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You know that person who’s so nonchalantly well-dressed she makes everyone in the room look like they’re either dressed on potato sacks or tarted up, Vegas-style? She shops at Les Étoffes. “Measured” is the name of the game in this unisex clothes shop, with carefully selected pieces from all over the world and brands like Samuji, Apiece-Apart, Christophe Lemaire and Dieppa Restrepo. No matter the brand, the palette is understated and neutral, featuring grays, navies, browns and blacks, and the detailing is subtle; think texture contrasts, geometric cuts and tone-on-tone superposition. The store itself is a design beacon decorated with warm amber wood and tile.

Inside a Northwest-style longhouse, built by owner and First Nations tribe member Roy Henry Vickers to resemble the traditional dwellings once used by indigenous people, visitors can sift through Vickers’s limited-edition prints, carved cedar panels, and baskets with designs of eagles, ravens, orcas, and totem poles. Eagle Aerie Gallery also features the work of other local artists. 350 Campbell St., (250) 725-3235. Image: TSalon/Flickr.com

Contemporary art can sometimes be pretentious or obscure, but DHC/ART adds an edgy sense of wit, with exhibitions ranging from the visual puns of Ceal Floyer to the exuberant portraits of John Currin. 451 rue St.-Jean, (514) 849-3742.

Give yourself at least a few good hours to explore the gorgeous Jacques-Cartier National Park, which sits less than 45 minutes from downtown Quebec City. Packed with trails that highlight both the peaks and the valleys that surround the Jacques-Cartier river, the park also offers guided kayaking trips, trails for snowshoeing, and even has cabins for rent if you decide to stay the night on her stunning grounds.

Husband-and-wife team Hugue Dufour and Sarah Obraitis have pulled off a remarkable feat, managing to entice gourmets to travel to Long Island City in Queens for a meal. While Obraitis manages M. Wells Steakhouse, Dufour presides over the kitchen. Having honed his craft at Montreal‘s celebrated Au Pied de Cochon, here Dufour reimagines an old-school chophouse by venturing beyond the typical prime cuts of beef to include sweetbreads and pig’s head on the menu. Among the sides, the poutine is a nod to Dufour’s Quebecois roots as are seasonal dishes like the meat pies sold during the winter holidays. Other steak-house classics are updated with touches like candied nuts on the wedge salad. If you want to sample Dufour’s contemporary Quebecois cuisine and aren’t in the mood for steak, the M. Wells Dinette at MoMA PS1 is another option, though it has a limited menu.

This casual creperie-bistro sits on Rue Saint-Jean, one of Québec City’s busiest shopping streets. With its brick walls and fireplace, the Breton-owned restaurant has a cozy and casual feel. It’s best known for buckwheat crepes, a favorite typical dish of Brittany, but whether you like your crepes savory or sweet, you’ll find something on the menu to satisfy you. There are traditional fillings like cheese and mushrooms as well as shrimp, salmon, and, this being Québec, maple syrup.

The Place Bonaventure is widely recognized as one of the most important buildings constructed in Canada in the 1960s, though that’s not to say it’s universally loved. It’s a regular contender for the title of Montreal’s ugliest building. For the student of architecture, however, whether armchair or otherwise, it’s worth a visit to see an outstanding example of brutalist architecture. Architect Raymond Affleck’s vision was to turn the city inside-out in a building appropriate for its location in a cold climate. The Place Bonaventure was designed to include a conference center, hotel, and several floors of retail space, all along internal streets while the building presents a foreboding exterior of ribbed concrete (echoing the design of the seminal Architecture School at Yale University by Paul Rudolph) to the street. The entire complex included 3.1 million square feet of floor space, making it the largest building in the world when it was completed (in 1967). Much of the retail space was converted to offices in later renovations, though the conference center and the hotel (now the Hôtel Bonaventure Montréal) remain. The photo here was taken inside the hotel—a walk around their common spaces will give you a taste of Affleck’s vision for a new urban architecture.

In the heart of Whistler Village, Sundial Boutique Hotel is about as central as you can get: Three gondolas to Whistler and Blackcomb mountains sit right outside your door, and the area’s restaurants, shopping, and nightlife are only steps away. With just 49 suites, it’s one of the smaller properties in town, but the rooms themselves are generously sized and include full kitchens, dining and sitting areas, and gas fireplaces. For those who don’t want to splurge on a suite with a private outdoor whirlpool, you’ll still have access to Whistler’s only rooftop hot tub. And while the property doesn’t have its own swimming pool, guests are free to use the one at the lodge next door from May through October.

