Flying from Fort Lauderdale to Montreal
Our Montreal and Quebec City adventure officially began in Fort Lauderdale, where Scott and I boarded our flight north with a connection through Philadelphia. We decided to start the trip with a little treat and upgraded ourselves to first class on American Airlines for the first leg of the flight. It was definitely a nice way to kick off vacation, especially knowing we had several busy days of exploring ahead of us.
During our flight, they served us breakfast (we pre-ordered our meals). I selected the smoked salmon bowl and Scott got the cheese platter. It’s funny that he got the cheese dish, because that’s all we ever get on Alaska Airlines and we’re pretty sick of it now. I will say, they were both outstanding.
Since we flew first class internationally, we could get into the Admirals club in Philadelphia for free. Scott and I checked in to the club and it was very quiet. We answered a few emails, grabbed a beverage, but their food was lacking. So we decided to take advantage of our Priority Pass with the Venture X card and head to the Sapphire Lounge. This was a much nicer lounge. They had numerous bars, a huge food buffet, a la carte food menu and plenty of areas to relax.
From Philadelphia, we connected to a much smaller regional plane for the flight into Montreal. The second flight was quick, and we arrived later that afternoon.
When Scott and I arrived at the ground transportation area, we decided to take a taxi as it seemed the easiest option. The line was a bit long, but we moved through it in about 25 minutes and the drive to Old Montreal was about 20 minutes.
I booked a terrace suite at the AC Hotel near Old Montreal, which ended up being a great location for us. We were just steps away from the historic streets of Old Montreal, with plenty of restaurants, shops and the waterfront all within walking distance. Funny thing about our terrace. It didn’t have any view; it was blazing hot; and there were tons of flying insects trying to get in, so needless to say, I never used it.
Our First Evening in Old Montreal
After dropping our bags at the hotel, Scott and I headed straight out to explore the area. One of the things we immediately loved about Old Montreal was the atmosphere. The historic architecture, cobblestone streets, restaurants and little shops gave the neighborhood a very European feel, and there was plenty to see just wandering around without any real agenda.
That evening we had dinner at Pub BreWskey, located near the Old Port. It was a fun, casual place to start our trip, and after traveling most of the day, we were perfectly happy just enjoying dinner. We started out with maple glazed bacon as an appetizer and it was amazing! Scott had the BBQ ribs and I had fish and chips, both of which were great!
Our friends Ben and Maria were not scheduled to arrive until the following afternoon, so Scott and I already had plans to spend the next morning exploring more of Montreal on our own.
Starting the Morning With Crepes
The next morning we started with breakfast at Creperie Notre Dame, which turned out to be an excellent choice. Scott ordered the pistachio and banana crepe and I had a savory crepe of spinach and tomato. The crepes were amazing, and it was exactly the kind of breakfast we were hoping to find while visiting Montreal.
We had no idea how far we would end of walking this day, which ended up being over 10 miles!
From there, we decided to walk toward the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts and try to check out Montreal’s famous Underground City and Time Out Market along the way. We really did not know what to expect, which ended up making the day even more fun because we kept discovering things that had never been part of our original plan.
As we walked from Old Montreal toward downtown, we passed some incredible historic architecture. Several of the buildings appeared to be old banks, and the size and detail were impressive. Huge stone facades, columns and intricate architectural details seemed to be everywhere. This is one of the things Scott and I love about exploring a city on foot because you end up noticing buildings and places you would probably drive right past without a second thought.
Discovering Mary, Queen of the World Cathedral
One of our biggest surprises came when we stumbled across Mary, Queen of the World Cathedral. We had not planned on visiting it and really did not know much about it before walking through the doors, but it quickly became one of the highlights of our day.
The cathedral was inspired by St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome and was constructed at approximately one third of its scale. Even knowing that, you are not prepared for how beautiful the interior is until you actually step inside. The enormous columns, ornate ceilings, artwork and architectural details were absolutely breathtaking.
We took plenty of photos and video, but this is truly one of those places where the pictures cannot capture what it feels like to stand inside. Scott and I both kept looking around and pointing things out to each other because everywhere you looked there was another incredible detail. It was one of those unexpected travel discoveries that makes you glad you did not stick too closely to an itinerary.
