MONTREAL & LAURENTIANS Feature
MONTREAL/ LAURENTIANS Top Selling Tips...
“Clients travelling to Montréal should hire some roller blades or a bike to take advantage of the city's fabulous bike trails and parks. In the Laurentians, grab a bottle of wine, loaf of crusty bread and some fine local cheese and head for Lac Nominingue for an inpromptu picnic and lazy afternoon swim”
ANGIE COLOMBO Marketing Manager, Tailor Made Travel
“I would heartily recommend a stay at Sacacomie Lodge in St. Alexis des Monts. It offers a quintessential Canadian experience, encompassing wildlife (beavers included), kayaking, seaplane rides, delightful walks, quad biking and horse riding. It’s great for families. And I would say that anyone who has a lingering suspicion that Canada is boring should dive straight into Montréal’s old town any evening. It’s a hive of action”
DAVID WICKERS Co-Founder Bridge and Wickers
“A must in Montréal is Pointe-à- Callière, the interactive Museum of Archaeology and History to get a great insight into the founding of the colony and early start to Canada. When in the Laurentians visit some of the villages like St Adele or St Agathe or drive to L’Esterel (
www.esterel. com) a newly opened super resort on Lac Dupuis, for a variety of activities’
DENISE HUNN Manager Canada Portfolio, Prestige Holidays
Francophone metropolis in the world, an island surrounded by water, a UNESCO designated city of design, and home to a thriving culinary culture, and arts and nightlife scene. Where to stay? Old Montréal has
the edge, with its boutique hotels: LHotel, The Nelligan, Le St James are all stylish choices. The downtown area isn’t to be overlooked either: the Ritz-
Holidays: “In Montréal you get spectacular views of the city from the water. You can choose from a range of gentle tours or cruises or a fast jet boating ride. My other tip is to cycle the city – everyone in Montréal rides a bike and they have their equivalent of the Boris bikes, so it’s a cheap and cheerful way to explore.” Montréal sells itself. It’s a lively, friendly, fascinating gem of a multicultural city – and no, tourists do not need to speak French to get by, though ‘merci’ (thank you) and ‘s’il vous plait ’ (please) will elicit even wider smiles from the locals.
Carlton has just re-opened; this summer the brand-new Courtyard Marriott Montréal Centre-ville opens its door; and Le Germain offers spacious rooms. Summer is when Montréal really
shines: the city plays host to a dizzying array of festivals: there’s the perennially popular Montréal International Jazz Festival (June 28–July 7). It offers over 500 shows, including 350 outdoor concerts, half of which are free (www.
montrealjazzfest.com) and hosts some of the biggest names in jazz. Also in July is the Just for Laughs
Festival, the world's largest and most renowned comedy festival (www.
hahaha.com). If that all sounds a bit too energetic,
the city will have its own beach from mid-June onwards at the Quai d’Horloge in the Old Port, perfect for enjoying ice-cream, or a cool drink under a beach umbrella on silky sands. Montréal isn’t short on ‘must-see’ attractions: there’s the Biodome, home to living replicas of four ecosystems found in the Americas; the Gothic Notre Dame Basilica; and the Museum of Fine Arts. But as an ex-resident I’d say it’s the more informal pleasures that make this city such a joy to experience: hours spent tasting, sipping and strolling through the Old Port, the city’s various markets, Blvd St. Laurent, Le Plateau, and Mont Royal, Montréal’s green lungs. Says Kathryn Munro, Communication and Marketing Director for Air Transat
16 SUMMER 2012 • SELLING CANADA
Montréal and the Laurentians SAMPLE PACKAGES FRONTIER TRAVEL 020 8776 8709
www.frontier-travel.co.uk A combined cycling holiday and city break includes three nights at the Hotel Nelligan in Montréal and one night at the Comfort Inn in St Jerome, a three- night Cyclo-Gite bike package plus return Air Canada flights from Heathrow and a hire car (fully insured and taxed), from £1464pp. For those who do it without the car, it’s £1339pp. Tailor-made versions of this trip are also available.
TAILORMADE TRAVEL Tel: 0800 988 5887
www.tailor-made.co.uk Two nights at the Hyatt Regency Montréal and two nights at Les Suits Tremblant or the Westin Resort and Spa Tremblant are from £1,022pp. Also included are private transfers from Montréal’s Dorval Airport to the hotel in Montréal, from the hotel to Mont Tremblant, and from Tremblant back to Dorval. International flights are extra.
A MONTREAL WALKING TOUR PACKED WITH HIGHLIGHTS Start at the Montréal Musuem of Fine Arts, with its pavilions dedicated to Québec and Canadian art as well as European masters, in the downtown area’s elegant Sherbrooke Street. Head east, and stroll through the grounds of McGill University, the oldest in Canada, to University Avenue. From here, wind your way around
Pine Avenue and Parc, for a 15-minute walk to the fringes of Mount Royal Park, the city’s green lungs. Then hail a taxi and head to the hip,
relaxed Le Plateau neighbourhood, home to artists and young professionals alike, and filled with characterful bars, cafés and restaurants. Refuel at Au Pied de Cochon, a bustling brasserie on nearby Duluth East. Then head south down Boulevard St.
Laurent, Fondly known as ‘The Main’ it is where the city’s immigrant and French and English communities merge. It’s a shopper’s haven too, so time can
be spent in the eclectic fashion, design and food stores. Finish in downtown’s Quartier des Spectacles, where most of the city’s festivals are hosted.
WINDOWS ON THE WILD
www.windowsonthewild.com Tel: 020 8742 1556 A relaxed five-night Montréal and St. Sauveur combination, including return international flights from London to Montréal, car hire, three nights in Montréal at the Delta Centre Ville and two nights at the Manoir Saint Sauveur, based on two people sharing is priced from £816pp. A similar package combining three nights in Montréal at the Delta, with two nights at Mont Tremblant’s Chateau Beauvallon and flights from London to Montréal, costs from £864pp, based on two sharing.
Montréal and The Laurentians WHO FLIES THERE Air Transat flies from London Gatwick to Montréal weekly from May- October 2012. For more information see
www.transatholidays.co.uk
LEARN MORE
www.bonjourquebec.co.uk www.tourism-montreal.org www.laurentians.com www.espace.ca
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