Overview

Montréal is Canada's most romantic and most European city. It is an island city, and the only French-speaking city in North America and the second largest French-speaking city in the world. The French culture is very prominent in the city, but there is also an incredible diversity of cultures. Over 15% of the city speaks a mother language other than French or English, making Montreal one of the most heterogeneous cities in Canada or the world.

The Ile de Montréal is an island in the St. Lawrence River, 32 miles and 9 miles wide. The most dramatic feature of the island is the 764-ft-high Mont-Royal, which gave the island and the city their name. The city of Montréal is the oldest and by far the largest of the 24 cities on the island. The countryside that lies across the river is simply amazing in its pastoral splendor. Spring is particularly wonderful in Montreal as the countryside comes into full bloom.

Montreal itself is a mix of the modern and ancient, but all of it has a unique European feel to it. The skyscrapers of downtown Montreal are part of a bustling commercial city, but the old city of Vieux-Montreal is its cultural heart. In old Montreal, the cabarets, cafes, coffee houses, and clubs stay open until the early morning. One can enjoy European café life while listening to jazz, blues, French, English, or American pop music, or just talking in the sun while sitting at a sidewalk café. The old city is full of beautiful stone houses and streets. To the east are rue St-Denis and the Quartier Latin, with its rows of French and ethnic restaurants, bistros, chess hangouts, designer boutiques, antiques shops, and art galleries. Outside the city, La Ronde amusement park, the Biosphere, the Casino de Montréal, acres of parkland, and the Lac de l'Ile Notre-Dame public beach await visitors.

Montreal is the perfect place to go if you want to visit a European city without having to spend the time and money actually going to Europe. The city is charming, and the people are warm and gracious, and the culture is simply stunning. Montreal is the Paris of North America, and it has everything one would expect of such a city. From café life to bistros to museums to old streets and antique shops, Montreal has it all. The city is full of diverse groups of people, all of whom have been attracted by the beautiful countryside and amazing culture of Montreal.