Québec has been on my radar since I started taking French classes at age 11. I was so intrigued by this place in North America where French was a primary language and hoped to see it for myself someday. In the past couple of years, Québec seems to have come onto the travel scene even more, with visitors gushing about its charming European vibes.
My curiosity about Québec had been mounting, wanting to see for myself if it lived up to the hype as a version of Europe more accessible for US citizens. When a friend told me Québec was also on her radar since she’d been recently learning French, we made a plan to visit.
At first, we were only going to visit Québec City over a long weekend. However, when we realized flights to Montréal were cheaper, and the two cities were easily connected by train, we decided to add it to our itinerary. And we were so glad we did! Montréal, with its vibrant neighborhoods, historic charm, beautiful parks and delicious food, ended up being our favorite of the two cities. And we almost missed seeing it!
Just goes to show that sometimes, the place you had low/no expectations for can show you some of the best times.
We could have easily spent our entire long weekend in Montréal, but we only had two days. In true WTB fashion, we made the most of our short time in the city.
Before I share the 10 fun things to do in Montréal over two days, some logistics:
Getting to Montréal
By Plane:
The Montréal international airport is a major hub connected to countries across North America, Europe, Africa and the Middle East. I had a direct six-hour flight from my home airport in California. As a US passport holder, I went through customs at the Montréal airport when I arrived, and then again when I left. To my surprise, this meant I didn’t have to go through customs in the US when I returned.
I’ve been to Canada before by car (Seattle to Vancouver) and ferry (Seattle to Victoria). This was my first time entering by air, and I couldn’t believe how quick and easy it was to go through the automated machines for customs.
After landing, there are a few ways to get into the city center.
The cheapest is by bus and takes about an hour once you’re on the bus. If you choose to take the bus, know that you have to purchase a ticket from one of four vending machines in the arrivals hall of the airport. The machines are near the taxi stand and have long lines during busy times. Once you get your ticket, you have to wait in the bus line to board a bus.
Another option is a taxi or Uber, which takes less time, but is obviously more expensive. A taxi to the city center is ~$40 CAD, but also requires waiting in line for an available taxi driver. Taxis do take credit card, so you don’t need cash.
Uber is available in Montréal, and prices are variable. When we first arrived, the Uber quotes were ~$100 CAD, but after about 10 minutes decreased to ~$60 CAD. We arrived during a peak time, so chose to take an Uber once the prices went down rather than waiting in the long bus and taxi lines. In the end, we ended up waiting over 20 minutes for the Uber pickup anyway, so not sure it was totally worth it.
By Train
Montréal connects easily to other major cities in Québec and Ontario by train. In fact, when we traveled to Québec City, we took a direct three-hour train. The Via Rail train stops in downtown Montréal, which makes access even easier. Fares range from nonrefundable “getaway” fares at the cheapest to business class fares at the most expensive. You should purchase your ticket at least five days in advance for the best price. Earlier is better to find the fare you want.
Our tickets one-way to Québec City were $70 CAD per person for the second-tier fare. The lowest fare was already sold out, likely because it was Canadian Labour Day weekend.
Where to Stay:
Montréal is considered a very safe city. It is also very walkable and well-connected by public transit. You can’t really go wrong with where you choose to stay in the city, so it depends more on the vibe you want.
Per my research, there are three main areas tourists stay in the city:
Old Montréal & Downtown Montréal
When doing my research, these areas seemed like the most popular places to stay in Montréal. You should stay here if you want to be very close to the main tourist spots in the city, like the Musée des Beaux Artes and the Old Port of Montréal.
Quartier des les Spectacles
This neighborhood is where we stayed, not far from Rue Saint-Denis. This neighborhood is close to the universities, so has a younger and more residential feel to it than the Downtown. It was a very walkable neighborhood and still easy to get around to the popular tourist spots by foot or transit. It was also close to a lot of recommended restaurants, bars and thrift shops. I really enjoyed staying in this neighborhood and would recommend it.
The Village
This area is the LGBTQ+ neighborhood of Montréal and also known to be more residential with easy access to tourist destinations. It is a little farther from big tourist sites than the other neighborhoods, so might require more than other neighborhoods. When doing my research, I saw warnings that this area could be a little noisier and a little less safe feeling due to things like open drug use, particularly near the main metro station. However, we never experienced this in Montréal even in this neighborhood.
Outside the City like Longueuil
Because we only had two days in Montréal, we wanted to stay in the city with easy access to tourist attractions. However, if you have more time and want to save more money, you can stay farther outside the city. An area like Longueuil is right across the bridge from Old Montréal and will be cheaper than staying in the city.
Getting Around:
We walked everywhere in Montréal. I found the main tourist sights very accessible by foot, albeit slightly hilly at times.
