Visiting Montreal

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Visiting Montreal with 3 and 6 year olds

Feb 2000

Marta
We are going to Montreal for 3-4 days at the end of May. We will be going by train from Albany, NY. Can anyone recommend a nice, reasonable hotel? Judging from the AAA guide, it seems that there are tons of hotels in downtown Montreal and I'm having trouble picking one. Also, what are the must-see sights? We won't have a car. Our group consists of mom, dad, 2 kids (6 & 3) and grandparents (early 70's). dtlustig
Can't recommend a hotel, cause we always stay with my grandmother. Must-do's:
Caleche (carriage ride) either through Old Montreal or on Mont Royal (park). Very touristy, but very worth the $30. I always loved it as a kid and now my kids do too. Walking around Old Montreal is good for those who like old buildings!
Biodome (in the ex-Olympics stadium)--this is a very cool living natural history museum, with 4 habitats. Nearby (walking distance) is the Insectarium which is pretty cool too--not worth its own trip (except for entomologists), but good to combine with Biodome.
If you have a car, check out Viateur Street bagels, open 24 hrs--to see bagels cooked in a wood burning fire. montreal bagels are wonderful. Near Old Montreal is an IMAX theatre if you want to do that, and there's a science museum right there too (Exploratorium type). Have fun!

Ericka
Check out the Chateau Versailles. It's small, central, and has always been very reasonable. As for must-see sights, you MUST see the biodome! A kind of total zoo experience. Four complete environments, complete with climate and animals. The tropics area is hot and sweaty, there's a real nip in the air in the antarctic, etc. Tends to be a little impacted with school kids during the week.

Julianna
Last year a few colleagues and I stayed at the Hotel Tour Centre-Ville in Montreal for a conference. They had studios and 1 bedroom suites with full kitchens (they may have 2 bedroom suites). The one bedroom suites had either 2 double beds or 1 king in the bedroom and a pull out queen sofa bed in the living room. There was an indoor pool and a cafe downstairs for inexpensive breakfast (but we bought food and ate in the room.) It is down town, walking distance to old town and other areas and close to the Metro. It wasn't that expensive either. I think there is a charge for parking. Nothing fancy but clean. Make sure you check your bill when you leave. We had a small problem but the manager fixed it on the spot. They have an 800 number: 800-361-2790. My travel agent got a better rate than I could get calling them but you can call and see if it is available and what their prices are and then have your agent call to see what rate they are quoted.