Curator’s statement
Montreal is the largest city in the Canadian province of Quebec, beautifully located on the Saint Lawerence River and named after Mount Royal, a mountain in the center of the city. It's a wonderful way to feel like you have travelled to Europe without having to travel far if you live on the East Coast, and easy to fly into if you live elsewhere. Montreal is rich with food, wine, culture and the outdoors. It's a perfect place for a couple's getaway, girlfriends' weekend or fantastic for a family. It is the home of the Cirque Du Soleil and is broken up into different districts all having a unique vibe and flavor to them. The best times to visit is April to November, unless you are traveling to up ski at Mont Tremblant or love the beautiful cold weather.
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Things to do in Montreal
There are five areas that I would stick to walking or biking around. Old Montreal, Plateau, Miles End, Mount Royal-Outre Mont and Verdun (Wellington Promenade).
What is so great about Montreal is that you can use Bixi Bike Share (super easy with the app and bikes are located all over the city) or Ma Bicylette (you can rent hourly or by the day), with safe and easy bike lanes. I would recommend walking around Old Montreal by foot and stopping in many little shops, coffee shops and restaurants. You can ride or walk along the Saint Lawerence River all the way to Atwater Market and grab some delicious fresh bread, fruit, cheese and other gourmet delicacies for a picnic lunch or snack. Depending on the season, try H2O Adventures for kayaking, petal boats or swan boats on the canals.
Adventure up to Mont Royal St. Joseph : Mount Royal and visit the beautiful Basilica or walk around the beautiful parks. Visit the Montreal Art Museum and stroll around the shops and cafes nearby.
One of my favorite things to do is Bota Bota, a unique and popular outdoor spa and water experience on an old river ferry turned spa (bring a swim suit and book a time, it is amazing in all weather, has an inside area (which is quiet), an outside area off the boat where you can talk, drink and hang out, it also has a great restaurant and chance to plunge safely into the Saint Lawrence River. Some other fun things to do is The Giant Wheel and, of course, Cirque Du Soleil. For drinks and dinner many of the hotels have fantastic roof top dinning.
Day Trips:
Visit Mont Tremblant if you more time. It has a beautiful ski resort in the winter and is incredible in summer months, with a beautiful French style village.
Places to eat & drink in Montreal
L'Express: a must do, old style french bistro, book ahead. You can have table or bar seating which is very popular in Montreal. Also go early and walk around the area, there are many cool shops and bars. I highly recommend the jar of cornichons (yummmmm).
Monarch; walking distance from Old Montreal is a bistro with more casual dining, bar dinning and a restaurant. Great drinks, decor and desserts!
Joe Beef: For foodies, this is a must. Get ready to eat and also leave time to walk around before or after great cool neighborhood.
Larry's : Great for breakfast!
Atwater Market: A specialty market with many food stand options.
Roof top bars and Restaurants at these three great hotels:
Place Des Armes (has great brunch)
Kyo : Japanese Bar
William Gray
Hotel Nelligan
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Evyan Metzner
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This guide is part of our ongoing series on travel to Canada.