Exploring the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts
After leaving the cathedral, we continued our walk toward the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. By this point, we had already walked quite a few blocks, but eventually we arrived and discovered that the museum was much larger than either of us expected.
The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts spans several buildings, including buildings located across the street from each other. What makes it especially interesting is that you can travel between the different areas through underground passages rather than having to leave the museum and cross the street outside.
We spent some time walking through the exhibits and exploring the different buildings before deciding it was finally time to find something we had heard a lot about before our trip, Montreal’s Underground City.
Our Search for Montreal’s Underground City
Before visiting Montreal, Scott and I had a very different idea of what the Underground City was going to be. We were picturing something similar to Seattle’s underground areas, with old streets, historic tunnels and pieces of the original city hidden beneath modern Montreal.
That is definitely not what we found.
Montreal’s Underground City, also known as RÉSO, is actually an enormous network of underground walkways connecting shopping areas, office buildings, hotels, restaurants and transportation hubs throughout downtown Montreal. It reminded us much more of a massive version of Penn Station combined with an underground shopping mall.
Once we understood what it was, it made perfect sense, especially considering how cold Montreal can get during the winter. You can move through large portions of downtown without having to spend much time outside. It just happened to be very different from the historic underground city Scott and I had created in our heads before getting there.
On the top floor they have the Time Out Market which is a giant upscale food court. We found an awesome wine bar that served oysters on the half shell that were out of this world!
Walking Through Downtown Montreal and Chinatown
As we continued exploring downtown, we came across even more churches and cathedrals along the way, and naturally we had to stop and take a look inside a few of them. Montreal has so much historic architecture mixed throughout the city that you can easily find yourself changing your route because something interesting catches your eye.
By this point, Scott and I had covered a lot of ground, but rather than grabbing a ride back to the hotel, we decided to continue walking. Along the way, we became very parched and stumbled upon a brand new restaurant called Beverly. It literally had new car smell from the leather! The staff was so friendly and it was a great place to grab a quick cocktail.
Our route eventually took us through Montreal’s Chinatown before we finally started making our way back toward Old Montreal.
When we reached the hotel, we were definitely ready to give our feet a break and wait for Ben and Maria to arrive. There was only one small problem. Somehow, they had booked a different AC Hotel than ours. Their hotel was only about half a mile away, so it was not exactly a travel disaster, but it definitely gave the four of us something to laugh about once we realized what had happened.
Dinner at Wolf & Workman in Old Montreal
Before grabbing dinner, we walked down Rue Saint-Paul to show Ben and Maria the neighborhood. Along the way, we grabbed a quick drink at 3 Brasseurs Saint-Paul, a very lively restaurant and bar.
That evening, we had dinner at Pub Wolf & Workman. The restaurant is also located on Saint Paul Street and has exactly the kind of atmosphere we enjoy when we travel. It is cozy, historic and right in the middle of one of the most charming areas of Montreal.
The food was fantastic, and it was the perfect place for our first dinner together. We spent the evening catching up, talking about everything we wanted to see over the next several days and enjoying the energy of Old Montreal.
One thing we were very glad we did before this trip was make dinner reservations for every evening before arriving. Montreal has an incredible restaurant scene, especially around Old Montreal, and many of the popular restaurants can fill up quickly. If you are planning a trip and already have a few restaurants you really want to try, we definitely recommend booking ahead rather than waiting until you arrive.
Our Montreal Adventure Was Just Getting Started
Our first full day in Montreal turned into much more than we originally planned. What started as a walk to the art museum became a day filled with incredible architecture, an unexpected cathedral, the Montreal Underground City, Chinatown and plenty of miles on our feet.
It was also a great reminder of why Scott and I enjoy exploring new cities without planning every hour of the day. Some of our favorite places on this trip were the ones we simply stumbled across while walking from one destination to another.
Now that Ben and Maria had officially joined us, our Montreal adventure was really getting started. In our next Boating Journey blog, we will take you along for Day 2 as the four of us explore more of Old Montreal and the waterfront before ending the evening with a ghost tour through the historic streets of the city.
Be sure to follow along as we continue our Montreal and Quebec City adventure.
As always, thank you for following our blog and journey! Please be sure to subscribe to both our blog and our YouTube channel. Our Montreal and Quebec series will give you lots of insight on visiting here!
Cheers, Scott and Ally
