Art is free!

You do not always have to pay in order to visit the greatest museums of Montreal. Many museum are opened to visitors at no cost.  Among them, the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts offers you to visit its vast art collection from antiquity to today. Mcgill University’s Redpath Museum invites you also to see its artefacts going from the Egyptian mummy to dinosaurs fossils. 

Some of the most popular museums in Montreal offer you to visit their exhibitions for free at certain periods of the week. So you will not have to pay out a penny to visit Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal on Wednesday nights from 6:00 pm. And on the following Thursday night, the visit the Canadian Centre for Architecture which will be free from 5:30 pm.

Montreal: Festivals City

Montreal is without a doubt the world’s capital of festivals. You will find all year long a plethora of festivals giving you the opportunity to enjoy many free activities. Attend the numerous outdoor free shows offered at Festival international de Jazz de Montréal and the Francofolies. In winter, take part in the many free activities offered by Fête des Neiges de Montréal and the Montreal High Lights Festival.

Photo: Jean Francois Le Blanc/Canadian Press

A Haven of Peace
Hidden on a true paradise of peacefulness that is Île Notre-Dame, the Floralies Gardens include more than 100 000 annuals and 5000 bushes. Come picnic in the shade of a magnificent weeping willow watching birds on the canal. It will only cost you a metro ticket to enjoy this relaxing haven in the heart of the city.

Photo : Benoît Remillard 

Going down under
One of the best kept secrets of Montreal is its underground city, which is the largest in the world. Explore the inside of the tunnels and galleries which are scattered in more than 33 kilometres of underground passageways. Live the unique atmosphere contained within these underground walls and make the most out of the numerous boutiques, restaurants and shopping malls. Considering the harsh winter in Quebec, it is not surprising to see that this underground city has become one of the favourite spot for Montrealers.

A Walk in the Park
Mount-Royal Park is a green haven offering many free activities right in the centre of Montreal. An early arrival at the park will allow you to observe wood peckers, blue jays and many other bird species that uses this area as a refuge from the city. Then, a visit in the Mount Royal cemeteries, far from being macabre, will make you discover an arboretum containing rare tree species, Japanese lilacs and the resting place of many great figures of Montreal’s history. From the top of Mount Royal, Saint-Joseph’s Oratory is each week the home of free choirs, peal bells and organ concerts. The concerts are taken place in a magnificent basilica which can welcome up to 10 000 people. 

Photo: grandquebec.com

Relax at the Botanical Garden
Whatever the season, Montreal’s Botanical Garden is the favourite spot for locals who wish to relax and loosen up. Located in the heart of the city, the Botanical Garden makes you discover a collection of 22 000 species of plants, ten greenhouses open to visitors, around thirty thematic gardens, a great team of botanist researchers and many seasonal activities. You will be charmed by the scents, the colours and the forms of the flora in one of the most important botanical gardens in the world.

Taste Chinese Delicacies in Chinatown
Montreal’s Chinatown offers you to visit a bit of Asia inside its numerous restaurants, boutiques and traditional medicine shops. With a bit of luck you could also enjoy the incredible atmosphere of one of the annual Chinese celebrations taking place in this area to the great pleasure of Montrealers.

Watch the View from Mount Royal
Playing the role of a true forest haven in the centre of the city, Mount Royal Park offers you some of the greatest viewpoints on the city and its skyscrapers. Enjoy a nice family picnic, stretch your legs for an early jogging or simply play a team sport with friends. You will thus make the most out of this fresh and pure air available right in the middle of the city.

Shop on “Main” Street
You love fashion, top-of-the-range products, trendy cafés or delicatessens? Take some time to do a bit of window-shopping on Saint-Laurent Boulevard, definitely one of the most dynamic streets in Montreal. Called the “Main” by locals, strolling down this street will make you see the latest fashion and the best of the kitsch.

Enjoy Great Food at Jean-Talon Market
The best fruits, vegetables and local products of Montreal are unquestionably at Jean-Talon Market. Probably nowhere else in Quebec will you find a greater variety of food products of all sorts. You will find seasonal vegetables, exotic fruits and local products as well as butcher shops, fish shops, cake shops and many other things. Jean-talon Market is therefore the best place to fill your bags of fresh products just before dinner.