The Lower Town is at the foot of the Cape Diamond, below Château Frontenac stretching out to the banks of St. Lawrence River. Unlike the Upper Town which has remained the military and administrative center of both the province and the country for much of its 4-century history, the Lower Town experienced many phases of developments and challenges.

With an advantage of a deep water port, the Lower Town began a prosperous trading port for French merchants, fur traders, and lumberjacks from 1542. In the colonial time, The Lower Town was home to artisans, craft men, longshore men and shipbuilders. During the late 1800s through 1960s the Lower Town was a slum with smoky brothels, rough-and-tumble pubs, and pawnshops serving sailors and woodsmen.

In the late 1970s Quebecois began restoring the Lower Town to its original French sophistication as in the 18th Century. Three well-known historic attractions in the Lower Town are the Place Royale, the Petit-Champlain district, and the Old Port.

The Petit Champlain district was developed into a residential and commercial zone for local artisans and craft men

The Place Royale was restored to its original 17th – 18th century architectural condition.

The Old Port became Canada’s most attractive tourist destinations which are full of stylish boutique hotels, chic boutique shops, and delightful restaurants and bistros.

Strolling through cobblestone streets and buildings in Old Quebec, tourists would feel like they have travelled back into 17th and 18th centuries. Small street-side shops sell products and souvenirs made locally by the artisans. Museums recreate 400 years of Quebec history through thousands of exhibits from the Champlain period. Restaurants treat visitors with local delights mixing indigenous, French, Irish and British cuisines