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Travel Getting to Montreal GETTING TO MONTREAL Montréal is an international city, accessible from just about anywhere in the world! Connected via major airlines across the globe, Montréal is only an hour and a half from New York City, two hours from Chicago, and six hours from London. Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport (PET), also known as Montréal Trudeau Airport, is about 21km (13mi) west of downtown and is the centre of domestic, US and overseas flights. Montréal-Trudeau International Airport has recently undergone major renovations in order to improve services for travelers and to modernize the infrastructure. Airport Montreal: http://www.admtl.com . PET Airport (coded as YUL) has good connections to the city by either car, bus or metro (subway). Taxis and limousines ensure quick service to and from Montréal's downtown core. The Québécois Bus Company runs Aérobus shuttles from PET Airport to downtown. At Station Aérobus, a smaller shuttle will pick you up and drop you anywhere in central downtown, free of charge. Driving to downtown Montréal from PET Airport will take roughly 20 or 30 minutes, although rush hour can extend your traveling time. Taxi Car Rental
Montréal is only 47 km (29 miles) from the New York border. The New York State Thruway (I-87) becomes Route 15, and U.S. I-89 becomes two-lane Route 133 which joins Highway 10 to Montréal. From I-91 in Massachusetts, highways 55 and 10 lead to Montréal. Visitors coming to Montréal from eastern or western Canada use highways 20 and 40. Québec speed limits are in kilometres (100 kph equals about 62 mph). Gasoline is sold in litres (3 3/4 litres equals 1 U.S. gallon). Montréal's Gare centrale (Central Station), with rail connections from New York or Washington, is also a major stop for domestic trains from eastern or western Canada. Via Rail Canada: http://www.viarail.ca/en_index.html.
GETTING AROUND MONTREAL Montréal has a very extensive and extremely practical subway-bus network. The western sectors of the city are reachable by suburban trains from the Bonaventure and Vendéme stations. Although quite heavy, automobile traffic flows reasonably well. Try not to drive in Vieux-Montréal, where the streets are narrow and often congested. Tourist offices and bicycle-rental facilities can provide excellent maps of cycle paths and routes. Société de transport de Montréal (STM) Public Transit Business Hours ( Métro schedule) Green and orange line: Yellow line: Blue line: Fares (bus and métro): STM website: http://www.stcum.qc.ca/English/a-somm.htm
CUSTOMS AND PASSPORT INFORMATION Personal Identification, Personal Baggage, Gifts and Laptops U.S. residents are exempt from carrying a passport if they have proof of permanent residency in the United States. It is, however, always better to carry a passport as personal identification. It is the responsibility of the visitor before entering Canada to ensure that he or she has the necessary documents, including those for entry into another country and re-entry into his or her own country. If you have questions about clothing, goods and gifts being admitted to Canada or back into the United States and/or are going to be carrying a laptop with you, please visit the following web sites: CANADA http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/travel/visitors-e.html UNITED STATES http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/travel Click here for a detailed Fact Sheet about crossing the U.S. - Canada Border (pdf).
MONTREAL LOCAL INFORMATION
Click here for the local Weather Forecast Click here for Currency Conversion!
Montréal is truly an experience: old world charm, French joie de vivre and a modern style all its own. Montréal has a unique mix of historical, natural and cultural offerings to satisfy even your most diverse tour groups and individual travelers.
Montréal - Double-Decker City Nestled between mountain and river, Montréal's compact downtown core vibrates to a world beat. This is where Montrealers live, work and play—there's no 6 p.m. exodus to suburbs unknown.
Along Sainte-Catherine Street—which traverses almost the entire city from east to west—and up and down the cross streets, restaurants of every nationality share sidewalk space with international name-brand boutiques, great department stores, intimate café-terrasses and very happening nightclubs and bars.
A spectacular view of McGill College Avenue and Mount Royal comes into view from the Place Ville Marie esplanade, the birthplace of the underground network. Wander up to Sherbrooke Street and browse (or splurge) in the designer boutiques, trend-setting art galleries and museums—including the prestigious Museum of Fine Arts—of the Museum Quarter. Stroll east and enter Chinatown, where a thriving Chinese community continues to celebrate traditional festivals and holidays, and where you'll find all kinds of neat things, like medicinal roots, exotic foodstuffs and hand-painted porcelain. With centuries-old buildings and modern skyscrapers, a medley of architectural styles stands side by side for all to behold. The Quartier international, an exceptional new urban space, is one such site. In addition to the Palais des congrès (Convention Centre) and its colourful glass façade, Place Jean-Paul-Riopelle is well worth a visit for its remarkable fountain-sculpture that features a ring of fire.
