Family vacay stopover in Montreal—ideas?

[KristinTech]

Some suggestions, please! We are planning a summer vacation and we’d like to include 2-3 nights in Montreal. Are there definite things to do and see for a family with three kids ages 10-14? We like both indoor and outdoor activities. Also, ideas for neighborhoods to stay in/hotels? We’re not 5-Star folks. I’m excited about ship-watching! And antiquing. If there are any noteworthy breweries, DH will want to hit them up!

 

[Garnetgirl]

Hi KristinTech,
Lots to do in Montreal. Depending on your tastes and interests, here are some ideas.

Some things that may be of interest to your children: the Biodôme, the Biosphere, Insectarium, Planetarium, cycling in the park along the Lachine Rapids.

Go up 'The Mountain' ie. Mont Royal, to one of the lookouts. The one on the east side gives a good view of the Olympic Stadium.

You really should walk through Old Montreal, and the Old Port. Roller skating, Segways and cycling near the Old Port. Also, calèche (horse and buggy) rides through Old Montreal and the port. Nôtre Dame basilica is worth a quick visit, as is the sailors' church - Nôtre Dame de Bonsecours. Both are in Old Montreal.

The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts.

The McCord Museum for the history of Montreal.

St. Joseph's Oratory, an enormous church part way up 'The Mountain'.

Château de Ramezay in Old Montreal.

There are many festivals that take place during the summer. Depending on when you're there: the jazz festival, really big, with several streets closed to traffic, and many free outdoor shows, The Just For Laughs Festival, also with outdoor shows.

Smoked meat at Schwartz's. Bagels baked in a wood fired oven - my favourites are the ones at the St. Viateur Bagel bakery on St-Viateur Street.

Not too sure about hotel rates, but Le Nouvel Hotel on René Lévesque seems nice. My husband and I often stay at the Sofitel, which I believe would be more expensive. There's also the Bonaventure, and various boutique hotels in Old Montreal, though I don't really know much about them.

Hope this helps. If you have any questions, I'll try to answer them as best I can.

 

[Garnetgirl]

Oops, forgot a few things.

Antiquing: sadly, most of the shops I used to know are gone now. There are some antique shops on Nôtre Dame Street (there used to be several city blocks of them, but fewer now), there's Rowntree Antiques on Atwater Street, Ruth Stalker Antiques for Canadiana, Puces Libres on St. Denis Street, but not within walking distance. I'm sure there are others, but I rarely shop for antiques these days - my house is full.

I'm not a beer drinker, but there are various 'brasseries' (breweries) around. Some are just restaurants that serve their own beer. McAuslan beer is brewed in Montreal. There are many microbreweries in Montreal, as specialty beer has become quite popular in the last few years.

 

[KristinTech]

Oh, I appreciate this so much, @Garnetgirl ! We definitely want to do the mountain/light hiking and any attractions up there. Also, cycling is definitely on the list. Is the Old Port area worth it to pay the money for a hotel in that area? They all seem like smaller boutique-y hotels in that area. I want to stay in a “happenin’ spot that has restaurants and attractions out the door.

I’d love to hear more about those bagels and other specialty regional foods!

.... and what about antique jewelry souvenirs?

 

[Garnetgirl]

In summer, there's lots going on in Old Montreal, so it's probably a good place to stay, though I never have myself. Many restaurants close by, lots of street action, not too far from downtown.

My husband tells me there are some nice hotels on St. Antoine Street, which is right next to Old Montreal.

Montreal is known for its bagels and smoked meat, which are quite different form the ones in New York. But both places I mentioned are not within walking distance.

There are many excellent restaurants in Montreal. Quebecers love their food.

When you said antiquing, I assumed furniture and memorabilia. I was into antiques before Pricescope, so I don't really know of antique jewellery shops. The only one that comes to mind is Le Petit Musée which is downtown, on Sherbrooke Street.

There aren't many actual attractions on Mont Royal. It's a nice pleasant hike up, via Pine Avenue, behind the McIntyre Medical building of McGill University. Though from that route, the official lookouts are far away. You do get some nice views of the city as you walk up, however.

Some of the other access routes to the top of Mont Royal are on busy streets with lots of automobile traffic, and no sidewalks, so I wouldn't recommend them.

 

[KristinTech]

@Garnetgirl - thank you for all of your suggestions! We ended up spending more time in Nova Scotia and Quebec than we thought, so just one night in Montreal—but we packed it in!

Schwartz’s—wow, we were impressed! The kids are still talking about those sandwiches!

St. Joseph’s was very special—we had not realized that Brother Andre had started it.... our daughter was confirmed last month, and the bishop’s delegate spent his whole sermon talking about him and his St. Joseph shrine! So it clicked for us when we visited. A really beautiful visit! We ended up staying at an Airbnb on Magill’s campus area.

Thanks again!

Hi KristinTech,
Lots to do in Montreal. Depending on your tastes and interests, here are some ideas.

Some things that may be of interest to your children: the Biodôme, the Biosphere, Insectarium, Planetarium, cycling in the park along the Lachine Rapids.

Go up 'The Mountain' ie. Mont Royal, to one of the lookouts. The one on the east side gives a good view of the Olympic Stadium.

You really should walk through Old Montreal, and the Old Port. Roller skating, Segways and cycling near the Old Port. Also, calèche (horse and buggy) rides through Old Montreal and the port. Nôtre Dame basilica is worth a quick visit, as is the sailors' church - Nôtre Dame de Bonsecours. Both are in Old Montreal.

The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts.

The McCord Museum for the history of Montreal.

St. Joseph's Oratory, an enormous church part way up 'The Mountain'.

Château de Ramezay in Old Montreal.

There are many festivals that take place during the summer. Depending on when you're there: the jazz festival, really big, with several streets closed to traffic, and many free outdoor shows, The Just For Laughs Festival, also with outdoor shows.

Smoked meat at Schwartz's. Bagels baked in a wood fired oven - my favourites are the ones at the St. Viateur Bagel bakery on St-Viateur Street.

Not too sure about hotel rates, but Le Nouvel Hotel on René Lévesque seems nice. My husband and I often stay at the Sofitel, which I believe would be more expensive. There's also the Bonaventure, and various boutique hotels in Old Montreal, though I don't really know much about them.

Hope this helps. If you have any questions, I'll try to answer them as best I can.

 

[Garnetgirl]

Hi KristinTech,

Wonderful to hear from you, and thanks a lot for the update on your vacation.

I'm so glad to learn that you enjoyed my former home town. You really managed to squeeze in a lot during your short stay.

It was interesting to hear about your 'connection' with St. Joseph's Oratory and Brother André. My family used to visit St. Joseph's about once a year when I was a child (a typical Sunday afternoon family activity at the time). My late mother-in-law lived on a farm near the Oratory in her early years and remembered Brother André visiting her school.

I loved seeing your photos of old familiar places. Thanks for taking the time to post them..... lovely pearls!

 

[Garnetgirl]

Hi @KristinTech
Way back when you had asked me about breweries in Montreal, I told you I didn't know much about them. I just saw this article which you may find interesting.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/mont...a-resurgence-in-quebec-hops-farming-1.4759122

Take care and have fun in New Orleans!