While Campobello Island is located in the Canadian province of New Brunswick, the only access to it by car is by crossing the International Bridge from Lubec, Maine. The 2,800-acre park honoring President Franklin D. Roosevelt covers most of the island’s southern end. The Visitor’s Centre and the Roosevelt Cottage are about a mile from the bridge. Begin there, and register for Tea with Eleanor, an engaging one-hour program during which park interpreters share stories about the former First Lady’s visits to the island over tea and cookies. After touring the 34-room, memento-filled, red-shingled cottage and the exhibits at the Visitor Centre, pick up park maps and explore the carriage roads, picnic areas, beaches, woodlands, lighthouse, hiking trails, and scenic viewpoints.

This rickety old five-storey loft building downtown became an enclave for art galleries a couple of decades ago because the rents were affordable and the location was central. Management has since embraced its status as Montreal’s small-gallery and artist-run centre headquarters, and spruced the building up a bit, encouraged by the enthusiastic foot-traffic the galleries bring. Some mainstays absolutely not to be missed on your trip there include Pierre-François Ouellette Art Contemporain (pictured), where you might catch art by Kent Monkman, Maskull Lasserre or Karilee Fuglem; Circa, an exciting space in constant development these days, dedicated to sculptural works; and Galerie Joyce Yahouda, an effervescent space where you can see work by local artists including Céline B. La Terreur, François Morelli or David Elliott.

Among the city’s coolest art spaces, Fonderie Darling is a giant – and I mean GIANT – industrial space-turned-contemporary art gallery. It’s a shining example of the type of architecture that existed in the area before the rapid gentrification. Divided into two halves, the space generally hosts one monumental work or series of works in the cavernous main area, and a smaller, more human-scaled exhibition in the second half. Fonderie Darling is also home to a dozen or so artist studios for artists-in-residence from around the world, which one can occasionally visit. Make an evening of it and reserve a table at the Fonderie’s restaurant, Le serpent, one of the hottest addresses in town.

On Jean-Talon near Parc Avenue in the rapidly gentrifying neighborhood between Mile End and Park Ex known as Mile Ex, Bar Le Ritz PDB is a large open space with a few tables by the big front windows (always open in summer afternoons so that the fun spills out into the street) and a warm, relaxed atmosphere. It’s better known as a show-bar than a hangout bar, though that is slowly changing with expanded opening hours and a wider range of drink options. Like most Montreal music clubs, anyone can reserve a spot to play here; but the average night tends to lean towards indie rock, post-punk, alternative pop sounds.

When it isn’t occupied by the Grands Ballets Canadiens or Opéra de Montréal, this largest concert hall in Montreal’s Place des Arts cultural complex has been known to host big musical names, including Maria Callas, Bob Dylan, Radiohead, Luciano Pavarotti and Ella Fitzgerald. The sound system is the utmost in refinement, and, combined with the cushy seats and hushed atmosphere, it makes for a sophisticated listening experience indeed. Half the fun is the opportunity to wander through the impressive 1960s building, punctuated by salons and bars for that ubiquitous intermission gin & tonic. Go ahead of time and reserve a table at one of the famous glassed-in restaurants on the Quartier des Spectacles, Brasserie T! or F Bar.

Walking through the first set of double doors offered warmth from the cold and snow outside. Walking through the second set, we were smacked in the face by the glorious smells coming from the wood fired ovens and the pizzas baking within.

Brewhouse brews 5 of their own beers and has a menu ranging from Matzo Ball Soup to 4 different types of Poutine.

Wait for a table upstairs or order off the full menu at the bar or by the fire in their cozy lounge.

Whistler Blackcomb doesn’t do anything small, so it was no surprise that Whistler Bike Park quickly emerged as the global go-to, lift-access, downhill-biking destination. The park even has its own massive festival, Crankworx, a 10-day rock-hopping frenzy every August. Walking among the armored throngs rolling their studded-tired bikes toward the lifts, you could forget that it snows here at all. Any thoughts of summer being the off-season have vanished. You don’t have to be a millennial—though it helps—to get dirty here; there are more than enough green and blue runs to provide a serious rush for youngsters and boomers. Sign up for the park’s outdoor clinics for critical insights into your technique.