Quebec City Prog Festival May 18th ** FINISTERRE, LA MASCHERA DI CERA, HOSTSONATEN **

**trurl** · 11-15-2013

Ah, ok, it's not like an hour away or something, then.

**Yves** · 11-15-2013

Oh no... This is Quebec City. Nothing is an hour away from anything!

You're playing there, correct? You should find the time before or after your set to explore. Street signs are all in French though so GPS is your friend.

**trurl** · 11-15-2013

Oui

We'll definitely want to get out and about in Quebec.

**Romerovm** · 11-15-2013

What is the ideal airport to arrive in?

**Yves** · 11-15-2013

Only 1 airport in Quebec City. You'll have to check about direct flights from your origin city. Chances are you'll have to go through YYZ (Toronto) or YUL (Montreal) and catch connecting flights.

**Yves** · 11-15-2013

Originally Posted by trurl

Oui

We'll definitely want to get out and about in Quebec.

The 'touristy' part of the city is very user-friendly. You should be able to park close by and explore everything on foot.

**Jon** · 11-15-2013

Originally Posted by Yves

A "good" drive may be overstating a bit, but it is driving distance.The venue is probably 5 to 10 miles from the heart of the tourist action. It's not just a case of skipping a show and strolling over and back in time for the following show.

Just a little caveat for people who might be wishing to combine this festival with a tour of the city's best known attractions.

This is true, but the venue is just perfect - not a bad seat in the place and, not that I have a trained ear, the sound seemed excellent to me. You can stroll through a pleasant suburban neighborhood in which the venue is located, but you’ll need to drive to tourist spots. It is easy to jump on the freeway, however, and will only take a short time (about 10 minutes) to get to the historic part of the city. In addition, because the festival events begin late in the day, there is lots of time before the music starts to engage in tourist behavior. And because the shows don’t run late into the night, your butt won’t be dragging in the morning. We went to the Aquarium (really excellent), hiked at Montmorency Falls, and toured all around Ȋl d’Orléans. We visited the historic downtown, saw Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré cathedral, and a bee museum (Sweet! :b). We ate at incredible bakeries, and drank terrific draft beers at breweries and pubs. The “official” hotel kicks total ass and is only a few minutes (~3 min.) drive from the venue. There is a killer beer emporium and grocery store near the venue and hotel, so stocking up with supplies is easy. All the people we met were amazingly friendly and helpful. All in all, it was one of the best trips we ever made. We’re going to stay an extra day or two in 2014 so that we can do some whale-watching and enjoy nature in the areas north of Quebec City. We can hardly wait!

**Romerovm** · 11-15-2013

Originally Posted by Yves

Only 1 airport in Quebec City. You'll have to check about direct flights from your origin city. Chances are you'll have to go through YYZ (Toronto) or YUL (Montreal) and catch connecting flights.

Do you know the name of the Quebec airport?

**Yves** · 11-15-2013

I believe it is Quebec Jean Lesage International Airport (YQB) but I have never flown there. It's only a 3 hour drive from Montreal.

**gryphs also** · 11-15-2013

From the host hotel, it is less than a $20 cab ride to Old Quebec City. We put four people in a cab and it was $5 a piece including tip. If you are going by yourself it could be expensive, but going and coming back by cab for $10 is pretty cheap to me.

We spent the Sunday morning/afternoon walking around. Absolutely beautiful.

**Romerovm** · 11-15-2013

Originally Posted by gryphs also

From the host hotel, it is less than a $20 cab ride to Old Quebec City. We put four people in a cab and it was $5 a piece including tip. If you are going by yourself it could be expensive, but going and coming back by cab for $10 is pretty cheap to me.

We spent the Sunday morning/afternoon walking around. Absolutely beautiful.

This is the ideal way to do it. Hard to find folks to go with though. Goes back to how we always discuss about having more concerts, festivals, etc, but we are not willing to attend.

**mozo-pg** · 11-15-2013

I'm looking forward to the weekend!

**Yves** · 11-15-2013

I thought you weren't doing the "festival thing" anymore, Greg...

**mozo-pg** · 11-15-2013

Originally Posted by Yves

I thought you weren't doing the "festival thing" anymore, Greg...

A prog fan can have a change of heart, eh? Stop paying attention to what I write!!!

**Plasmatopia** · 11-15-2013

Originally Posted by Romerovm

How is the weather in Quebec around this time?

One year we went to this festival and it was windy, cold, and overcast. The last time we went it was gorgeous weather.

**Progatron** · 11-15-2013

Any of you non-French-speakers find any trouble in Quebec City? It's generally considered a tad less welcoming than Montreal.

**Plasmatopia** · 11-15-2013

Originally Posted by Progatron

Any of you non-French-speakers find any trouble in Quebec City? It's generally considered a tad less welcoming than Montreal.

I didn't have any issues. My wife got very upset with pretty much everything on our last trip up there and vowed never to go again, but I put every "bad" experience down to misunderstandings. The "bad" things were just brief little communication problems while buying coffee, food, etc. at the local mall (there is a pretty large one with a big food court a short distance from the hotel). With a little patience everything always worked out just fine. Most people speak English, but maybe not so much at McDonald's at midnight which is probably to be expected. I actually thought everyone was very friendly and accommodating.

Not too many strangers engaged us at the festival itself with one exception - a very sweet young lady from Ontario sat next to us and translated some of the announcements for us in between sets. The only other things I'm pretty sure I understood were some derogatory commentary/laughter about the USA, so be prepared for that. I didn't really take offense.

We took a taxi down into the old part of the city the last time we were there, walked around, bought some food, and ate it on the Plains of Abraham...just a beautiful day in a beautiful city. I'd love to go sometime with someone who knows some good restaurants to visit. I don't dare buy tickets this year until I get my passport renewed.

Edit: a couple more items in the plus column....quite tolerable breakfast the host hotel included in the price of a night's stay and the bands stay there too, so running into the band members is pretty common...very quick and easy drive to the venue.

**Progatron** · 11-16-2013

Originally Posted by Plasmatopia

The only other things I'm pretty sure I understood were some derogatory commentary/laughter about the USA, so be prepared for that.

Oh, I don't think that would bother me.

Thanks for your post, I've only ever been to Quebec City once, and it was long ago. Been to Montreal many times and have no trouble there whatsoever but in QC I would need my wife to do some translating as my knowledge of French is limited (I can speak it slowly but I'd never understand it being spoken TO me).

**3RDegree_Robert** · 03-09-2014

Hey everyone, just wanted to let everyone know 3RDegree will be playing instead of Shadow Circus, who nicely suggested us as their replacement. We will be staying at the 7:30pm spot on Saturday before Glass Hammer. Hope to see many of you there.