Montreal Questions

[takemewithyou]

We are flying in to Montreal and have a pre-cruise stay booked through HAL at the Delta Montreal in October. It looks like it is in downtown Montreal. The reviews I have read on this hotel are mixed.

 

Does anyone have any opinions on how this hotel is?

How far is it from the airport to the hotel?

How far from the hotel to the pier?

What do you recommend to do around the area of this hotel? Attractions? Museums? Shopping? Must-see places?

 

Anyone have any experiences with embarkation with HAL in Montreal?

 

Any and all information welcome. Thank you :)

[Ephraim]

I've stayed at that hotel a few times. I've never had a bad experience at the Delta. Also, remember that there are two different Delta hotels in Montreal.

 

The airport is a 30 minute drive from downtown Montreal (unless you exceed the speed limit). The hotel is in the fixed price $34 zone. The pier is about a five minute drive from the hotel. If you want to be closer to the pier you have two choices, either $200 a night hotels, since the pier is in one of the most expensive real estate locations in Canada or you can stay at the other Delta, but you will be out of the way for everything else, since that location is horrible.

 

The McCord museum of Canadian history is around the corner. But that's really a shopping/business district and not a museum district. As far as shopping, if you can't find the shopping around that hotel, you will have to be a blind man. It's shop after shop on St. Catherine street and mall after mall. There are plenty of things to do from Old Montreal to the Museum of Fine Art. Tourism Montreal has a wonderful website with a list of interesting things to do, from the Biodome to the Botanical Gardens.

[takemewithyou]

Thank you, Ephraim. I didn't know there were two Delta hotels until you mentioned it. The Delta CentreVille Hotel Montreal on University and the Delta Montreal on Rue du President Kennedy, right?

 

The TA just said the Delta Montreal and since that is near the cruise terminal - that must be it.

 

So there should be plenty of shops nearby - any place to pick up a couple bottles of wine?

 

Any restaurant recommendations?

Thanks!!

[Ephraim]

My opinion on the Delta Centreville is public record on CC. I don't like the location of the hotel at all. Incidentally it's in it's third or fourth incarnation. It was built as a Hyatt, it was a Radisson for a while and a Hotel des Gouverneurs and now a Delta.

 

The problem with that particular location is that it's just right in front of University at the end of Highway 10. It's in the financial district and while it's a walk away from Old Montreal, it's a very spartan part of town after 6 PM. It's right next to the Montreal Stock Market and the UN's ICAO. There are two close metro stations, Square Victoria and Place Bonaventure. You can walk from Place Bonaventure to Central Station, where the trains arrive, from there you can walk through underground Montreal to the shopping area.

 

Old Montreal and the port are closer.

 

Montreal has more restaurants per capita than any other city on earth (except maybe Paris). I can easily recommend dozens of restaurants, but it always depends on the travel and what kind of restaurant you want. There are also a few local dishes that should be tried and of course the problem of price.

 

As for a bottle of wine, that's where you will get a bit of a price shock. Table wine and beer are available at the supermarket and the corner stores (called Deps, short for depanneur). Real wine and hard alcohol is sold only at government stores calld the SAQ (Societe d'Alcohol de Quebec). Expect that the cheapest bottle of wine that you will see will be about $11. A 3/4 of a litre bottle of the cheapest hard alcohol will be in the range of $20 a bottle (a litre is so expensive... they sell most alcohol in Canada in 3/4 litre bottles instead.)

 

There is also a local show for tourists with local "old time" Quebec fare. But my favorite restaurant is probably Gibby's for steak. Wonderful steak, but also expensive. Of course, steak in Montreal wouldn't be steak without steak spices. There is a great restaurant that serves Dim Sum every day (and is packed on Sundays!)

 

Remember to try poutine, the local dish with fries and sauce (but don't buy it at an American fast food chain, they can't manage to make the sauce right.) Smoked Meat sandwiches are great for lunch (and best medium). Some of the local delis and restaurants also stock Black Cherry Soda, a deli favourite in Montreal.

 

Be prepared, coffee in Montreal comes in strong to strongest. Which explains why most Montrealers think that cruise ship coffee is just water with the word coffee whispered over it. Even Starbucks had to make their coffee stronger... because the stores were empty when they started here. (They are one of the smallest chains).

 

Montrealers are all about "Joie de vivre", the joy of living. You will see us in the streets, in the cafes and up till 3AM in the morning at the clubs.

[takemewithyou]

Merci beaucoup, Ephraim!

Looking forward to our visit to Montreal.

[Ephraim]

For the show, you can go to http://www.oyez.ca/Cabaret/accueil.html