Road Trips
Montréal Olympic Tower Observatory 514-252-4141, parcolympique.qc.ca/en Montréal Botanical Garden 514-872-1400, www2.ville. montreal.qc.ca/jardin Montréal Biodôme 514-868-3000, www2.ville. montreal.qc.ca/biodome Montréal Biosphére 819-997-2800, ec.gc.ca/biosphere Parc Jean-Drapeau 514-872-6120, parcjeandrapeau.com La Ronde 514-397-2000, laronde.com Mount Royal Park 514-843-8240, lemontroyal.qc.ca/ en/connaitre-le-mont-royal Musée des beaux-arts de Montréal 514-285-2000, mbam.qc.ca Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal 514-847-6226, macm.org Jean-Talon Market and Atwater Market 514-937-7754, marchespublicsmtl.com Lachine Canal National Historic Site 514-283-6054, pc.gc.ca/lhn-nhs/ qc/canallachine/index.aspx Commensal 514-871-1480, commensal.com Schwartz’s Montréal Hebrew Delicatessen 514-842-4813, schwartzsdeli.com
The drinking age is one reason college students travel to Montréal — it’s 18 — but this culture capital of Canada boasts far more buzz-worthy attractions than bars. Just two hours and one passport away from Burlington, La Belle Ville is just the right mix of Old World charm and cosmopolitan entertainment. Get your bearings at the Montréal Olympic Tower Observatory — at 574 feet, it’s the world’s tallest inclined tower. Visitors ride up the glassenclosed funicular for a spectacular panorama of the city, overlooking the Montréal Botanical Garden — a living museum with lush thematic gardens and exhibition greenhouses — as well as the Montréal Biodôme, which recreates unique world ecosystems. In the depths of winter, you can warm up alongside tamarins and iguanas in the humid tropical rainforests. The Montréal Biosphere, an environmental education center encased in a geodesic dome, is also worth a visit. The structure sits on an island in the middle of the St. Lawrence River — a spot also home to Parc Jean-Drapeau, one of the city’s top performing-arts venues. (The massive Osheaga Music and Arts Festival takes place here each year.) And don’t miss the thrilling roller coasters at the adjacent amusement park, La Ronde. Called Montréal’s “Central Park,” Mount Royal Park is a natural oasis in the middle of the bustling metropolis, perfect for a picnic, a jog or ice skating, depending on the season. A grassroots hand-drumming group, the Montréal Tam Tams, hold an unofficial
Courtesy of Tourisme MontrĖal
MONTRéAL
festival here every Sunday from May to September, keeping the beat on everything from kitchen sinks to pots and pans. It’s joie de vivre in action. Looking for some visual stimulation? Feast your eyes on American pop art and French impressionist paintings at the Musée des beaux-arts de Montréal, aka the Montréal Museum of Fine Arts. Or get your fill of modern art, live music and cocktails at the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal’s Friday Nocturnes, held the first Friday of every month. Any good traveler knows to follow the locals. The open-air Jean-Talon Market —stocked with big, beautiful fruits and veggies, cheeses and gourmet global cuisine — is great for noshing and people watching. Ditto Atwater Market, which is near the bike-friendly Lachine Canal National Historic Site and the Lionel-Groulx Metro station. St. Catherine and St-Laurent streets are dotted with trendy shops and restaurants, from the vegetarianfriendly Commensal to Schwartz’s Montréal Hebrew Delicatessen. Don’t leave town without sampling poutine, a dish of French fries, cheese curds and gravy. It doesn’t get more Montréal than that. wg
49