Montreal Attractions

Said to be North America's most remarkable concentration of 17th, 18th and 19th c. buildings, "old Montréal" is the delightful Parisian-style quarter between the harbor and the banking district. Lovingly restored over the past thirty years, and very popular with visitors, it is best explored on foot, starting from the Metro for the Champ de Mars, just south of the station. A one-time drillground, then a promenade for the bourgeoisie, and now a square on the Rue Notre-Dame, this is overlooked by the two imposing 19th c. buildings of City Hall and the Palace of Justice.

On the Rue Baile in Montreal, is an attraction of a rather special kind - the Center Canadien d'Architecture. This quite exceptional museum, housed in an elegant post-modern building by Phyllis Lambert and Peter Ross, boasts an unusually comprehensive collection of architectural drawings and photographs, together with a library and archive.

The Center Canadien d'Architecture hosts a variety of temporary exhibits. The extensive Collection enables the CCA the be a leading voice in advancing knowledge, promoting public understanding, and widening thought on architecture, its history, theory, practice, and role in society today.

Montréal's Chinatown is centered around the Rue de la Gauchetière, with two Chinese arches marking the heart of the quarter. This dates from the late 1860s when many of the Chinese laborers who had come to work in the mines and on building the railroad moved into the cities in search of a better life. Today's Chinatown is no longer exclusively Chinese but a place where anyone can relax and enjoy a good meal.

To the west of the Parc Olympique in Montreal, on the other side of the Rue Pie IX, stands the palatial villa Château Dufresne, built in 1918 for the shoe manufacturer Thomas Dufresne. Modelled on the Petit Trianon at Versailles it today displays temporary art and history exhibitions.

Ville-Marie Square is a good starting point for a look round the ultra-modern buildings of downtown Montréal, whose revitalization began in 1962 with the cross-shaped towers of the Royal Bank of Canada building, 223 m (732 ft) and 49 floors high. The sculpture in the square is "Female Landscape" by Gerald Gladstone, a profound statement on modern architecture. Although there are plenty of stores at ground floor level, the real shopper's paradise is below ground in the vast "Ville Souterraine", Montréal's subterranean city.

Extending along the river close to the Marché is the site of the old port, restored at great cost and today enjoying a new role as an entertainment and leisure center. Special attractions include an ultra- modern IMAX cinema, a large junk market, and the Quai Jacques Cartier. From the old port a magnificent view is obtained of the impressive Montréal skyline. Boat tours run from the Quai Victoria.

Montreal's Place d'Armes is a square reached by taking the Rue Notre-Dame west out of the Place Jacques Cartier. The statue in the center is by Philippe Hébert (1895) of Paul de Chomedey who in 1642 founded the mission Ville-Marie de Montréal from which the city is regarded as having developed.

Other downtown sights in Montreal include the spacious Place du Canada, with a statue (1895) to Sir John Macdonald, the country's first Prime Minister (1867), in a group representing Canada and her seven children, or the seven provinces as they were then.

The Rue Saint Sulpice, as it runs down to the waterfront, is crossed by Montréal's oldest street, the Rue Saint-Paul, nowadays lined with all kinds of shops, but originally completed in March 1672 as the road between the fort and the Hôtel Dieu, the old hospital. It gets its name as much from Paul de Chomedey, the city's devout founder, as from St Paul the Apostle.

Rue Ste-Cathérine, which can be reached from Dorchester Square, is Montréal's main shopping thoroughfare, bustling with life and lined with department stores and shops of all kinds, as well as a host of eating places, ranging widely in the type of food on offer, as well as price.

It also leads to such other commercial centers as Cours Mont-Royal and the Promenade de la Cathédrale.

Montréal's Anglo-Canadian Westmount district south-east of Mount Royal centers around the square of the same name (metro Atwater). Its steel and glass office buildings are by Mies van der Rohe and were completed in 1966, typifying the high-rise international architecture of the mid-20th century.

It forms quite a contrast with the late 19th c. mansions and villas still very much a feature of the surrounding streets.

The hills of Westmount are the location of some of the wealthier homes of Montreal.

Bell Centre in Montreal is a sports facility and home to the Montreal Canadiens hockey team. The complex can hold up to 21,000 spectators and is also used to accommodate large concerts and other events.

Christ Church Cathedral, a Gothic revival Anglican Cathedral in Montreal, dates from 1859. The statue in front of the cathedral (1870) is of Francis Fulford, the city's first Anglican Archbishop.

Between Rue Sainte-Cathérine and Boulevard René-Lévesque in Montreal, stands the huge imposing Complexe Desjardins, 1976, with numerous shops, cinemas, banks and a post office.

