LET US SHOW YOU OUR MONTREAL
Want to give your guests a feel for what the area has to offer? Five Gazette staffers offer their picks.
MOUNT ROYAL PARK
Open year-round
Free; paid parking
Is there any place more emblematic of Montreal than Mount Royal? The “mountain” is as beloved to Montrealers as it is sure to please out-of-town guests — no matter the season.
If they’ve never been to Montreal before, the Chalet de la montagne or the belvedere looking east off Camillien-Houde Way are great places to offer them a sweeping view of the city and beyond. For the fit, a long walk, bike or ski up to the summit from the Sir George-Étienne Cartier monument on Parc Ave. makes for an outdoorsy adventure. Or drive up to Beaver Lake for a summer picnic, fall walk or winter skate. There is also a playground on top. The truly intrepid can walk all the way to the iconic cross that looms over the city.
You can get there on foot or bike. You can take the No. 11 bus all the way over. You can also drive and pay for parking — but cars can only enter from either Remembrance Rd. on the Côtedes-Neiges side or CamillienHoude on the Plateau/Outremont side, as per a pilot project that ends in October.
Admission is always free, but bring cash for hot chocolate or lunch at the cafés or to rent winter sports equipment.
— Allison Hanes
KALMUNITY
Every Sunday at Café Resonance, 5175A Parc Ave., doors at 830 p.m.; every Tuesday at Petit Campus, 57 Prince-Arthur St. E., doors at 9 p.m. Admission: $10
Kalmunity is a collective that hosts two nights of improvised music every week: jazz Sunday evenings at Café Resonance, and (mainly) hip hop Tuesday nights at Petit Campus. It’s perfect for visitors who want to experience Montreal’s cultural and musical vibrancy. Created by percussionist Jahsun in 2003 “as an outlet for black and cultural expression,” Kalmunity counts Montreal artists like Nomadic Massive and Narcy among its network.
Because each song is improvised by a rotating group of instrumentalists, MCs and poets, every night at Kalmunity is ephemeral and unique. On Tuesdays, come to dance — and keep in mind the event tends to take a while to pick up after doors open at 9 p.m. On Sundays, order a tasty vegan dinner or drinks from the Resonance kitchen and enjoy the jazz, including vocals by Malika Tirolien.
— Darya Marchenkova
SENTIERS DE L’ESCAPADE
15 du Boisé-des-Franciscaines St., Rigaud. Open sunrise to sunset. Free admission and parking
I love to walk — down the street, or up a mountain. Walking is an all-weather activity that gives me time to think — or even better, when I have company, time to talk. Either way, Sentiers de L’escapade on Mont Rigaud is a perfect destination. With 27 kilometres of trails that criss-cross the mountain, it can accommodate all walks of life, from toddlers and dawdlers to dedicated ramblers. The trails, ranging from 2.6 to 13.7 kilometres, are well marked, and some are open year-round. The town posts the conditions of the trails on its website. After a heavy rainfall recently, for example, it noted that some sections were rather muddy, “but perfectly navigable.”
All the trails through the woods are lovely, but if you want a view, park at Lots 4, 7 or 8 and head to the observation point that looks south to the Adirondacks. (Estimated to be five-million years old, they have nothing on Mont Rigaud’s 450 million years). P8 also serves the Sucrerie de la Montagne, in case walking gives you an appetite.
Another popular walk is not part of L’escapade, but is well trodden. It runs from the Sanctuaire Notre-Dame-deLourdes to the cross through a field of rocks (known locally as the champ de guérets, champ du diable or champ de patates). It offers a view of the Ottawa River valley to the north and Montreal to the east.
If walking is too tame for some of you, drop the adventurous ones off at Arbraska zip-line park.
Before you head home, fill up at one of the stations in Rigaud: gas is often cheaper there, sometimes by as much as 10 cents a litre.
Rigaud is 70 kilometres west of Montreal, about a 50-minute drive.
— Patricia Crowe
LA FONTAINE PARK
Bordered by Sherbrooke St., Papineau Ave., Rachel St. and Parc-La Fontaine Ave.
Free entry; always open
Being from Toronto, the only time I’d ever see green space was if I went to the outskirts of the city, or if someone spilled a milkshake on St. Patrick’s Day.
So the first time I stepped into La Fontaine Park, it felt like something special. The park is huge, covered in foliage, and barely feels like the same place from one end to the other.
Anytime I would bring a Torontonian to the park, they’d be amazed at the groups of people just hanging out, not doing anything but enjoying each other’s company (often with some musicians who are way too talented to be playing for free). Sitting by the fountained pond and eventually falling asleep with a book on your face is pure bliss, if you can ignore the ants.
The food options around the park are stellar, with La Banquise, St-Viateur Bagel & Café and Au Pied de Cochon all within walking distance. Have your tourist friends eat a bagel with lox surrounded by trees if you want to guarantee they’ll visit you again.
— Jacob Dubé
LA GRANDE ROUE DE MONTRÉAL
362 de la Commune St. E. in the Old Port. Open from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. year-round Tickets: $17.40 for adults
The mountain, the river and Montreal’s striking cityscape look stunning from a gleaming white gondola car 60 metres above the Old Port. On a highhumidex July day, the air conditioning and the view are a scenic respite from the summer heat. In winter, our legendary quelques arpents de neige make for an arresting vista. And the city at night is mesmerizing from 20 storeys up, no matter what time of year you go.
Being that high up gives you and your guests a sense of the variety of the city: our plentiful green space, the elegant downtown skyscrapers and the refineries along the river to the east. It’s also great to be able to sit down for 20 minutes, the length of a circuit on the Ferris wheel, after the trek through Old Montreal that seems to be on the agenda of most out-of-town visitors.
If you want to enjoy the exclusive company of your visitors, you can book a private gondola package, although, if it’s not busy, you can usually have the exclusive experience without paying more. Tickets cost $17.40 for adults, $13.05 for children age three to 12. A private gondola package is $104.37 for up to eight people.
The closest métro is Champde-Mars, about a 12-minute walk from the wheel. There is no specific parking lot for La Grande roue, although there are lots nearby at the entrance of the Montreal Science Centre or the Clock Tower Pier.
— Lucinda Chodan