Then there's downtown's famous alter ego: the underground pedestrian network. Directly under the heart of the city lie 32 kilometres (20 miles) of brightly lit, scrupulously clean passageways, linking thousands of boutiques, major hotels, restaurants, universities, dozens of office buildings and attractions. This is definitely the Montréal of Montrealers. Every day more than 500,000 people connect through here on their way to work, shop, dine or spend a night—or day—on the town. City under the City To Montrealers, it goes by the name "the underground city" or simply "the underground". They're actually referring to the vast network of pedestrian walkways spread out below the city. To put a number on it, there are 30 kilometres of connecting areas, passageways and hubs beneath the downtown. More than 500,000 people pass through the underground city every day, on their way to work, university or to scope out bargains at the over 1,700 boutiques and businesses. The many passageways also serve a more leisurely purpose; connecting certain métro stations, the underground provides access to about 40 theatres, cinemas and other entertainment venues, as well as restaurants, tourist attractions and museums. The concept of underground commerce began in 1962, with the lower level shopping mall in Place Ville Marie , Montréal's first skyscraper. With the coming of Expo '67 to the city, Montréal's long-standing dream of a métro finally became a reality. Following this, the underground went through multiple stages of development. Without a doubt, one of the more spectacular periods was the raising of Christ Church Cathedral on piles, in order to lay the foundations for a shopping centre underneath it. As of March 2003, another series of passageways will extend the existing network to include a quadrant in the new Quartier international. A focus on arts and culture will be favoured over commercial activities, with display windows and alcoves presenting the richness of Montréal's museum collections. Sheltered from the elements - winter's cold or summer's heat - Montrealers continue their busy lives and tourists take a break from theirs, underground.
The Fashionable Life Above and underground Montréal has something for every taste, whim, style and wallet. Upscale boutiques, art galleries and jewellers in the Museum Quarter cater to the elegant and sophisticated. On Saint-Denis Street, the hottest couturiers dress those on the avant-garde. The more eccentric visit the friperies, second-hand stores where vintage pieces often surface. And antiquaries will find rare and beautiful collectibles in the hundreds of antique and curio shops around the city.
Montréal's main shopping drag, Sainte-Catherine Street, is the longest commercial artery in North America. And if that's not enough, there are 32 kilometres (20 miles) of pedestrian passageways underground linking thousands more shops, boutiques and major department stores. On Boxing Day, in January and at the end of each season, merchandise is moved out into the corridors and, weather permitting, onto the streets. This is when you'll want to shop till you drop—because everything goes on sale and the bargains are just way too good to pass up. If the sight of hand-crafted items makes you melt, you’ll definitely want to check out the creations of more than 450 artisans during the Salon des Métiers d’art du Québec. Just one look at these beautiful objects will make you think you’ve died and gone to craft heaven. Montréal’s many museum boutiques also offer incredible collections of gift items so gorgeous you just might keep them for yourself.
Accessibility for people with restricted physical ability Email: infos@keroul.qc.ca Total Access: The handicapped person can enter and move around the establishment without assistance. Partial Access: The handicapped person requires assistance to enter and move around the establishment. Tourist and Leisure Companion for persons living with a disability For more information: Pictures provided by Tourisme Montréal.
Currency The unit of currency is the Canadian dollar. There are many currency exchange centers throughout the downtown area. They either charge a fee or take a couple of percentage points off the exchange rate for their services. Banks can usually handle U.S. funds without any problem but may not be prepared to handle other currencies. Bank branches are usually open from 10:00am till 3:00pm during the week, often with extended hours on Thursday or Friday. Downtown stores are usually happy to accept U.S. currency and will often post the exchange rate they are offering. Normally this will be a few percentage points less than the bank rate. Major travelers checks are accepted in places that accept credit cards, but are not universally accepted as cash. Most stores and restaurants accept Visa and MasterCard and often accept American Express. You usually get the most favorable exchange rate by using your credit card. Most ATMs are networked to Cirrus and Interac and accept major credit cards if you have a PIN to enter into the machine. |
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In Montréal, style is certainly not limited to its chic inhabitants. With Commerce Design Montréal on the scene, businesses have been turning their share of heads too. The contest, which has been going strong since 1995, awards business owners who have teamed up with creative architects and designers to give their establishments a splash of panache. Each year, close to 20 businesses around the island are selected for their hot new looks. 