There are more shopping arcades in the nearby Complexe Guy-Fabreau.

The Grey Nuns Museum, containing furniture and other items that belonged to the Holy Marguerite D'Youville, is housed in the motherhouse of the Grey Nuns.

The Jean Talon Market is one of the public markets in Montreal. Located in a wearhouse style building the market features vendors selling fruits and vegetables, flowers, meats, fish, cheese, baked goods, and specialy foods. There are also restaurants and cafés on site.

The Labyrinthe Du Hangar 16 is a fun family outing. It takes about an hour and a half to walk through the labyrinth which is filled with obstacles. Kids must be able to walk and strollers are not allowed.

The Labyrinthe Du Hangar 16 is open from spring until fall but closes during the winter months.

It is worth paying a visit to the "Village". Between the Rues Saint-Denis and Papineau, it is a lively, colorful quarter comparable with New York's Greenwich Village. The restoration of the old houses has been going on for years, as its developing social and cultural life has unfolded around them.

The Maison des Coopérants in Montreal, along the Rue University, is a massive glass and concrete tower, its own twin spires more or less a counterpoint to those on the façade of the cathedral.

The Montreal International Jazz Festival is held in late June and early July and attracts visitors from all over the world. The festival brings in some of the biggest names in jazz music for this huge event. If you are planning on attending or visiting Montreal during the International Jazz Festival be sure to book accommodation well in advance as this event draws large crowds.

The Montreal Science Centre offers a range of activities including exhibitions related to science and technology, and includes an IMAX theatre. The Centre is a favorite with families and is designed for all ages.

Aéroports de Montréal encompasses two separate airports operated under the same management body. The two airports are Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport (formerly Montréal-Dorval International Airport) and Montréal-Mirabel Airport.

Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport (formerly Montréal-Dorval International Airport) is a twenty five minute drive from downtown Montréal, while Montréal-Mirabel Airport is approximately a 40 minute drive from downtown Montréal.

The Planétarium de Montréal offers an audiovisual presentation on astronomy and space exploration. The planetarium has operated here since 1966, although plans are underway to create a new planetarium that would open in 2010.

The Musée d'art contemporain de Montreal on the south side of the square, is particularly worth a visit. Young French-Canadian artists are accorded special prominence.

The museum is part of Place des Arts, a complex dedicated to visual and performing arts.

The Palais des Congrès in Montreal, the futuristic conference center at 201, avenue Viger Ouest (main entrance opposite the Complexe Guy-Fatreau), was built in 1983 on the Place d'Armes, over the Ville-Marie expressway. It is linked underground with the Place d'Armes and Place des Arts Metro stations, and has a unique five levels of the very latest in convention facilities on the grand scale. This is where the world climate conference was held in 1990.

The Palais underwent an expansion, that was completed in 2002, to double its size.

The Parc-Nature de l'Île-de-la-Visitation lies on the Rivière des Prairies and features a few historical sites and a beautiful natural area. Some of the historical attractions include the remnants of the des Moulins site the Maison du Pressoir and the Maison du Meunier.

The park is also well known by bird watchers and offers a number of nature trails.

Place Montréal Trust is a futuristic marble and glass "megastructure", the creation of César Pelli and Mario Botta, which has become one of Montreal's most popular meeting places. In addition to expensive shops the complex houses a number of service enterprises.

The Place Royale, a short distance to the west of the Rue Saint-Paul in Montreal, was the heart of French colonial life, its market and its parade ground until transformed in the 19th c. with various government buildings.

The Neo-Classical customs house (1837) stands at the northern end.

The Place-des-Arts metro station, on the northern edge of downtown Montréal, gives access to the city's modern center for the performing arts, the Place-des-Arts, built in 1964. It contains four venues - the Salle Wilfried-Pelletier (capacity about 3,000), home to the Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal and where Canada's top ballet companies take the stage, the Théâtre Maisonneuve, seating for about 1300, the Théâtre Port-Royal, seating for 755, and the recital room, the Café de la Place, with seating for 138.

Saute Moutons jet boats take visitors on an exciting trip through the Lachine Rapids at Montreal. These high powered boats carry up to 50 passengers and offer a very wet and wild ride. Tours run from spring through until fall departing at various time and lasting one hour.

The French-speaking University of Montréal was founded in 1876. The University buildings are chiefly by Ernest Cormier, and date from between 1924 and 1943.

The University of Montreal is the largest university in Quebec and ranks as the second largest in all of Canada. It offers a wide range of studies from various disciplines.