Montréal also has a robust public transit system if you prefer not to walk too much, or want to go away from main tourist areas. A single metro ride costs $3.50 CAD. If you buy multi-ride or multi-day passes, it will be cheaper.
There is also Uber in Montréal, and prices are pretty reasonable. Lyft does not operate here.
Safety:
Montréal is considered very safe, especially for a large city. My friend and I, both women, never felt unsafe walking around at any time of day or night. According to the internet, some places are better to avoid at night, including:
- Parc Emilie-Gamelin
- Hochelaga-Maisonneuve
- Parc-Extension
- Saint-Michel
As always, beware of pickpockets in crowds and use common sense, and you should be fine. There is not much violent crime in Montréal.
Best Time of Year to Visit:
June-July and September-October are the most popular times to visit Montréal. During these times, you can still find good weather that allows you to enjoy the many green spaces in the city and pedestrian streets.
August to early September tend to be hot and humid. I still found the weather to be pleasant this time of year. However, I’m from Florida, which makes me more tolerant of heat and humidity than average. I did appreciate the ability to walk around both during the day and at night without really needing a jacket.
Winter can also be a pleasant time to visit if you appreciate snowy winter destinations. However, some of these recommendations in this blog may not be so suitable for winter.
So what is there to do in Montréal?
Here are 10 amazing things to do in Montréal over two days.
1 – Light Hiking & City Views in Mount Royal Park
Parc Mont-Royal is a gorgeous large green space in the middle of Montréal. It rises up in the middle of the city with nearly 500 acres of nature. You can easily spend an afternoon or more exploring this park and appreciating its views and biodiversity.
The trails through this park range from easy to moderate, so anyone of any fitness level can enjoy it. However, you do have to walk up hill to enter the park.
If you make it to the top, you’ll be rewarded with sweeping views of the city of Montréal. You can also take a car or bus to some of the lookout spots if you cannot or prefer not to walk. However, some of the best views are buried more inside the park and along the walking trails rather than the lookout spots along the road.
Exploring Parc Mont-Royal was one of my favorite parts of this trip. I’d recommend dedicating at least a couple of hours to this park to anyone visiting Montréal for even a short period of time. If you have longer in the city, you could easily spend most of a day here.
2 – Wander the Streets of Old Montréal
Dating back to the 17th century, the Old Montréal neighborhood is the main historic district of the city. French colonizers landed here and named it “New France” in 1642. Today, it is one of the liveliest neighborhoods in Montréal and abuts the Saint Lawrence River waterfront. You can walk the streets of this neighborhood and marvel at the charm of old world mixing with new.
Many popular tourist attractions are located in Old Montréal, including the Notre Dame Basilica. It was closed for a private event while we were there. Still, we enjoyed sitting on the steps in front of the Basilica and watching life go by in Place d’Armes – the historical public square.
3 – Walk through the Old Port of Montréal
The Old Port of Montréal is technically part of the Old Montréal neighborhood, but I thought it deserved its own entry. After wandering through the streets of Old Montréal, find your way to the waterfront and the Port.
Here, you can walk along the dock and out over the Saint Lawrence River. You can enjoy views of the ferris wheel at the waterfront, people paddle boating below and the charming architecture of the city. It is especially beautiful in the early evening when the sky is starting to change colors.
From the dock, you can also view Ile Notre–Dame and St. Helen’s Islands. Both are popular day trips and quick ferry rides from Montréal. However, if you don’t have time to visit them like us, it’s nice to see them from this perspective.
4 – Go Thrifting
Montréal is both a college town and a big city, which means its thrift stores are on point. Thrift stores and old record stores can be found along the streets in several popular neighborhoods. Along Saint-Denis, you can find stores tucked into small shops filled with cute and unique clothes.
On summer weekends, Mont-Royal Avenue also has several blocks closed to cars and become pedestrian-only streets. Among other businesses, you can find thrift stores selling clothes and other interesting items. Even if you’re not into thrifting, I recommend visiting this street on a weekend to see the liveliness of the pedestrian area.
5 – Visit McGill University
Am I a prospective university student? No.
Am I anywhere near college-aged? Depends on what you consider college-aged. No.
Do I still enjoy visiting beautiful university campuses? Absolutely.
McGill University was founded in the 1800s and is considered one of Canada’s most prestigious universities. Its campus matches its reputation. Even if you’re not a prospective student, you can still enjoy seeing the campus and appreciating the architecture and the grounds. There are two campuses in Montréal, and we visited the downtown campus.
6 – See Historic Houses
Though I am not typically a big architecture buff, I was completely enamored by Montréal’s architecture. One way to appreciate it is by visiting old mansions now named historical monuments. They are known for their historical significance in the city and unique architectural characteristics. Most are not open to the public, but you can still view their beauty from the outside.
