Quebec City, Quebec

• French Canadian, main language is French (but a different tone and dialect than Parisian French)
• Cheaper to book hotels outside of Quebec City or Old Quebec: Look at neighbouring towns like Vanier, Sainte-Foy, Sillery, and Les Rivières. You could get a room for less than USD $60/night. And ask for breakfast, sometimes not included in the hotel price. 
• An 8 to 9 hour drive from NYC, if you go on speed and less bathroom/lunch breaks. 
• At least know a few words and phrases in French, the locals appreciate it more than you think. "Bonjour, ces't va?" goes a long way. 
• A diverse city so there will be Japanese restaurants, Thai restaurants, Spanish restaurants, Irish restaurants. 
• Walking is the best mode of transportation. 

Just a few things I learned when researching Quebec City...a trip there will be like going to a European town except you are still in North America and they are located in Canada. 

Using booking.com and hotels.com, plus agoda.com has been a lifesaver for finding hotels that are fairly cheap but decent. Add to that, if you search in a different country mode in those websites sometimes you may find good deals or a point of obstruction to use to ask for lower price when speaking to an agent. 

Hotels.com will give you cheaper price should you find same listing (same room type, room features, amenities and policies) in a different website. Learned that by searching multiple sites and finding the same hotel room with different prices, and arguing effectively to receive the cheaper rate. Thank you third party sites, reasoning skills, and a knack to haggle for lower prices.