The Best Museums in Quebec City

Musée de la Civilisation, 85 rue Dalhousie (tel 866/710-8031 or 418/643-2158): Here is that rarity among museums: a collection of cleverly mounted temporary and permanent exhibitions that both children and adults find engrossing, without talking down or metaphysical maunderings. Make time for “People of Québec . . . Then and Now,” a permanent exhibit that is a sprawling examination of Québec history.

Musée National des Beaux-Arts du Québec, Parc des Champs-de-Bataille (tel 866/220-2150 or 418/643-2150): Referred to simply as Musée du Québec, this museum highlights modern art (Québec surrealist Jean-Paul Riopelle especially) and has a large collection of Inuit art, much produced in the 1980s and 1990s.