One house we were particularly drawn to was Maison Charles Edward Deakin, built in 1914. We happened upon it when exiting the Parc Mont-Royal and spent about 15 minutes admiring its detailed designs and landscaping.
7 – Eat Poutine & Other Montréal Favorites
Most people know poutine is a Canadian staple, but did you know it was actually invented in Québec? Poutine was first found as a bar snack in rural Québec in the 1950s. I’d had it before in Vancouver, but I could not miss it in Montréal.
The most recommended place for poutine was from La Banquise. But we ended up getting it for the first time at Frite Alors, a hamburger and poutine place on Saint-Denis. It was better than I remembered it from Vancouver, but the best poutine we found ended up being in Québec City.
In addition to poutine, two other staples include steak from a Montréal steak house and bagels. Unfortunately, we didn’t get a chance to experience these foods in Montréal, but some recommendations on our list included:
- Moishes (steakhouse)
- Gibby’s Old School Steakhouse
- St. Viateur’s Bagels (We did try to eat here, but the line was so long we decided it wasn’t worthwhile. If you want to eat here, go early.)
8 – Enjoy the International Food Scene
Although I got a lot of recommendations for popular Montréal and French foods, I did not anticipate how big the international food scene was in this city. Our first night, we set out for French food and ended up at a soup dumpling restaurant. There are delicious Asian and Middle eastern restaurants all over the city.
9 – Sip Cocktails at a Speakeasy
Montréal only practiced prohibition from 1919 to 1921, but this city still appreciates its speakeasies. One popular speakeasy is called Le 4er Mur. You enter by pressing on the right brick in the wall. Once inside, you can simply enjoy some cocktails, or choose to play their game.
There is a murder mystery game where you order cocktails to get clues. If you want to play this game, I recommend going with a group big enough to order the six cocktails required for all the clues.
10 – Experience Montréal Nightlife
If you’re looking for nightlife beyond the speakeasies, Montréal has a lot of other fun bars and clubs. From dive bars to lounges to EDM clubs, Montréal has something to suit anyone’s vibe. While we tried to get recommendations from locals for interesting bars, we found the best spots by just walking around Quartier des les Spectacles and Old Montréal.
I recommend walking through Old Montréal, The Village, Rue Saint-Denis, Crescent Street or Avenue Mont-Royal and seeing what piques your interest.
Where I’d go if I had more time…
The recommendations above are based on what I was able to personally fit into about two fairly leisurely days in the city. If I had more time, I’d want to see more museums, parks and other popular sites.
Some other things I wish I’d had time to see:
Redpath Museum
The Redpath Museum was one of the things I was most sad to miss. It is a museum of natural history, with collections covering ethnology, geology, paleontology and entomology.
Because we were heading to Québec City, we decided to forgo the Redpath Museum in Montréal and commit to seeing the Museum of Civilization there.
Musée des Beaux-Artes
Montréal’s Museum of Fine Arts is one of the most recommended museums in the city. It is the largest art museum in Canada by gallery space. Its exhibits include Québec and Canadian art, international artists, sculpture art, pop art and indigenous art.
Habitat 67
Built in 1967, Habitat 67 is an architectural icon across the Saint Lawrence River from Old Montréal. This housing complex was built for the World Fair, and its modular architecture still attracts the interest of people all over the world. If you don’t have time to visit and see it up close, you can view it from the dock of the Old Port.
Nordic Spas
Sauna culture is huge in Scandinavia, and apparently that’s been transferred to Montréal. I’m not completely certain of why that is, but I assume it’s related to both places having terrible winters. If you visit Montréal in need of a spa day, there are a handful to choose from in downtown and Old Montréal.
From my research, Strøm Nordic interested me the most, but we didn’t have an opportunity to visit. It might be more of a priority if visiting in the winter.
St. Lawrence River Ferry Ride
If you want to get up close and personal with the St. Lawrence River, you can opt for a ferry ride. There are scenic ferry rides and river cruises that go along the river. Some ferries also take you to other nearby islands, which can be a nice way to both experience the waterfront and take a quick day trip from the city. If you want to visit Habitat 67, for example, you will take a ferry.
Parc La Fontaine & Others
Montréal has many green spaces, and it would be impossible to visit all of them in only two days. However, you can see more if you have the time. One recommended park I didn’t get to is Parc La Fontaine. This urban park in the Plateau-Mont-Royal neighborhood is known as a lovely place to exercise and/or relax and experience some of Montréal’s bohemian culture.
Overall, I’m really glad I finally got to visit the “Paris of the North” and wish I’d planned more time there. Let me know if you have been, and if there’s anything I missed.
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