Whale Watching Tours from Quebec City

The Tadoussac zodiac tour

Tadoussac sits inside whale country: the cold, krill-rich water where the Saguenay fjord empties into the St. Lawrence, a stretch protected as the Saguenay-St. Lawrence Marine Park. That is why the boats are there and not at the Old Port. A zodiac puts you low on the water, which is the closest legal way to experience it.

The established Tadoussac operator

Best for getting close to the water in whale country, on the region's most-reviewed boat

Tadoussac / Charlevoix Whale Watching Zodiac Tour

4.4 across 2,942 GetYourGuide reviews

• Run by AML, the same company behind the big sightseeing boats on the river at Quebec City
• Departs Tadoussac, at the mouth of the Saguenay in the marine park, roughly a 3-hour drive northeast of Old Quebec
• Season runs roughly May through October per the listing; from $106

From $106 live price on the listing for your date

Check live availability & prices on GetYourGuide →

The rating is AML's current GetYourGuide figure. The tour starts in Tadoussac; getting there is up to you, see below.

How the day actually works from Quebec City

Treat it as a full day, roughly 6 hours of travel wrapped around the boat. The drive follows the north shore up through Charlevoix, one of the prettiest stretches of road in the province, and ends with a short ferry hop across the Saguenay into Tadoussac. Leave Old Quebec early, book a mid-day zodiac departure with buffer on both sides, and you are back in the city for a late dinner.

If a six-hour round trip is more than your itinerary can absorb, the water is still very much part of a Quebec City visit: the sightseeing boats on the St. Lawrence leave from the Old Port itself, minutes from the funicular. And an overnight in Charlevoix or Tadoussac turns this from a long day into an easy two-day loop.