Bas-Saint-Laurent from Quebec City: the perfect 2-3 day road trip

Bas-Saint-Laurent is the stretch of Quebec’s south shore between Quebec City and the Gaspé Peninsula — roughly 250 kilometres of coastal villages, widening St. Lawrence estuary views, dramatic cliff parks, and some of the best sunset photography in eastern Canada. Most international visitors drive through Bas-Saint-Laurent only briefly on their way to Gaspésie; local Quebecers treat it as a distinct 2-3 day road trip destination, and the latter group has the right of it. The region rewards unhurried travel — the villages are close together, the scenic pull-offs are frequent, and the gradient from Quebec City wine country to the deep-water estuary at Rimouski makes every hour of the drive different.

This guide presents two versions of the trip: a 2-day highlights loop from Quebec City and a 3-4 day deeper exploration. Both use Route 132 along the south shore rather than Autoroute 20; the autoroute is faster but removes the entire point of the region. If you would rather spend a day in the city before setting off, browse Quebec City day tours.

At a glance
Where	Quebec’s south shore between Quebec City and the Gaspé Peninsula, along Route 132
Cost	A rental car plus around CAD $120-200/night for mid-range hotels or gîtes; add CAD $50-80/person for guided extras like Île aux Basques
Time needed	2 days minimum, 3-4 days to do it properly
Getting there	Rental car from Quebec City; Kamouraska is around 1h45, Rimouski around 3h15
Best time	Mid-June to early October; July-August for lavender and whale watching, September for fewer crowds

Before you go

• Rental car: essential. One-way rentals to Rimouski are possible but pricey; a round-trip loop from Quebec City is the usual pattern.
• Route 132 vs Autoroute 20: 132 adds roughly 90 minutes for the full distance but is scenic the entire way. Use 20 only for direct returns.
• Accommodation: book a month ahead for July and August; two weeks is fine for June and September.
• Food stops: many restaurants in smaller villages close Mondays and Tuesdays, and many close for winter. Call ahead off-season.

Budget, fuel and timing basics

Plan on a full tank before leaving Quebec City and top up in Rivière-du-Loup or Rimouski, since stations thin out between villages and some close early in the evening. A realistic budget for two people on a mid-range 2-day loop is a rental car, fuel for roughly 500-600 km of driving, one night of lodging, and three or four restaurant meals; expect lodging and food to be the largest costs after the car. Gîtes (bed-and-breakfasts) often include a generous breakfast, which can cover you until a late lunch. Summer sunsets on the estuary come late, often after 8:30 pm in July, so you can drive a long first day and still reach the water for golden hour. Fog and wind off the river can arrive quickly, so keep a flexible plan for photography stops rather than fixed times.

2-day weekend loop

Day 1: Quebec City → Kamouraska → Rivière-du-Loup (190 km, 3h drive + stops)

Leave Quebec City mid-morning on Autoroute 20 east to exit 400 at Saint-Jean-Port-Joli. Switch to Route 132.

Saint-Jean-Port-Joli (1 hr east of Quebec City): the traditional wood-carving capital of Quebec. The Musée des Anciens Canadiens is modest but charming; small galleries line the main street.

L’Islet-sur-Mer: short stop at the Musée Maritime du Québec. The St. Lawrence here is already 15 kilometres wide.

Kamouraska (1h45 from Quebec City): the region’s photographic icon. Salt marshes, monadnock hills rising from flat farmland, the widening river, and sunsets that photographers come hundreds of kilometres for. Stop at:

• Kamouraska village: tiny historic centre; the parish church spire is the postcard shot.
• Cap Martin: small beach and viewpoint.
• La Route des Kamouraskois producers: if time permits, the lavender field at La Seigneurie des Aulnaies (nearby) and the Poissonnerie Lauzier are worth detours.

Rivière-du-Loup (arrival late afternoon): end-of-day viewpoint is the Parc des Chutes waterfall and trail, 15 minutes from Route 132. Sunset from Pointe de Rivière-du-Loup (where the ferry docks) is one of the region’s best.

Overnight: Rivière-du-Loup — multiple mid-range hotels near the ferry terminal and historic downtown.

Field notes for Day 1: the drive is short enough that you can linger. Allow about 45 minutes in Saint-Jean-Port-Joli, an hour at Kamouraska, and save the last two hours of daylight for Rivière-du-Loup. If you want to understand the town before arriving, the Rivière-du-Loup guide covers the ferry terminal, the falls and the summer whale-watching cruises, which depart from the marina and typically last two to three hours. Book cruises the day before in July and August, and bring a windproof layer, because it is noticeably colder on the water than on shore.

Day 2: Rivière-du-Loup → Le Bic → Rimouski → return (280 km, 4h drive + stops)

Morning departure. Drive Route 132 east.

Trois-Pistoles (30 min from Rivière-du-Loup): the ferry to Les Escoumins on the Côte-Nord leaves here in summer (1h30 crossing) for visitors adding a whale-watching detour.

Parc national du Bic (45 min from Rivière-du-Loup): the scenic highlight of the trip. Dramatic Appalachian coastal cliffs, seal colonies, hiking trails through shore meadows. Budget 2-3 hours. Pic Champlain hike (1.5 hrs return, 150 m elevation) delivers the iconic aerial view of the park’s islands. See Parc du Bic.

Rimouski + Pointe-au-Père (arrival noon-early afternoon): lunch in Rimouski’s marina district. Afternoon at the Site historique maritime de la Pointe-au-Père — the submarine Onondaga (open to walk through), the Empress of Ireland museum (Canada’s worst peacetime maritime disaster), and the Pointe-au-Père lighthouse. Budget 2-3 hours. See Rimouski.

Return to Quebec City: via Autoroute 20 in 3 hours.

