First, thank you to everyone who answered my questions and took the time to give me advice on our trip...much appreciated and much needed.
Second, we had a blast! Montreal was great, everything we did was fun and the people were wonderful.
For reference purposes: Family of six (ages 75, 52, 49, 25, 20, 16) We live 30 minutes north of NYC and my daughter goes to college there and my husband works there. We love adventure and combining relaxing with being on the move. This was our first time in Montreal.
I'll sort the report by day...thanks in advance for reading!
July 25 - We traveled via Amtrak and left Penn Station at 8:30 am. It was an adventure dealing with Penn Station and all I will say is that I was happy to finally be sitting on the train. Although the train was full we got six seats together (three rows of two) and had no problem loading the carry on bags (9 of them). There was enough room to be comfortable. Each seat had two 120 V electric plugs which were very convenient as we brought laptops and portable DVD players to keep everyone occupied.
Going in my attitude was that I was going to try train travel. Never again.... at least for me. The trip is long....almost 11 hours....I knew that going in, but I guess I didn't realize how LONG it would really be. The bathrooms start off clean, but you can image how they get after a few hours or so. The food on the train is awful, but we brought bagels, drinks and sandwiches from home, so we were very happy. Nice views of the Hudson river and Lake Champlain. Going into Canada it took 1.5 hours at the border. I was happy to arrive at Gare Central.
We took a cab to Le Centre Sheraton (yes, I could have walked, but I was not dragging carryon luggage). It is very close though. Checked in and unpacked quickly. We had a king room and a double double room on the 32nd floor. Rooms were large and everything was in order. Safe in the room which was a must for us. Then we went to Baton Rouge to eat dinner. Food was good. It was near the hotel and it was late. Yankee Game was on in the bar and my son was happy watching it.
July 26 - We had a quick cup of coffee in the lobby area and then took the hop on off bus to get a feel for Montreal. We had grayline pick us up at the hotel, but when we saw how close Dorchester Square really was...we decided we could have walked over. I enjoyed the tour...sitting on top of the double decker bus. It did what I wanted which was to give us a feel for the city. We got off at the Notre Dame Basilica (which I would recommend a visit to everyone). It was really pretty and everyone in the party, including my 16 year old was impressed. We took the tour and lit a candle for my dad who recently passed away. Very touching experience. After that we had a quick break at the Starbucks near the bus pick up point.
Then we continued on the tour. We saw Mont Royal, Chinatown, Casino, Le Ronde, Science Museum, Crescent Street, St. Joseph's Oratory...I'm sure I don't have the order correct! We did not get off again but had a blast driving over the bridge on the top of the double decker bus. Great views and lots of bumps!
At the end of the tour (about 2 pm), we decided to walk back over St. Catherines and to shop. Well, my daughter shopped and we watched her. I felt like I was in NYC...great experience....lots of people....but typical shopping.
For dinner we went to Winston Churchills...(Winnie's) the second floor. We ate on the terrace and loved watching the people walking up and down Crescent Street. Our dinner was early (6 pm), and we left by 8 pm (required as we had a minor in our party). The food was ok, nothing great, but we wanted the experience.
July 27 - Old Montreal. We loved old Montreal! I should mention that we purchased a three day pass for the Metro for $16 and it was a great investment. The Metro was easy to navigate and we had no problems. It is hot though! I am used to airconditioned subways so it was a little uncomfortable to ride that way, but not to the point that I would tell anyone to skip the Metro. Also everything was very clean. One point to note, before I left I typed up directions via the Metro from research. I also noted the way I needed to travel (for example orange line Cote Verde). This helped a great deal. I would not have known which was to travel if I had not done this ahead of time. I could have looked on the Metro maps while on the platforms or the trains, but I felt better knowing ahead of time which way to go.
The walk from the metro to the Science Center was a bit much for my mom (age 75). I would not recommend it for anyone that has any trouble walking distances. (Side note: she took a cab on our last day and it was only $12 with the tip, much better for her).
We did the Science Center with the Indy exhibition. Our 25 year old is a big Indy fan and I am not. However, I loved this exhibition. It took us almost three hours to do it all. Very well done. We weren't impressed with the rest of the Science Center, but we did that after Indy and maybe we needed a break.
We walked toward Jacques Cartier and stopped along the way for pizza. Well ummm not a good idea! Pretty expensive and not so good, but we needed to sit down and rest so it was ok.
After that we strolled along Jacques Cartier and St. Paul street...loved the feel and the shops. Bought a few prints and my daughter got some crafted jewelery. It is touristy, but a fun place and after all I am a tourist! We had dinner at Jardin Nelson....nice place...food pretty good....nice atmosphere.
July 28 - This day was for my 16 year old. We went via Metro to La Ronde. He had a great time. Actually we all did. My mom decided to stay at the hotel and roam around which I think was a good choice. We compared this park to a combination between a six flags and a local amusement park we have near us, called Playland which is old fashioned, quaint and on the Long Island Sound. We are big Walt Disney World fans, so this park, of course, did not compare, nor was it expected to, but we had fun none the less. We went back to the hotel to meet my mom around 7 pm and grabbed a quick bite at Mister Steer. Sufficient food....quick....close to hotel.
