World City Guide

Sport

Hockey dominates the city’s sporting life, despite the fact that with the loss of the Québec Nordiques ice hockey team, Quebec City has been left without a team in any national league. Ice hockey action is now limited to Les Remparts de Québec (tel: (418) 525 1212; website: www.remparts.qc.ca), which plays at the Colisée Pepsi, a 15,000-seat arena at the ExpoCité exhibition complex (website: www.expocite.com). The complex, situated at the junction of highways 175 and 138, is also home to the Hippodrome de Québec harness-racing track. In summer, the Northern League baseball team, Les Capitales de Québec (tel: (418) 521 2255; website: www.capitalesdequebec.com), play at the 5000-seat Le Stade de Québec, in Victoria Park near Highway 173. The Transat Québec/St-Malo is the major sailing event; every four years (the next being 2004), sailboats and catamarans compete in the Quebec City to St Malo, France race. More distant is the Wolrd Police and Fire Games, which is set to take place in 2005, when 10,000 athletes will compete at a various venues (website: www.2005wpfg.com).

The emphasis in the city is on participating in sports rather than watching them. This is not surprising, given that within a 20-minute drive there are facilities for downhill and cross-country skiing, rafting, cycling, hiking, hunting and fishing. Within Quebec City itself, the Plains of Abraham offer residents and visitors alike a terrific outdoor venue for recreational activities, including playing fields, ten kilometres (six miles) of jogging and cross-country skiing trails and a large inline skating track at the park’s west end. Cycle paths begin at the Old Port, linking it with the Montmorency Falls to the east and a longer distance bike path to the west.

Tickets to sporting events are available through Admission (tel: (800) 361 4595; website: www.admission.com) and Réseau Billetech (website: www.billetech.com).

Fitness centres: The YMCA, located in the Edifice Vieux-Québec, 650 avenue Wilfrid-Laurier (tel: (418) 522 0800; fax: (418) 522 0758), has squash courts, a swimming pool and workout facilities. The YWCA, 855 avenue Holland (tel: (418) 683 2155; fax: (418) 683 5526; website: www.ywcaquebec.qc.ca), has a swimming pool and classes such as aerobics but no gym.

Golf: There are courses at a number of the ski centres around Quebec City, including Club de Golf Stoneham, 324 1ère avenue (tel: (418) 848 2414), with two 18-hole courses. Greens fees start at C$24. East of Quebec City, Le Grand Vallon, 100 rue Beau-Mont in Beaupré (tel: (418) 827 4653 or (888) 827 4579, ext. 470; website: www.grandvallon.com), has a par-72 course below the slopes of Mont Ste-Anne at. Standard rates are C$55–78, dipping as low as C$32 for late-afternoon rounds. Closer to town, the Club de Golf St-Laurent, 758 chemin Royale, on Ile d’Orléans (tel: (418) 829 2244), has a par-72, 18-hole course overlooking the St Lawrence River. Green fees are C$34–42, depending on the day, with prices dropping in the afternoon. The above clubs are all open to the public.

Skiing: There are three great ski hills in Quebec City’s vicinity. The Station touristique Stoneham (tel: (418) 848 2411 or (800) 463 6888; website: www.ski-stoneham.com) is 30km (19 miles) north of the city, near the Réserve Faunique des Laurentides, which itself has excellent cross-country skiing in the Fôret Montmorency. Forty kilometres (25 miles) to the east, Mont-Ste-Anne (tel: (418) 827 5281 or (800) 463 1568; website: www.mont-sainte-anne.com) is one of the best-known ski resorts in eastern North America and has a wide range of activities throughout the year. Further east, in Charlevoix, Le Massif (tel: (418) 632 5876 or (877) 536 2774; website: www.lemassif.com) has incredible views of the St Lawrence River.

Tennis: The Club de tennis et squash Montcalm, 901 boulevard Champlain (tel: (418) 687 1250; website: www.tennismontcalm.qc.ca), has four interior and seven exterior courts, as well as three squash courts. Play costs C$13–26 for tennis and C$7–10 for squash, plus C$6 per person for non-members.