Experience the best of Trois-Rivières

Founded in 1634, the town takes its name from the islands at the mouth of the Saint-Maurice River, which divide the stream into three channels as it meets the St Lawrence. The old quarter keeps narrow streets, stone houses and a waterfront promenade, and an Ursuline monastery recalls the French colonial period. In the Cap-de-la-Madeleine district, the sanctuary of Notre-Dame-du-Cap has drawn Catholic pilgrims for generations.

Up the Saint-Maurice, the Forges du Saint-Maurice National Historic Site preserves the remains of Canada's first ironworks, which operated for well over a century. The Mauricie region to the north is lake and forest country, with La Mauricie National Park and the river town of Shawinigan, once a centre of hydroelectric power.

Quebec staples such as pea soup, tourtière and poutine fill the menus beside the river, and maple syrup from the surrounding farms ends many meals. A long-running international poetry festival and summer concerts keep the old quarter busy, and the maple woods of Mauricie turn red in early autumn.