the Old Port that means a walk up the hill or a short taxi ride. Both booking sites cancel free up to 24 hours before, which helps if the ship's schedule shifts.
For an overnight call or a night ashore
Eleven hours from Grande Allée and back, the cruise at Baie-Sainte-Catherine in the middle, from ~$183. Free cancellation up to 24 hours before.
Never risk the ship
Treat this as a fixed rule. An independent tour does not wait for your ship, and your ship does not wait for an independent tour. The whale day depends on a three-hour road each way and a boat that leaves on time, and a slow drive home could leave you on the quay watching your cabin sail away. If the numbers only work on paper, skip it.
The same goes for driving yourself in a rental car. The cruise alone, from ~$130 for a Zodiac, still needs about six hours on the road, and bus tour or drive yourself? shows how tight that day gets even without a ship to catch.
Ports nearer the whales
Some itineraries also call at Saguenay (La Baie), up the fjord, or stop off Tadoussac, much nearer the feeding grounds. Ships that call there may sell whale excursions of their own. Check your cruise line's shore excursions for those ports before booking anything independently, since we cannot say which lines offer them or what they include. The Saguenay Fjord by boat describes the water you would sail through.
A night in Tadoussac before or after
If you start or end the cruise in Quebec City and have two days to give, drive to Tadoussac and spend the night, so you can sail at the hour you choose. Tadoussac lies across the Saguenay from Baie-Sainte-Catherine, reached by a free ferry of about 10 minutes. A night there opens the morning and sunset departures that the bus day cannot offer.
For a treat after a week at sea, AML's VIP Lounge or Upper Deck cruise, from ~$159, sells two upgrades on the three-hour big boat. Both board first, and only the Lounge buys you a seat behind glass with food and drinks from the region. The catch sits in the option name. Reviewers who bought Upper Deck expecting the lounge were turned away, and the upper deck has few seats and no shelter. Check which one you are paying for before you pay.
A short call without whales
On a single port day, the water nearest you is the river in front of the city. AML's sightseeing river cruise, from ~$46, leaves from Quebec City for 1.5 hours and shows Old Quebec from the water. Its catch is total. It is a skyline cruise with no whales at all, because the river here lies too far upstream for them. It fits a port day comfortably if being on the St. Lawrence is enough.
Montmorency Falls, just east of the city, is the other short outing that suits a single day ashore. Neither replaces a whale trip, and it is kinder to accept that on a short call than to chase the whales and miss the ship.
Planning around the ship
- Read the port times first. Arrival and all-aboard, on both days if the call is overnight, decide everything else;
- Book with free cancellation. Both sites allow it until 24 hours before, which covers a changed schedule;
- Dress for the river, not the port. Quebec City can reach about 77 °F (25 °C) while the air out on the river is often 50–60 °F (10–15 °C) with wind. What to wear on the river lists the layers;
- Pack a lunch. The coach pauses an hour at the wharf for lunch, and the price leaves the meal to you;
- Know the late season. Many cruise calls fall between late summer and October, when the air turns colder and the last departures approach; the best months for whales explains what fall brings.
For the full sums, including what the bus adds over the cruise alone, see what a whale trip costs.