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Historic site · Quebec City

Breakneck Steps

L'Escalier Casse-Cou

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Rank 149 of 1,857
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Reviewed by Elena Voss · Roavina Travel Editor

About Breakneck Steps

The Breakneck Stairs (Escalier Casse-Cou) are, in all likelihood, the oldest stairway in Québec City. A steep pathway appeared here some 50 years after Champlain laid out Mountain Hill in 1620, and around 1680 steps or landings were added to make the shortcut safer. By about 1880 the old wooden stairway had become so dangerous that London travel guides called it "breakneck"; in 1893 the city replaced it with a sturdier three-ramp iron structure designed by engineer Charles Baillairgé. Its present look and name date from the restoration of Place-Royale in the 1960s.

Checked 2026-11-10 · Source

Getting there

The Breakneck Stairs can be reached from Côte de la Montagne at the top and from Rue du Petit-Champlain at the bottom, in Old Québec. For centuries they have been a convenient link between the commercial Lower Town and the institutional Upper Town, so they make a natural walking route between the two. The city notes that the cliff is as steep as ever, but the stairway is laid out in terraces, so you can stop for a break on the landings on the way up.

Checked 2026-11-10 · Source

Place details and sources

Wheelchair access
Not available OpenStreetMap · Checked 2026-09-09
Type of place
Attraction OpenStreetMap · Checked 2026-09-09

Common questions

How old are the Breakneck Stairs?

Steps or landings were first installed around 1680; it is probably the city's oldest stairway.

Where do the stairs start and end?

They connect Côte de la Montagne with Rue du Petit-Champlain.

Are the stairs really dangerous?

No: the city archives record no death or serious injury on the path or the stairway.

Where it is

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Nearby

Within 1 min on foot
  • Musée de la place Royale 1 hr 30 min
    1 min walk

    Musée de la place Royale

    • Must see
    • Museum
  • Place Royale 2 hours
    1 min walk

    Place Royale

    • Must see
    • Historic site
  • Church of Our Lady of Victories, Quebec City 30 min
    1 min walk

    Church of Our Lady of Victories, Quebec City

    • Must see · Heritage site
    • Place of worship

In Quebec City

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Source: OpenStreetMap contributors ·