Montreal

Currency

Quebec adds 5% GST and 9.975% QST at the till. Tipping is 15-20%, and the card machine calculates it on the taxed total unless you change it. Cards everywhere; the metro takes contactless.

ATMs & cards

The big banks — Desjardins is the Quebec one, plus RBC, TD and BMO — rather than the white-label machines in dépanneurs, which charge C$3-4. Decline conversion.

Quebec adds 5% GST and 9.975% QST at the till.

Wherever you are: if the machine offers to charge you in your home currency, decline. That is dynamic currency conversion and the rate is set by the ATM's operator, not your bank.

Safety

Very safe, walkable late, and the main risk is winter: −14°C lows in January, ice underfoot and snow that arrives in quantity. Speak French first or at least open with bonjour — it is not a safety matter but it changes every interaction. Cyclists have right of way in ways drivers from elsewhere find surprising.

Our own assessment, not a sourced index.

Entry & visa

Health & emergencies

Required to enter

No vaccinations are required for entry from Europe or North America.

Worth having

• Routine vaccinations up to date

Getting treated

Excellent, and expensive for visitors — there is no reciprocal arrangement with most countries, and an emergency admission runs to thousands of dollars. Travel insurance with a high medical limit is essential. In the Rockies, mountain rescue is coordinated by Parks Canada and is not billed, but the helicopter and hospital that follow are.

Wildlife and weather rather than illness. Carry bear spray on trails and know how to use it. Hypothermia is possible in any month at altitude, and snow closes passes well outside winter.

Orientation, not medical advice. Entry rules change and what you need depends on your own history and where you have been — check with a travel clinic or your national health service four to six weeks before you go.

Food tip

Bagels — wood-fired, sweeter and better than New York’s, from St-Viateur or Fairmount at any hour — smoked meat at Schwartz’s, and poutine, which is a late-night food and not a lunch. The Jean-Talon and Atwater markets are worth a morning each, and the restaurant scene punches far above the city’s size.

Getting around

• Metro — four lines, rubber-tyred and quiet, on an OPUS card or contactless
• Bicycle — BIXI has 11,000 bikes and the city has proper separated lanes; this is the best cycling city in Canada
• Underground city — 32km of tunnels linking metro stations, malls and offices, which is how January is survived
• Walking — the Plateau and Mile End are flat and made for it; Mont Royal is the hill
• Airport: the 747 bus runs to downtown around the clock for the price of a metro fare

Internet speed

Broadband here runs at 1.8× the global median of 128 Mbps. Mobile runs at about the global median of 110 Mbps.

Source: Ookla Speedtest Global Index · measured May 2026

Must-see

Things to do

• Walk up Mont Royal for the view over the city
• Eat a bagel straight out of the wood oven at 2am
• Wander Old Montreal early, before the tour buses
• Spend a Saturday at Jean-Talon market
• Go to whichever festival is on — there is always one
• Cycle the Lachine Canal to the Atwater market

Nearby day trips

Say a few words

French (Québécois)

• HelloBonjourbon-ZHOOR
• Hello / hi (Montreal)Bonjour-hibon-zhoor HI
• PleaseS'il vous plaîtseel voo PLEH
• Thank youMercimer-SEE
• Yes / NoOui / Nonwee / non
• Excuse meExcusez-moiex-koo-zay MWA
• How much is it?C'est combien ?say com-BYEN
• Corner shopDépanneurday-pa-NEUR
• CheersSanté !son-TAY
• You’re welcomeBienvenuebyen-ve-NOO

Open with bonjour and the whole interaction changes, even where everyone speaks English. In Montreal you will be greeted with "bonjour-hi" and may answer in either; in Quebec City, French comes first and the effort is noticed. The accent is not Parisian and neither is the vocabulary — a corner shop is a dépanneur and a car is a char.

Religion

Christian majority, and secular

Christian by heritage with a fast-growing share reporting no religion. Indigenous spiritual traditions are recognised, and their sites carry protocols worth respecting.

Do's and don'ts

Do

• Queue properly, hold doors, and apologise reflexively — it really is the norm
• Tip 15-20% in restaurants and for taxis; staff wages assume it
• Carry bear spray on Rockies trails and know how to use it
• Take note of which province you are in — rules on alcohol, cannabis and driving differ

Don't

• Do not assume Canada is a variant of the United States; it lands badly
• Do not approach or feed wildlife, and never get between a bear and its cubs
• Do not underestimate distances — the Rockies are far bigger than the map suggests
• Do not litter or leave food out at a campsite; it is both a fine and a genuine danger