These are the best places to travel this summer

Old Montréal

British Columbia & the Canadian Rockies Travel Guide

Shop

Get even more with a Lonely Planet guide.

Shop Book
Interior Notre-Dame Basilica

Getty Images

LONELY PLANET’S RECOMMENDED eSIM

Stay connected in Old Montréal

with

Saily is an affordable eSIM service that helps you stay connected and secure, anywhere in the world.

Get your eSIM

Overview

On the edge of the St Lawrence River, Old Montréal is the city’s birthplace, composed of picturesque squares, grand old-world architecture and a dense concentration of camera-toting tourists. The narrow Rue St-Paul, the old main street, teems with art galleries, shops and eateries, while the broad concourse of the Old Port is lined with green parkland and cafes along Rue de la Commune. Nearby Chinatown is a small, wonderful dose of Pacific Rim cosmopolitanism in eastern Canada.

Attractions

Must-see attractions

  • Notre Dame Basilica (Montreal, Canada).

    Basilique Notre-Dame

    Old Montréal

    Montréal's famous landmark, Notre Dame Basilica, is a 19th-century Gothic Revival masterpiece with spectacular craftsmanship – a visually pleasing, if…

  • Montreal, Canada. July 31, 2019 . Exterior of the basilica of Notre Dame in Quebec. Sunny day.
1219240147

    Place d'Armes

    Old Montréal

    This open square is framed by some of the finest buildings in Old Montréal, including its oldest bank, first skyscraper and Basilique Notre-Dame. The…

  • AUGUST 13, 2017: Exterior of Pointe a Calliere, a museum of archaeology and history in Old Montreal.
1160495017
america, archaeology, architecture, art, attraction, beautiful, blue, building, calliere, canada, city, culture, downtown, harbor, historic, historical, history, holiday, landmark, modern, montreal, monument, museum, old, outdoor, outdoors, peer, place, pointe, pointe a calliere, port, quebec, sky, street, tall, tour, tourism, travel, view

    Pointe-à-Callière Cité d'archéologie et d'histoire de Montréal

    Old Montréal

    One of Montréal's most fascinating sites, this museum takes visitors on a historical journey through the centuries, beginning with the early days of…

  • The Old Port of Montreal on a sunny day.
613324236
Skyscraper, Photography, Vieux, City, River, Old Port, Canada, Horizontal, Crowd of People, Summer Solstice, Outdoors, Capital Cities, Monument, Crowded, Summer, Montreal, Street, Cityscape, City Street, People, Quebec, Pedestrian, Downtown District, 100326, 60595

    Old Port

    Old Montréal

    Montréal's Old Port has morphed into a park and fun zone paralleling the mighty St Lawrence River for 2.5km and punctuated by four grand quais (quays)…

  • The Notre Dame de Bon Secours Chapel in Montreal, Canada; Shutterstock ID 655613473; GL: 65050; netsuite: 65050; full: Poi; name: Lenczycki
655613473
america, architecture, basilica, bon, building, canada, canadian, cathedral, catholicism, chapel, christianity, church, city, cross, dame, de, exterior, french, hdr, help, historic, historical, history, jesus, landmark, montreal, monument, notre, notre-dame, notre-dame-de-bon-secours, old, old-fashioned, public, quebec, religion, religious, roman, roof, saint, secours, sky, spirituality, stone, street, style, tourism, tower, travel, urban, worship

    Chapelle Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours

    Old Montréal

    Known as the Sailors’ Church, this enchanting chapel derives its name from the sailors who left behind votive lamps in the shapes of ships in thanksgiving…

  • Château Ramezay

    Château Ramezay

    Old Montréal

    A home of French governors in the early 18th century, this mansion is one of the finest examples from the ancien régime. It was built for the 11th…

  • Montreal City Hall (Hotel de Ville), Montreal, Quebec, Canada

    Hôtel de Ville

    Old Montréal

    Montréal’s handsome City Hall was built between 1872 and 1878, then rebuilt after a fire in 1926. Its rigid square-based dome and nod to the baroque makes…

  • Man-made pond and the Centre des Sciences de Montreal ,Montreal Science Centre,  in the Old Port of Montreal in autumn, Quebec, Canada

    Centre des Sciences de Montréal

    Old Montréal

    This sleek, glass-covered science center houses virtual and interactive games, technology exhibits and an ‘immersion theater’ that puts a video game on…

Plan with a local

Get a book. Get inspired. Get exploring.

in partnership with getyourguide

Book popular activities in Old Montréal