Would love travel advice for Quebec City and Montreal!

Laurie

So excited to be going to Quebec for the first time! We leave DC Saturday, staying somewhere in upstate NY along the way and ending up in Montreal for Sunday night, then to Quebec City from Monday to Thursday. Not much time in either place, obviously, so I want to max our experience. Travelers and Quebecois - please give me the inside scoop on your favorite things to do and restaurants. Merci beaucoup, in advance!

8 years ago

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13 replies

Latest reply was from Laurie

SandyG

Veteran

What fun! Our family found the sidewalks of both cities alive with people, food, art and music, a peak summer experience. In Quebec La Citadelle is fascinating walking history. We followed our noses for out of the way local restaurants, also sidewalk cafes and generally had a one of our best city vacations. I'd go back every summer if possible.

8 years ago

Aquamarine

Veteran

I love QC! We checked TripAdvisor for restaurant recommendations and did not have one bad meal during our 5 day stay, but we are adventurous eaters. Agree with SandyG, just wandering around was wonderful. We saved the Citadel for a rainy day, but enjoyed that too. Would love to return in the winter someday. It was a magical place.

8 years ago

Style Fan

Veteran

Mr SF and I spend a month (November) in Montreal every year. We love it. We may move there. It looks like you are only going to be in Montreal for a night so it would be hard to take in such a fabulous city in such a short time. We rent an apartment in the Plateau area right on Square Saint Louis.
If I was going to be in Montreal for a short time I would look on Trip Advisory for suggestions. Some people have written about what to do in 24 hours in Montreal (or a week, 10 days, etc.)
Montreal has some interesting neighbours to explore with amazing shopping. The stores are often independent which makes the experience more interesting. The restaurants are also fabulous.
Old Montreal, Notre Dame, Mont Royal, and the markets are all wonderful places to check out.
The Yoga studios are exceptional if you are in to that. I go to Ashtanga Yoga Montreal on Ste Catherine and my husband goes to Moksha Yoga on Ste Laurent.

8 years ago

Laurie

Veteran

StyleFan - That's great advice about yoga - didnt even think to scope that out in advance. Thank you -- that's an important thing after driving for 2 days. Any very, very favorite restaurants? I know, it's such a short trip with the focus on QC, but I'm sure this will inspire us to take a proper trip sooner than later.

8 years ago

Style Fan

Veteran

There are some other Yoga studios in The Plateau that are good. Studio Bliss has some good teachers. I find they are more gentle that the Ashtanga studio. There is a very good one on Ste. Denis as well. I think they may only speak French. Most of the places are very accommodating to English speaking tourists. We can manage Yoga in French.
We are vegetarian. There is an excellent restaurant on Ste. Laurent near Mont Royal called "Aux Vivres". I think it may be vegan. I know there are others but I can't remember the names. The food in Montreal is amazing. My brother and his wife just walked into a Chinese restaurant in the Chinese section and said it was fantastic.
Now I want to go. November can't come soon enough.

8 years ago

Laurie

Veteran

I don't think I learned yoga words in high school/college French class, but that would be a neat experience. Thanks again, great suggestions!

8 years ago

Anonymous

In Montreal:
Pho Tay Ho on St. Denis has the BEST PHO!
You must get the Pho though. I tried something different, and it was awesome, but not as awesome as the pho.
The combination of flavours is amazing.
https://g.co/kgs/ZQ7SVZ

8 years ago

Style Fan

Veteran

Smittie we will have to check Pho Tay Ho out in November. Sounds so yummy.

8 years ago

Style Fan

Veteran

Laurie I find many of the Yoga studios use the Sanskrit word for the Yoga asana. After awhile we pick up the phrases that get used and figure out what to do.

8 years ago

Laurie

Veteran

Just added another night to our reservation, yay. Arriving Sat. night and leaving Monday morning. Smittie - thanks for the suggestion - we love pho.

I checked with a colleague who is a major foodie and has traveled to Montreal many times. Sometimes his choices are too fancy for me, but his top suggestion is a sandwich shop. I'll provide a review in a couple of weeks!
http://oliveetgourmando.com/

8 years ago

JuniperGreen

Veteran

Montreal has a lovely botanical garden which is enormous.

And if you're into performing arts, many consider the Quebec province to be the best place to see circus in the world! Worth checking out listings based on the timing of your trip to see if you can find any small independent troupes performing. (We went a couple years back to the circus festival in Montreal and had a blast)

8 years ago

Neelie

Veteran

I grew up in Montreal but haven't lived there for over 20 years so I can't speak for current restaurants, just a few old stand-by's.

Bagels - Montreal bagels are the best and different from anywhere else. St. Vaiteur bakery is our favourite, pretty sure they are open 24 hours a day so you can pop in for a late night snack.

Try some smoked meat for lunch - Schwatz's is the most famous but was never my favourite. There are lots of good deli's around.

Walk around Old Montreal and the port area. Lots of galleries and small shops to browse through

Lots of restaurants let you bring your own wine, check before you go, especially in the Prince Arthur area.

Shopping - Simon's is a great Canadian department store, originated in Quebec City, in Montreal and Toronto now too.

Before you head to Montreal check if there are any festivals going on the weekend you are there (Jazz, Comedy etc). They are lots of fun but also mean street closures and crowds.

Enjoy!

8 years ago

Laurie

Veteran

So - made it to Montreal but had to cut off the QC portion and came home after 4 days. My family is still up there.

Best thing we did was take a 3 hour bike tour of the north end of the city. ( I am so impressed how bike-friendly Montreal is, and wish every American city mayor and urban planner would go and take this bike ride...) Upon request the guide took me to Leonard Cohen's house, and we saw the huge mural of LC that was painted recently nearby. The murals everywhere are really so cool.

We got bagels at St. Viatur -quite unique. Also stopped by Marche Jean-Talon - loved! Made me wish we were in an AirBnB instead of a hotel so I could buy some of those gorgeous fruits and vegetables. No poutine or smoked meat this trip.

I disliked the touristy old city - could tell that side streets had shops and restaurants that looked interesting, but couldn't take the crowds on a Sunday. My son and I did have breakfast at Olive & Gourmando in that area on Monday morning- it was good, and has a hip vibe, with windows full of flowers, open onto the quiet side street

Just missed the circus festival!

I love Montreal- what a happening and lively city. I had no idea what to expect, and was delighted from the moment we drove into town in the dark on Saturday night. Will definitely go back for a longer stay next time.

Thanks again for all the great advice!

8 years ago

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