Expensive and overrated.

I've loved Montreal in the winter. There are lights up everywhere, so much more than around here. We love to go ice skating and enjoy the snow in Parc Mont Royal. It's fun to explore different neighborhoods and check ut the non-touristy restaurants. We've had really good meals there, too.

Anonymous wrote:Montreal and Toronto are the most bland cities I’ve ever visited (and I’ve visited multiple times).

Old Quebec, Vancouver, and even Ottawa are far more interesting/fun.

+1
It’s not that I disliked Montreal. I just liked other places in Canada better. Quebec had more charm. Vancouver had better outdoor activities. Ottawa had better museums. Maybe my expectations for Montreal were too high, because a lot of people had talked it up. It was busy and over-priced.

Anonymous wrote:Oh, and to the folks saying Montreal and Toronto are bland, 100% agree with Toronto. There are many US cities more interesting than Toronto. But I think Montreal >>> Toronto and provides one of the best city vacations in North America.

Huh, to each their own. I personally prefer Toronto over Montreal. To me, Montreal has good food but feels a bit cheesy with tons of crappy party culture venues. Like, if you're under 22 and want to party hard, Montreal is your place. Vancouver is gorgeous and desirable if you're outdoorsy or athletic. Toronto is very cool and artsy IF you know where to go. The touristy stuff (CN Tower, AGO, Harbourfront, the islands) feels like most decent American cities. But if you have a fun T.O native taking you around to the good neighborhoods or venues, it's fabulous. It goes without saying that both Montreal and Toronto are definitely less fun in the winter

We went in the winter. It was bitter cold and we never discovered any quaint walkable neighborhoods.

I mean all major cities are going to be more or less a circus. I love them all but if you’ve done a lot of travels you know all major cities have kinda the same stuff. You aren’t gonna find the secret sauce it here. I really enjoy Montreal but QC is the charm. I love Rome but more day trips from there. Beijing and Shanghai have a lot of stuff to do but Xi’an and other 2nd tiers are more interesting. You get my drift. US differs a bit but essentially, the worlds a big place and the good stuff isn’t just in big cities. You have to know what it is you like to determine the place to go for awhile.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:J’adore Montréal.

Moi aussi. j’ai visité en été and il y avait les festivités partout! Tout le monde adore le cirque.

En hiver … je ne sais pas.

Montréal est magique en hiver si vous apportez les bons vêtements. J'adore cette ville !

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We also had more fun in Ottawa - had a great rate on a close in hotel, walked to fun pubs, enjoyed the restaurants, great Parliament tour, canal area was cute.

So interesting. I’ve just assumed that Ottawa is a boring government city in a way that DC used to be and may still seem to some.

DC is a boring government city. Signed, DC native.

Anonymous wrote:Can’t help but see and feel a sense of faded glory. The one-two punch of the ‘76 Olympics and the Québécois movement caused irreparable damage to the city’s economy.

I agree. Whenever I go to Montreal it feels like a giant version of my childhood in a smaller Midwestern city in the early 80s. I also only seem to go there in winter (too boozy, not fun) and I hate how they clear their sidewalks (they don’t, so you are constantly walking on a trough of compacted snow). I have a lot of relatives there but I never feel welcome there. Not a fan.

I went for two nights one July and had fun. It was a super easy flight - under two hours from DC IIRC? - and I felt like I was in a different country very easily. I stayed on the edge of the Old Village. I got some random cheap ticket on miles to go there. I wouldn't spend tons of money to go there.

I want to check out Quebec City sometime too.

Can’t help but see and feel a sense of faded glory. The one-two punch of the ‘76 Olympics and the Québécois movement caused irreparable damage to the city’s economy.

Been there twice. Once for the jazz festival and once for two days while en route to ski. Really enjoyed both times even if it was about a difference of 90 degrees in temp.

Anonymous wrote:We also had more fun in Ottawa - had a great rate on a close in hotel, walked to fun pubs, enjoyed the restaurants, great Parliament tour, canal area was cute.

So interesting. I’ve just assumed that Ottawa is a boring government city in a way that DC used to be and may still seem to some.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Me. I didn’t hate it, but it just seemed like a big city anywhere in North America. And a lot of it was under construction at the time.

Really enjoyed Quebec City for a few nights though.

That would be my takeaway as well. It had more character than Toronto but generally didn’t feel that dissimilar to a variety of major North American cities. It didn’t help that we went to Quebec City first.

+1

The old city was cute but it is like five blocks. The rest was just a generic North American city. And agree, Quebec City is better.

I once went to Montreal at NYE. It was cold as hell. Bitter cold. Loved everything else about it, though.