PORT OF QUÉBEC UNVEILS A MULTI-SENSORY TOURISM SHOWCASE AT TERMINAL 30 DURING THE 2026 INTERNATIONAL CRUISE FORUM
A community-driven project, supported by Destination Québec cité, the MT Lab, and the Ministère du Tourisme, at the heart of the destination’s sustainable vision.
Québec City, March 25, 2026 — During the 2026 Québec International Cruise Forum, the Port of Québec and Destination Québec cité officially opened a multi-sensory tourism showcase at Terminal 30. The new immersive installation is a significant step forward in enhancing the disembarkation experience for cruise passengers and ensuring the sustainable development of the region’s tourist attractions.
This multisensory showcase was born of a simple idea: to welcome visitors with an experience that tells the story of Québec City as it is today—a destination that’s rich, vibrant, and open to its surroundings. By celebrating the diversity of experiences—from our culture and nature to our food and people—we encourage visitors to venture beyond the waterfront and discover everything that the Capitale-Nationale has to offer
A Sought-After Showcase by the Cruise Community
This showcase was created in direct response to a request made by industry partners at the 2024 Cruise Forum. The destination’s key players wanted to provide cruise passengers with an inspiring and interactive experience from the moment they arrive at the Port.
One of the project’s other main goals is to encourage cruise passengers to venture beyond Old Québec, thus distributing economic benefits more evenly and alleviating pressure on the busiest areas.
This strategic project was made possible by the financial support and collaboration of several partners.
The Wendat Nation is proud of this collaboration, which aligns with the principles of the framework agreement signed with the Port of Québec last February, founded on respect, diplomacy, and shared responsibility. This multi-sensory showcase, the only one of its kind in the greater Québec City area, recognizes the important place the Wendat Nation occupies in the tourist experience while providing it with greater exposure. Like our ancestors, we continue to welcome people, engage in dialogue, and share our culture, thereby affirming our living, proud, and forward-looking presence.
Welcoming cruise passengers plays an important role in the tourism economy of the Capitale-Nationale region and helps to raise Québec’s international profile. This new immersive showcase is an innovative initiative that provides visitors with an inspiring experience from the moment they arrive while promoting the richness of our destination. By encouraging cruise passengers to explore the wider area and its attractions, we generate tangible economic benefits for local businesses and communities. I applaud the work of the partners who have helped carry out this promising project for our tourism industry.
This showcase will make visitors feel more welcome and help them to find their way around while also achieving one of the objectives of the Table de concertation du Vieux-Québec: to improve the quality of life for residents by promoting more sustainable tourism. By encouraging visitors to explore the attractions in other parts of the city, we can reduce pressure on the busiest areas and distribute the economic benefits of tourism more evenly, which will benefit citizens and merchants and improve the tourist experience. It’s a win-win approach for everyone.
This showcase is an innovative gateway for cruise passengers and demonstrates that market’s strategic importance for our destination. From the moment they arrive on the shores of the St. Lawrence, it captures their attention, transforming this first glimpse into an immersive experience. In mere moments, it introduces the diversity of the greater Québec City area—from its vibrant neighbourhoods to its surrounding RCMs with beautiful natural landscapes—and helps to generate spin-offs for our businesses and communities while promoting more balanced and sustainable tourism.
Innovation is a powerful tool for showing a different side of a region. This immersive showcase illustrates the collaboration between major players in Québec City who are joining forces to transform the visitor reception area into an inspiring gateway to the region’s wealth of tourist attractions. We’re pleased to support the initiative with our expertise in multi-sensory design.
An Immersive Experience to Shine a New Light on Québec City
The multi-sensory showcase creates an immersive experience through a combination of images, soundscapes, interactive capsules, and experiential content. It highlights Québec City’s many different facets, including:
- The richness of the destination and its surrounding area
- The culture and history of the Wendat Nation, following the framework agreement signed in February by the Port of Québec and the Nation
- The variety of nature and outdoor experiences
- The diverse local food scene and specialty food experiences
The design of this immersive experience was developed by Stimulation Déjà Vu in collaboration with partners renowned for their expertise in multi-sensory design and the creation of immersive environments. They have combined technology, storytelling, and sensory engagement to create a showcase that captures visitors’ imaginations while paying homage the destination’s identity and richness. The Tourism Innovation Program, managed by the MT Lab and set up with financial backing from the Ministère du Tourisme, supported this project.
The 2026 Québec International Cruise Forum: Looking Back and Forward
In conjunction with the inauguration, the 2026 Cruise Forum brought industry partners together to review advances in the sector and discuss the destination’s development prospects.
The 2025 cruise season confirmed Québec City’s strength as a four-season cruise destination. It ran from January 28 to November 2—a first. A total of 135,933 cruise passengers visited the Port of Québec. Of these, 52% were embarking or disembarking passengers, spending an average of 17.5 hours in the city, generating significant spin-offs for the local economy.
The Forum also provided an opportunity to go over progress on the dockside electrification project, which is a major energy transition initiative and a key part of the sustainable development strategy for the Port of Québec and the destination as a whole.
A highlight of the event was a panel discussion with Debbie Holbrook (Princess Cruises) and Robert de Bruin (Holland America Line). The two experts shared their insights into the evolution of North Atlantic cruise itineraries, passenger expectations, and stopover planning trends. This strategic dialogue provided an opportunity to further reflect on ways of making the region more attractive and diversifying stopovers within the international cruise industry.
Forum discussions also emphasized the need for controlled cruise industry development, the importance of increasing local spin-offs while preserving citizens’ quality of life, the efforts to diversify excursions and encourage exploration of new sectors in the region, and the position of Québec City as an innovative and responsible cruise destination.
Outlook for the 2026 Season
- The 2026 season will run from April 13 to November 1 and will feature: 100 stopovers, including 20 arrival and departure operations
- Approximately 115,000 cruise passengers
- Four maiden calls, including Explora Journeys’ brand-new EXPLORA III, set to leave the shipyard this summer
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About the Port of Québec
The Port of Québec is strategically located 1100 km from the Atlantic Ocean, close to the Great Lakes market. It is the last deepwater port in the St. Lawrence corridor, with a depth of 15 metres. This unique position allows Canadian companies to achieve significant economies of scale in both import and export trade.
With links to more than 40 partner countries, the Port of Québec and its employees handle an average of over 26 million tonnes of goods every year, representing a commercial value of over $15 billion.
The Port is also recognized as the leading cruise port on the St. Lawrence; along with all its partners in Québec’s maritime industry, it contributes to $2 billion in economic spin-offs while supporting some 12,000 jobs nationwide.
The Québec Port Authority (QPA) is ranked 4th out of the 17 Canadian port authorities in terms of revenue. While it is economically powerful, it is also known for its contributions to the area’s urban and social fabric thanks to port spaces like the Agora, the Oasis, the Baie de Beauport, La Cale, the Discoglace, and the Village Nordik.
Source and Information
Frédéric Lagacé
Director, Public Relations and communications
418 929-5031 | [email protected]