Things to Do in Montreal, Then Beyond
The best way to think about things to do around Montreal is in two halves: the city itself, which takes 2 to 3 focused days, and the day trips that fan out from it by VIA Rail or car. Treat Montreal as the hub of a Quebec and Ontario network rather than the whole trip, and you’ll get more out of both halves.
In the city: 2 to 3 days is enough
Old Montreal (Vieux-Montréal) costs nothing to wander, cobblestone streets, Place Jacques-Cartier, and the 1847 Bonsecours Market with its silver dome. The Notre-Dame Basilica, its interior a deep blue and gold Gothic Revival showpiece, runs about $16 for a daytime visit or about $33.50 for the evening AURA light show. Pointe-à-Callière, the archaeology museum built over the spot where Montreal was founded in 1642, runs about $29 and closes Mondays.
Mount Royal, designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, the same landscape architect behind Central Park, has the free Kondiaronk Belvedere lookout for the skyline view. Downtown, the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts runs about $31 and is free for anyone 25 and under, and the RÉSO underground city links the metro, malls, and hotels for about 33 kilometers, a genuine winter lifeline rather than a novelty. Plateau Mont-Royal and Mile End are free to explore on foot, row houses, spiral staircases, murals, and the bagel shops. At the Olympic Park in the east end, note that the tower’s observation deck is closed for renovation until around spring 2027, but Space for Life next door, the Biodôme and Botanical Garden especially, is open and worth the trip regardless.
Then go further: the day trips are the real payoff
Past 3 or 4 days, the city core is essentially covered, and this is where treating Montreal as a base pays off. Quebec City (about 3 hours by car or VIA Rail) is the actual UNESCO World Heritage Site of this pairing, Old Québec’s historic district, dated 1985, sits a different city away from Montreal entirely, and it’s honestly better as an overnight than a rushed day trip. Ottawa (about 2h20 by car, 2 hours by VIA Rail) makes a full day trip work without an overnight, Parliament Hill and the national museums fill the hours easily.
Closer in, the Eastern Townships (1-2 hours SE) are a true day trip for wine tasting around Magog and Lake Memphremagog, and Montérégie / Mont-Saint-Hilaire (40-45 minutes) is the closest of all, apple and cider country best visited in early fall. The Laurentians and Mont-Tremblant (about 1.5 hours N) work as a day trip or an overnight depending on the season, skiing in winter, hiking and lake life in summer. Trois-Rivières (1.5 hours NE) sits right on the Quebec City rail line, an easy add-on rather than its own special trip. Montebello and Parc Omega (about 2 hours W) pair a drive-through wildlife park with an overnight option at the historic Fairmont Château Montebello. And if you’re visiting between late February and April, book a spring-only sugar shack (cabane à sucre) feast, a season that doesn’t repeat the rest of the year.
Getting between the two halves
VIA Rail from Gare Centrale, downtown, is the car-free option for Quebec City, Ottawa, and Trois-Rivières. Everything else on this list needs a rental car or a guided day tour. Read more: our day-trips guide breaks each of these 8 down with costs, timing, and booking notes.