Downtown Montreal

The museum district is perhaps the most attractive area of downtown Montreal. The Musée des Beaux-Arts, the city’s most prestigious, is situated at the corner of rue Sherbrooke and Avenue du Musée. While in the area, visitors can enjoy eyeing or buying from chic boutiques along Victorian Crescent Street, especially between rue Sherbrooke and Boulevard de Maisonneuve. This area is also loaded with excellent dining choices, with many restaurants situated between Boulevard de Maisonneuve and Boulevard René-Lévesque. Make a pit stop at Bombay Palace. One of two locations, this restaurant serves traditional Indian dishes. The ambiance is relaxing and lovely Sitar music fills the room. If Indian is not your cuisine of choice, try the Beaver Club. This Montreal insitution serves tradtional Canadian dishes. If it’s your first visit to the city, this is a great place to sample the local specialties.

Continuing east on Rue Sherbrooke, natural history aficionados can observe modern and prehistoric animals, rocks, crystals and precious stones at the Redpath Museum on the McGill University campus. The McCord Museum, just east of the University’s Roddick Gates, boasts a permanent exhibition entitled “Simply Montreal.” This eclectic exhibit offers a glimpse of yesteryear, with a selection of First Nations’ (American Indian) objects, a collection of photographs, sports equipment, toys and magnificent gowns worn by the who’s who of Montreal.

Oscar Wilde once remarked that there are so many churches in Montreal that if you threw a rock in any direction you would probably break a church window. Three of the better known churches are Saint Patrick’s Basilica, Christ Church Cathedral and Mary Queen of the World Cathedral (Cathédrale Marie-Reine-du-Monde), all located within a stone’s throw of each other and more or less downtown. Christ Church Cathedral stands over Les Promenades de la Cathédrale, an attractive underground shopping complex linked to the Underground City. If the weather proves too inclement for an outdoor stroll, enjoy 30 kilometres (20 miles) of underground shopping and dining facilities. Every day, an estimated 500,000 people pass through this network, which links some 60 buildings and provides access to nearly 2000 retail outlets. What better way to conclude your busy day than by tasting the delciacies of Les Caprices de Nicolas? This restaurant serves specialties from the south of France and boasts an excellent wine list.