Montreal is the cultural capital of French Canada and the most populated city in Quebec. Despite being a prominent French Canadian city, most residents are bilingual, with about 58% of Montrealers speaking both official languages. While French is the language primarily used in the public sphere (signage, transit announcements, etc.), tourists will find it easy to get along in either English or French.
I’d recommend learning a little French before arriving to be a courteous visitor, like hello (bonjour), please (s’il vous plaît), and thank you (merci), but most shops, restaurants, and businesses will serve you in English. Note for international visitors: Québécois French is distinct from other French dialects, so those who are familiar with French spoken in France or other countries may find the French spoken in Canada to be unfamiliar.
When to Visit Montreal
Summer is considered high season in Montreal, when the majority of visitors flock to the city. There are numerous summer festivals, such as Osheaga, Montreal Pride, Go Bike Montreal, numerous Film Festivals, and more. The city gets busy around May, for the Montreal Grand Prix, and stays busy well into September.
There is technically no wrong time to visit Montreal, however. It just depends on what you’d like to do while you’re there.
Summer is warm but busy, winter can be cold and snowy, but cozy for the holidays. If you’d prefer to visit during the shoulder season (spring or fall), there is also plenty to do.
I’ve visited the city twice in April and once in November, but I would probably recommend visiting in May for a true spring and in October for the fall colours without the emerging winter chill. I have friends in the city, which are always my primary focus while visiting, but we got a good mix of rainy and warm days while there this past April.
Day 1: Exploring Montreal’s Mile End and Fine Arts
Montreal’s Mile End neighbourhood is perhaps the most well-known outside the city, and for good reason. It is full of locally-owned restaurants, cafes, shops, and art galleries.
If you’re visiting Mile End, be sure to bring your appetite. There are so many amazing, local spots to try, and many aren’t bad on the budget. From Bernie Beigne for exceptional donuts to Perogie Lili for truly melt-in-your-mouth Ukrainian dumplings, there is something spectacular around every corner.
I’d also recommend Cafe Fernanda for coffees, tea lattes, or pasteis de nata; Dhogheria Fine for a quick gnocchi fix; and Pizza Toni for New York-style pizzas and “Grandma-style” square pies.
If you’re interested in exploring more than food, check out the romance and speculative fiction at Joie de Livres, a bilingual bookstore and cafe. Then, head down Avenue Fairmont Ouest to Au Papier Japonais for gorgeous Japanese stationary. While you’re in the area, you can stock up on fresh bagels from Fairmount Bagel, the oldest Montreal bagel company in the city.
Finally, a trip to Mile End isn’t complete without a stop at Jeans Jeans Jeans, the city’s most beloved denim warehouse. Specializing in jeans, this clothing store has a wide variety of brands, including Levi’s, Silver Jeans, Naked & Famous Denim, and many more. They’ll also hem your jeans in-store.
Montreal Museum of Fine Arts
After thoroughly exploring Mile End, make your way to the Musée des beaux-arts de Montréal for the afternoon. The easiest way to travel between the two is by bus (route 55 to 24). Admission to the museum is $32 for adults, and free for those under 25, individuals with disabilities, and Indigenous Canadians.
While we were in town, we visited the exhibit on Decorative Arts and Design and the Quebec and Canadian art collection. Previously, I’ve also visited the Inuit art collection.
Day 2: Bike Tour Around Montreal
On your second day in the city, I recommend trying a bike tour. We rented e-bikes from Ça Roule Montreal, which were $65.00 for a half-day. You can also book a tour group, but we had our own built-in guides through my friends. If you want to follow our route, you can use the orange icons in my map below.
Our route began in the Old Port of Montreal, and cycled south to the Bonaventure Expressway where we connected with the bike path that passes Habitat 67, alongside Avenue Pierre-Dupuy. Habitat 67 is an apartment building constructed for Expo 67 and designed by architect Moshe Safdie so each unit has a view of the river. The building has guided tours available during high season.
From Habitat 67, we continued across Concorde Bridge to St. Helen’s Island. After taking in the view here, we crossed Pont des Îles to Île Notre-Dame, where we biked the F1 track. When the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve isn’t in use, it’s open to the public for free.
After biking the track, we biked south on the Petite Voie du Fleuve, a narrow passage along the St. Lawrence. There’s a unique viewpoint here under the Samuel De Champlain bridge that you can only realistically reach by cycling.
From there, we biked over the Estacade du Pont Champlain, a 2.2 km bridge, to Nun’s Island and connected again with the Island of Montreal. We stopped at the Atwater Market for ice cream. The market itself houses farmer’s market goods, like local produce, baked goods, cheeses, and delis, as well as prepared foods like pizza, sushi, and barbeque.