Alternative: overnight in Rimouski and extend to Jardins de Métis + Gaspésie on day 3.

Field notes for Day 2: start early, ideally by 8:30 am, so that Parc du Bic is not rushed. Park visitor centers typically open mid-morning in season, and a daily or per-person admission fee usually applies, so carry a card. Low tide exposes the shore rocks where harbor seals haul out, which is the best time to see them; high tide pushes them to the outer islets. The drive back on Autoroute 20 is easy but long after a full day, so if you are tired, a night in Rimouski is a better choice than pushing on in the dark. Moose and deer are active at dusk along rural stretches, so reduce your speed after sundown.

3-4 day deeper exploration

Adds the following to the core loop:

Day 2 addition: Trois-Pistoles to Île aux Basques

A Basque whaling-station island 3 km offshore, reached by boat from Trois-Pistoles June to mid-September. Half-day guided visit ($50 adult) with one of the best birding experiences in eastern Canada. Reserve ahead. For other bookable excursions, see guided tours in Quebec.

Day 3: Rimouski → Jardins de Métis (Reford Gardens) → return

30 minutes east of Rimouski, Les Jardins de Métis (Reford Gardens) is one of the finest historic gardens in eastern North America — famous for its Himalayan blue poppies that bloom June-July. The annual International Garden Festival (June-October) adds contemporary landscape installations. Budget 3 hours. $22 adult.

Choosing between the short and long versions

If you are traveling with children or older relatives, the 2-day loop is more comfortable, because the long driving days are broken by short, easy stops. Photographers and hikers usually prefer the longer version, which adds time for sunrise light at Kamouraska and a longer walk at Le Bic. The wider Bas-Saint-Laurent regional overview helps if you want to compare additional villages before settling on an itinerary. Shoulder-season visitors in late September should check opening dates for the Île aux Basques boat and the garden festival, since schedules tighten quickly after Labor Day.

Day 4: extend to Gaspésie

From Jardins de Métis, Sainte-Flavie is 15 minutes further east — the official gateway to the Gaspé Peninsula. A longer version of this trip continues into the Gaspésie driving loop.

What to eat along the way

• Smoked herring and salmon: Fumoir Atkins in Saint-Jean-Port-Joli.
• Oysters and seafood: the Poissonnerie Lauzier fish market at Kamouraska sells fresh Gaspé oysters and smoked salmon.
• Cidres de glace / ice cider: Kamouraska and Rivière-du-Loup have multiple producers.
• Microbrewery stops: Brasserie Aux Fous Brassant in Rimouski, Le Secret des Dieux in Saint-Antonin.
• Upmarket dinner: Chez Saint-Pierre at Le Bic is a destination restaurant — reservations a month ahead for weekend evenings.

Where to stay

• Rivière-du-Loup: Hôtel Universel, Auberge de la Pointe, several mid-range.
• Kamouraska: Auberge des Îles du Saint-Laurent, small B&Bs.
• Le Bic village: Auberge du Mange Grenouille (quirky, highly rated), Hôtel Rimouski (branded hotels).
• Rimouski: multiple hotels; Quality Inn and Hôtel Rimouski are central.

Trip at a glance: day-by-day summary

Day	Route	Highlights	Overnight
Day 1	Quebec City → Kamouraska → Rivière-du-Loup (190 km)	Saint-Jean-Port-Joli, Kamouraska salt marshes and village, sunset at Pointe de Rivière-du-Loup	Rivière-du-Loup
Day 2	Rivière-du-Loup → Le Bic → Rimouski → return (280 km)	Parc du Bic cliffs and seals, Pointe-au-Père submarine and lighthouse	Return to Quebec City, or Rimouski if extending
Day 3 (optional)	Trois-Pistoles → Île aux Basques	Guided birding and Basque whaling-station history	Rimouski
Day 4 (optional)	Rimouski → Jardins de Métis → Gaspésie gateway	Reford Gardens, Sainte-Flavie	Onward to Gaspésie

If you only have one day

A single-day version is possible but tight: leave Quebec City early, stop briefly in Kamouraska for photos and a coffee (skip the deeper village exploration), then push on to Parc National du Bic for the Cap-à-l’Orignal loop and seal viewpoints, and return via Autoroute 20 rather than retracing Route 132. This compresses the trip’s two signature experiences — Kamouraska light and Bic’s coastline — into roughly 10-11 hours round trip, but it sacrifices the unhurried pace that makes the region worthwhile. Two days is strongly preferable if your schedule allows it.

Practical tips

• Weather: the estuary is always cooler than Quebec City. Expect 5-10°C cooler; pack a layer even in July.
• Language: French is dominant. English is understood in tourism settings but not assumed. A few phrases help.
• Cell coverage: solid along Route 132 through Rimouski; can drop inside Parc du Bic and east of Mont-Joli.
• Cross-river ferries: three seasonal options connect to Côte-Nord — Rivière-du-Loup to Saint-Siméon, Trois-Pistoles to Les Escoumins, Matane to Baie-Comeau. Useful for combining with Charlevoix or whale watching on the Côte-Nord.
• Pair with: Charlevoix via the Rivière-du-Loup ferry for a river-crossing loop; Gaspésie for the classic 7-day extension.

Frequently asked questions about Bas-Saint-Laurent from Quebec City

Do I need a car for the Bas-Saint-Laurent road trip from Quebec City? Yes, a rental car is essential. One-way rentals ending in Rimouski exist but cost more; most travellers do a round-trip loop back to Quebec City.

Is 2 days enough, or should I plan for longer? Two days covers the highlights (Kamouraska and Parc du Bic) comfortably. Three to four days lets you add Île aux Basques, Jardins de Métis, and a more relaxed pace without feeling rushed between stops.