Montréal Overview

Montreal, one of North America's most beautiful cities, is a glorious collision of cultures. Few cities in the world can lay claim to being as authentically multi-cultural as Montreal, the second largest French speaking city on the planet.

Districts

Bienvenue à Montréal! Now that's hospitality with a distinctly French flavor—and what could be more appropriate for the second largest French-speaking metropolis in the world? But French is only one of 35 or so languages you'll hear on the streets of this international island city of close to two million inhabitants (more than 3.3 million if you include the suburban neighborhoods). Visitors will also detect a distinct British influence in parts of the city, inherent in the culture since the days when English merchants controlled the city's trade. Demographics show that Montreal residents come from 80 countries, forming an urban mosaic of vibrant ethnic communities and neighborhoods safe to walk in day or night. All in all, it's easy to see why "cosmopolitan" is the adjective most used in describing Montreal.

What makes Montreal one of the world's truly great cities? It starts with its location. The island sits at the confluence of three rivers: the mighty St. Lawrence, the Rivière des Prairies and the Ottawa. Montrealers talk of their streets as going north-south and east-west, but the island itself is askew, tilted to the northeast.

Splitting the city in half, both physically and psychologically, is St-Laurent Boulevard—The Main, as it is affectionately known. It is here that waves of immigrants first settled upon their arrival in the New World. Reminders of the past still abound in family-run Polish delis tucked in beside upscale restaurants and in dollar stores located next door to swank billiards emporiums. This is ground zero for the city's addresses (streets number east and west from St-Laurent) and, historically, this was the demarcation line between English and French Montreal, with the French predominating to the east and the English to the west.

These days, the dividing line is no longer completely rigid, but there are still distinct English and French areas. You'll find the English restaurant and bar scene concentrated on Bishop and Crescent Streets; the French on St-Denis Street and areas east in the Latin Quarter (Quartier Latin) and Gay Village. The traditional French residential areas are tightly packed districts that stretch all the way to the Olympic Park (Parc Olympique) and Hochelaga-Maisonneuve; English becomes more noticeable as you move west, culminating in the affluent suburb of Westmount.

Downtown is the modern heart of the city and is where most businesses and upscale retail outlets are located. Virtually all of downtown is concentrated within a 10-block area, connected through the 30-kilometre Underground City of shops, restaurants, theatres, banks and hotels for those who don't want to brave winter temperatures.

No visit to Montreal is complete without a visit to the Underground City—Montreal-above-ground has been described as the tip of the urban iceberg. Beneath it lies the world's most extensive system of interconnected pedestrian and Metro (subway) networks, linking buildings, boutiques, restaurants and even residential apartments. You could spend an entire winter in this subterranean city without ever once having to face the cold or snow. The Metro system itself has lines running east-west and north-south (albeit, askew) to just about every part of the city. While you're down there, check out the 62 architecturally unique stations, each created by a different designer.

Entertainment

Entertainment means just as many things in Montreal as it does elsewhere, but the city is perhaps most famous for its justifiably legendary nightlife. Bars stay open until 3am here, which is later than anywhere else in Canada, and even then, few customers leave willingly. As with dining and accommodations, however, the visitor will benefit greatly from exploring the less heavily touristed areas of the city.

St-Laurent Boulevard is the city's most famous street, as it is the traditional dividing line between the city's English and French-speaking areas. Nowadays, booze serves as a very effective lingua franca, especially on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, when things don't cool down until dawn. The strip between Prince Arthur Street and Mont-Royal Avenue features dozens of pubs, clubs, bars and assorted other dives that defy generalization.

Of course, Montreal is more than a university town on a bender. Museums, galleries, theatre, cinema and unclassifiable fringe elements enjoy great public interest from a citizenry for whom the arts represent an integral component of having a good time. Montreal is at the centre of the province's vibrant cinema community, as evidenced by its fine repertory houses and state-of-the-art first-run theatres; stage theater buffs will find both English and French productions.

Dining and Drinking

Montreal is the second biggest French city in the world, but you wouldn't necessarily know it based on its restaurants. Its incredible assortment of ethnic cuisines gives an accurate reflection of the myriad of cultures that contribute to the city's vibrancy, although unlike some other large North American centers, eateries here tend not to cluster according to cuisine type.

Naturally, the city does boast some outstanding French restaurants, but generally speaking, Montreal's culinary institutions are slightly more plebeian in nature. Brunches or late breakfasts are extremely popular ways to start the day, though whether this is a wholesome tradition or the result of a weekend's heroic consumption of cocktails is up for debate. The city's large Jewish community has also contributed heavily to the local cuisine. The Montreal bagel, a skinnier and less polished version of the New York variety, is an economical staple that purists buy from the Fairmount or St-Viateur bakeries in Mile-End.

Though hardly comparable to the Spanish or Italian, Montrealers do eat late, especially on weekends. Most restaurants will be open to diners by 6:30pm, but it's best to make reservations for 8pm or later if you want company. Downtown hotels tend to direct their guests toward downtown restaurants and nightlife, not out of any animosity or collusion but simply because many tourists are reluctant to venture farther afield. The key to enjoying the hundreds of restaurants and bars that the city has to offer is to be adventurous; you are unlikely to be disappointed.

Where To Stay

Montreal, "The Paris of North America," essentially consists of a downtown, or modern city, and Old Montreal (Vieux-Montréal), the original city nestled around the Old Port (Vieux-Port). While most of the better hotels are located downtown, Old Montreal boasts some of the city's finest restaurants and historical sites and has a real sense of old world decor and charm. Many European style hotels are available in this area, where many tourists visit but few stay overnight.

A modest hill separates the two areas, and both are accessible via the subway, or Metro, as it's called locally. In the winter, one need never even venture outside: Old Montreal is linked to downtown via the World Trade Centre and the Underground City. In fact, Montreal is one of the easiest cities to navigate in North America: no matter where one stays, one will never be too far from the action.

Did You Know?

Montreal is the sister city of Hiroshima.

Orientation/Geography

It is the largest city in Quebec with an area of 68 square miles. Montreal island contains 27 municipalities of which the City of Montreal is the largest.


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