Old Port of Montreal
Our ride concluded back at the rental shop in the Old Port, which is a bustling but heavily tourist-oriented area of the city. If you are interested, there are a number of art galleries and shops along Rue St-Paul and the Boulevard Saint-Laurent.
The Vieux-Port de Montréal is also home to the Notre-Dame Basilica, a National Historic Site. Construction of the building began in 1839 and it was designated as a basilica in 1879. Tickets are $16.00 for adults and there are slight discounts for children, seniors, and students.
Day 3: Climbing Mount Royal and Indulging in Culture
One of my favourite ways to see a city is by walking it. On my most recent trip to Montreal, my friend and her partner lead us on a guided tour to two of the four summits on Mount Royal, as well as St. Joseph’s Oratory, the largest church in Canada. You can follow our walk using the green icons on my map below.
Walking Around the Mountain
We started our tour in Westmount Park, a lovely urban park with the historic Westmount Library, founded in 1897. We made a quick stop inside and also toured the attached Conservatory and Greenhouses. From Westmount Park we continued uphill through Parc King George and Murray Hill Avenue before reaching the Boom boom chuck steps.
These steps continue uphill across two streets before reaching Summit Crescent. We took a left after the stairs and made the short walk to Summit Woods, one of the four summits of Mount Royal. The summit itself doesn’t have a view as you’re in the forest, but there is a viewpoint just across Summit Circle road.
Our next stop was St. Joseph’s. We reached the Oratory through a short walk back along Summit Crescent. We took some photos at the viewpoint in front of the church and of course of the church itself. You can enter the basilica for free if you’d like. The construction of the church began in 1926 and was officially opened in 1956. Today it has been modernized, with escalators bringing you from the lower levels to the basilica.
From here you could return the way you came, but we wanted to take the newly opened REM line under the mountain. To continue our walk we passed through the University of Montreal campus and made a quick detour to the lookout on the Promontoire Outremont of Mount Royal. This was our second summit of the day.
We made our way down the slippery hill, still icy on this side of the mountain in mid-April, and connected with the REM line at Édouard-Montpetit station. This metro is driverless, so if you board at the front of the train you can watch your progress through the long tunnel under the mountain.
Alternative Walking Route for Mount Royal
If you’re looking for a shorter walk, but are still interested in the views from Mount Royal, I recommend following Le Serpentin or the Rue Peel steps and the Grand Staircase of Mount Royal starting at Ave des Pins Ouest on the outskirts of McGill University campus.
While this walk is still steep and will get your blood pumping, it is a shorter route up to the Kondiaronk Belvedere that overlooks downtown Montreal.
Shopping or Arts and Culture
There are many neighbourhoods in Montreal that lend themselves well to both shopping and arts and culture. No matter where you choose to go, give yourself some time and freedom to just explore at your own pace.
If you like to be in the thick of things and prefer luxury shops to smaller stores, make your way down Sainte-Catherine’s Street. There are malls, individual storefronts, and a plethora of restaurants lining this street.
If you’re more interested arts and culture, make your way to Place des Arts for dinner. In the evenings, there are often light shows on the buildings surrounding the plaza at Sainte-Catherine’s and Rue Jeanne-Mance. As well, you can look into the current performances. From dance to theatre to comedy to opera, there is certainly something to interest you.
My third recommendation is to check out Le Plateau-Mont Royal. Both Saint-Denis and Saint-Laurent host a large variety of shops and restaurants. This area feels more connected to the culture of Montreal, both past and present, than the other two areas. If you visit in June, you can even witness MURAL Festival on Saint-Laurent.
Bonus Day: Visit Chateauguay and Kahnawà:ke
If you have an additional day in the Montreal area and would like to get out of the city, I recommend taking a day trip to the Saint Bernard Island wildlife sanctuary in Chateauguay.
The sanctuary covers almost the entirety of Saint Bernard and visitors can actually see the city of Montreal across the St. Lawrence River from the north end. You can rent a car to reach the sanctuary or take bus route 25 from Angrignon Station in the direction Saint-Francis–Salaberry N–N-Dame N to Edmour/Vinet Ouest. This bus takes about 40 minutes.
If you have the flexibility of a car and are looking for another stop on the way, I recommend Tóta Ma’s Café in Kahnawà:ke for cafe drinks and snacks. This social enterprise partners with other locally-owned small businesses for some of their offerings. If you’re looking for a heartier spot for dinner or happy hour, check of the Kahnawake Brewing Company, the first Native-owned microbrewery on a First Nation’s territory in Canada.
My Map of Montreal
Save this map to your own Google account for easy itinerary building. Happy travels!