July 29 - Today we took the Metro to Mont Royal and walked along St. Denis, Duluth, and St Hubert and St. Laurent. We stopped at Schwartz's deli around 2 pm. The line was out the door, but we knew to go inside and do the take out with seating inside. The food was good.....we enjoyed it very much.
We stopped at the park and took a rest toward the end of our afternoon...I think it was Square St. Louis. Listened to the people playing music and strolled around the fountain. Very relaxing and I enjoyed looking at the different terraces that surrounded the park.
I really enjoyed today. I found myself moving from one area to another and liked taking it all in. There were many unique stores and we bought quite a few items. For dinner we went to McKibbons (can you tell my family likes a certain kind of food). It was very noisey and rowdy and we enjoyed the atmosphere. The food was pretty good for pub food and overall we enjoyed the experience.
After dinner, we went to the Casino (mom and son stayed behind). I found it to be very nice. Not too crowded. Enjoyed playing slot machines. We took the Metro over and a cab back. On the way there we rode with about a million 20 year olds going to a concert. That was an experience hearing them yell through the tunnels!
July 30 - Today via metro (this time with a round trip ticket) we went to station Viau and explored the Olympic Stadium, Biodome, Insectarium and Botanical Garden. The ride up the tower and stadium tour were very interesting. We enjoyed the Botanical Garden and especially the Insectarium. The Biodome was ok, but remember we have the Bronx zoo very close by so based on that we were not impressed. It was hard to spot the animals, but I did enjoy going through the four different climates.
At night we had a quick bite at Il Focolaio. I think I'll stick to NY pizza. I liked the different combinations...very creative, but I didn't like the crust. After that we went to the Just for Laughs festival...had tickets to Craig Ferguson and Place des Arts. Great show....lots of fun in the VIP tent!
July 31 - We took the grayline tour to Quebec City. My husband and I honey mooned in Quebec 21 years ago, so it was great going back. My whole family loved it. We did the quick walking tour, rode around through all the major sites, and did the 1.5 hour cruise. Everyone wanted to go back and spend more time. Looks like the beginning of a next trip. We would go for about 5 days including two travel days and I would love to go in the fall. The bus tour was sufficient we had one hour for lunch before the cruise and two hours after that. We rode the funicular and saw a quick Cirque show near the Frontenac. The ride was about 3 hours going and coming. I could not have done that if it was a day or so after that long train ride!
August 1 - Our last full day. We went back to Old Montreal. Walked along the port. Rode bicyles. Did the labyrinth, jetboating (this is fun, but you get soaked and that is expected, but you have to carry a change of clothes and shoes and that was cumbersome walking around all day with the bags. I should have planned this for the very end of the day and then took a cab back to the hotel.) After Jetboating we did March Bonsecours, which was quite nice, unique gifts, although expensive. I acutally liked a candle holder for votives but couldn't justify the $60 price. Although it was beautiful! Then we did the Sailors church and Im glad I fit that in. After we finished our day in Old Montreal, we went to the hotel to change and then had to explore the Underground City.
I felt like I was in a NY mall, but I took time to appreciate the intricate way the city was built and can easily see how it is very useful during cold winters. For dinner we ate at Europea which was by far the best dinner of the trip. As a side note, my children are very annoying when it comes to eating (annoying is my word and as their mom I can say it
) I usually cave in and eat at places that serve hamburgers, chicken fingers, etc. as you can see from my report, but usually once during a trip I get my way! This restaurant was wonderful!
August 2 - We left around 8 am for Gare Central. Took the cab back. Such a different experience. We had our luggage brought to the train and seats selected for us. I also think the train going back had more room at the seats. Since I wasn't prepared with lunch food going back we ate on the train....YUCK! I will say no more. US customs took 2 hours. We arrived at Penn Station at 9 pm and left Montreal at 9:30 am.
General Comments:
Hotel - I enjoyed the Sheraton. Our rooms were big and the location was perfect. Because I am Starwoods Preferred we were upgraded to the larger room. I know the regular rooms are smaller. The indoor pool was sufficient, but it was very hot inside. The Terrace was closed for rennovations and I would have loved to sit outside during the evenings. The health club was small but I never waited for a machine. I used the health club every morning. We did not eat in the hotel restaurants and the gift shop was small. There were other boutiques but they were closed when we came home.
Overall impression - the downtown area was much like NYC. I did see graffiti on the way into the train station on Amtrak and I saw it on my strolls through St. Dennis, but nothing too bad. I don't understand some of the comments I read on Trip Advisor about the city being full of graffiti. I didn't see it. Also, the city was clean and I NEVER felt any danger at all and we walked around at night. I did see homeless people and some asked for money, but no one bothered us at all in any way. The people were very nice, answered all my tourist questions and the language was not an issue at all. Everyone said Bonjour and I said Bonjour...then hi and they knew to speak English.
We had a great time as I said. I know this review was long, but I wanted to "pay back" for all the help provided to me by these forums. Honestly your tips and thoughts helped us a great deal and made our trip even better! Merci!
