Château Frontenac

It is considered the most photographed hotel in the world, and it was built to sell train tickets.

The Fairmont Le Chateau Frontenac stands in Old Quebec, in the historic district's Upper Town, on the southern side of Place d'Armes above the Saint Lawrence River. The Canadian Pacific Railway built it as one of Canada's grand railway hotels, and the New York architect Bruce Price designed it in the Chateau style. It opened in 1893.

The building has 18 floors and stands 79.9 metres, roughly 262 feet, a height considerably augmented by the 54 metres of ground elevation underneath it. That is why the silhouette carries from so far off: the hotel is tall, and the rock it sits on is taller.

It was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1981, and the Canadian Register of Historic Places holds the formal record. It has been expanded three times, the last major expansion in 1993.

Its guest list is written into the room names. The Churchill Suite and the Roosevelt Suite are named for Winston Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt, who attended the First and Second Quebec Conferences here. Other suites honour Charles de Gaulle and Elizabeth II.

You do not need a booking to enjoy it. The hotel is bounded by rue Saint Louis to the north and rue Mont Carmel to the south, with two public roads, rue du Tresor and rue des Carrieres, running straight through it. Terrasse Dufferin wraps around from the northeast to the southeast, overlooking the river, and it is free to walk.