NEW YORK (Money Magazine) - We think Quebec City's reputation as the "Poor Man's Paris" gives this stunningly beautiful city short shrift.

It is true that the old town's narrow cobblestone streets, imposing chateau-style clifftop architecture and mostly French-speaking population make you think you've actually left the continent. And you can undoubtedly have this deeply French experience on a limited budget, thanks to the weak Canadian dollar. But the city also offers a compact lesson in Canadian history, access to some spectacular natural surroundings and, ultimately, an identity that's very much its own.

Summer is arguably the best time in Quebec City. Temperatures are in the high 70 degrees (farenheit) from June to September and the days are long. Some sites are open to the public only in summer, like the 200-year-old Citadel National Historic Site, where the Royal 22nd Regiment of Canadian Forces perform the changing of the guard daily from June through August.

Below the city are the Plains of Abraham, site of many clashes between the French and the British before the British finally took over the city in 1759. The space is now occupied by Battlefield Park and the Musee du Quebec.

If you can, visit the city between July 4 and 14 for the International Summer Festival, 10 days of free jazz, folk and rock performances and streetside improvisational theater. But even if you don't make it for the festival, there's always something going on in and around the sidewalk cafes that line the city streets.

The true heart of French Canada is embodied in the 17th-century Vieux Quebec, the only walled city in North America, which climbs in tiers above the St. Lawrence River. There you will find the Chateau Frontenac, the archetypal chateau hotel that has become the city's most recognizable icon. Now owned by the Fairmont hotels, the Frontenac (418-692-3861) is one of the best luxury hotel values in North America, at about $140 a night.

Great side trips include the Charlevoix region on the banks of the St. Lawrence River and the thousand lakes of the Laurentian Mountains, which feature some of the most breathtaking scenery in North America.