Explore Old Montreal Walking Tour

SPECIAL OFFER!

Reserve your tour before June 30th and receive -10% off discount.
Apply the following discount code at checkout: DETOUR10

(Not applicable to Private Tours)

Join us for our top-rated walking tour of Old Montreal! A visit to the city’s enchanting heritage district is a must on any trip to Montreal. Brimming with centuries of stories and characters, Montreal’s oldest neighbourhood is best discovered on foot. On this Old Montreal walking tour, we’ll introduce you to all the historical highlights and fascinating beginnings that have contributed to making Montreal the unique, fun and diverse city that it is today. Come armed with your comfy walking shoes, camera, curiosity, and questions, and you’ll leave with a deeper appreciation for this beautiful metropolis.

This walking tour of Old Montreal kicks off when you meet one of our awesome certified guides outside Marché Saint Laurent cafe and boutique. This cozy shop and coffee spot is just a 5-minute walk from the Place-d’Armes metro station. If you arrive early, we recommend grabbing a tasty coffee or snack and browsing the unique local souvenirs!

After an intro from your guide, we’ll head to Place d’Armes, one of Old Montreal’s central public squares, where your friendly Montreal tour guide will share some of the history of this centuries-old square with you. We’ll admire the architecture from different eras, a particular highlight being the stunning Notre-Dame Basilica.

From Place d’Armes, we’ll visit the city’s old financial district, admire the buildings of the old “Wall Street of Canada”, and visit the inside of a re-purposed bank!

Continuing on, we’ll head to Montreal’s Museum of Archaeology and History, the Pointe-à-Callière Museum. At the location of the archaeology museum, you’ll soak up the history of where the French colony of Ville-Marie (Montreal) first began back in 1642. As a bonus, we might take you to admire a little-known and exclusive viewpoint of the Old Port of Montreal.

Next, we head to Rue Saint-Paul, the oldest street in the city. Once Montreal’s main road, we’ll twist and turn along this narrow commercial artery, which is today studded with cafés, restaurants, boutiques, and art galleries. We’ll take a detour from the main street at some point to show you the courtyard where Montreal’s very first hospital was built, before heading back to Saint Paul Street.

The detours don’t end there! We’ll hit some back alleys as your guide tells you about the lively jazz, club, and burlesque scenes of the early 20th century, which gave Montreal it’s nickname “Sin City”. Then we head to Place Jacques-Cartier to learn about the old marketplace and its current reputation as the heart and soul of Old Montreal.

On the final leg of our walking tour of Old Montreal, we’ll see City Hall and Chateau Ramezay, travelling back in time as we learn about the French regime era and Montreal’s political scene.

Lastly, we’ll visit Marché Bonsecours, once the main public market in the city, to hear stories about this impressive edifice with its huge silver dome and also the neighbouring Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours Chapel. You’ll part ways with your guide here, but not without leaving you with some amazing tales from history, personal recommendations for the rest of your Montreal trip, and a new appreciation for Canada’s second-most populous city.