Why Montreal?
Few cities know how to do summer weekends as well as Montreal. A Saturday afternoon meander reveals temporary stages with folk-rock bands, buildings set aside for artists to paint murals and restaurants moving outdoors to become street-food stalls.
Montreal is one of those cities that people tend to click with instantly. Supplanted in the 1960s and ’70s by Toronto as Canada’s largest city and financial capital, it has found its groove as a global cultural hotbed. There are always dozens of things going on here.
Underpinning this energy is an easy internationalism, as conversations flit between French and English, and immigrant communities from as far afield as Venezuela, Portugal and Iran.
It all results in a phenomenal effervescence.
A comfortable bed
In Vieux-Montreal, LHotel (www.lhotelmontreal.com; 001 514 985 0019) is bags of fun. The owner has used it partly to display his extensive art collection – with originals by Andy Warhol and Jaume Plensa. Doubles cost from 164 Canadian dollars (Dh549).
Families are better suited to Le Square Phillips Hôtel and Suites (www.squarephillips.com; 001 514 393 1193), where the top-floor pool is a handy bonus, along with spacious rooms, full kitchens and a babysitting service. It's also a good bet for shoppers – it's right in the heart of the downtown credit card-bashing zone. Family suites cost from 284 dollars (Dh951).
Anne Ma Soeur Anne (www.annemasoeuranne.com; 001 514 281 3187) offers a charming taste of local life in Plateau Mont-Royal, with small but smart studios, which include kitchenettes, from 97 dollars (Dh325). Breakfast is delivered to your room.
Find your feet
Start in Vieux-Montreal, the oldest part of the city that the rest of it grew around. It’s a combination of engaging quaintness and handsome, imposing buildings dating back to the era when Montreal was a financial powerhouse.
The city's best museum is also here. The Musée Pointe-à-Callière (www.pacmusee.qc.ca; 001 514 872 9150) pulls off the remarkable feat of making an archaeology museum fascinating. That's partly because the displays on the city's history are scattered among the spookily-lit foundations of old buildings. It feels more like exploring a cave than trudging through galleries.
From there, take in Montreal in the best way possible – carefree strolling. Go up Saint Laurent Boulevard and you’ll pass through Chinatown, before inevitably hitting some sort of festival going on along the often-pedestrianised strip in the Plateau Mont-Royal district.
Alternatively, amble up Rue Saint Denis, which has a more refined, Gallic feel – plus some gorgeous boutiques and cafes.
A dogleg west will bring you to Mont Royal – the local “mountain”, where you can lose yourself among the squirrels on one of the myriad walking trails.
Meet the locals
Other sports have a token presence, but ice hockey is the one that counts. The Montreal Canadiens (canadiens.nhl.com) are the most successful NHL team of all time, winning 24 Stanley Cups. Their games at the Bell Centre attract fervent support; ticket prices vary quite wildly depending on demand.
Book a table
The granddaddy of Montreal's exciting culinary scene is Toqué! (www.restaurant-toque.com; 001 514 499 2084), with an emphasis on market-fresh ingredients and locally sourced food. The seven-course tasting menu costs 117 dollars (Dh392).
The local favourite L'Express (www.restaurantlexpress.ca; 001 514 845 5333), in Plateau Mont-Royal, deals in classy French bistro fare – such as hanger steak with shallot butter and fries (26.50 dollars [Dh89]).
For quick bites, however, Montreal does an amazing line in sandwich shops. Schwartz's (www.schwartzsdeli.com; 001 514 842 4813) is so legendary that it once had a musical written about it. The 7.75-dollar (Dh26) smoked-meat sandwiches – brisket of beef marinated for 10 days, smoked for five-to-eight hours, then steamed to bring back the moisture – cause queues to form out of the door.
Shopper’s paradise
Rue Sainte-Catherine is the mainstream shopping strip, with all the big-name stores clustering along it. For a department store, try La Baie (www.labaie.com) opposite Square Phillips – it's the modern-day incarnation of the Hudson's Bay Company, which controlled the North American fur trade for centuries and played a key role in the early settlement of Canada.
Otherwise, stroll up Saint Laurent Boulevard or Rue Saint Denis – both are lined with boutiques, and make for fabulous afternoons of languorous browsing. The distinctive Canadian footwear designer John Fluevog's store (www.fluevog.com) on Rue Saint Denis is a good starting point.
What to avoid
Unless visiting specifically for the Canadian Formula One Grand Prix – held in early June – try to avoid that weekend. It becomes nigh on impossible to get any hotel room, let alone a reasonably priced one.
Don’t miss
Montreal can justifiably claim to be the circus capital of the world. The global behemoth Cirque du Soleil (www.cirquedusoleil.com) is based here, with its main show tent on the Vieux-Montreal waterfront. Other outfits put on shows at La Tohu (www.tohu.ca; 001 514 376 8648), a dedicated circus arts centre where many would-be acrobats do their initial training.
Getting there
Return flights with Qatar Airways (www.qatarairways.com; 02 621 0007), from both Dubai and Abu Dhabi, changing in Doha, cost from Dh4,735.
[ weekend@thenational.ae ]
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