Welcome to Montreal, Canada’s second largest city. Montreal is truly cosmopolitan, bilingual (English and French), multicultural, bustling with life, and so much more. This is the place where North-American and European culture mix in a unique blend. It has a modern city centre with impressive skyscrapers, a charming old-town including a history-rich port, and trendy areas near downtown that exhibit the city’s characteristic low-rise dwellings and curving outdoor staircases.
Montreal is a safe city, and you can walk safely in all quarters of the city as well as take public transportation. There is no need for a car as long as you decide to stay within city boundaries. Montreal is considered an island as it is surrounded by rivers/lakes, and, when entering by car or train, one has to go over one of many bridges.
1. Airport:
The airport of Montreal is
Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport.
The airport code is: YUL.
2. Transportation
From the airport to the conference hotel (Delta Montreal, 475, Avenue Président Kennedy, Montréal, Québec H3A 1J7), using a taxi is $40 flat charge + tip.
There is also a bus (Route 747), to downtown. From the bus stop can walk to the hotel, but need to pass several blocks. The fare is $9 CAD. Information on the Route 747 is available at:
http://www.stm.info/english/info/a-747.htm
Useful Tips:
• Public Transportation (Société de transport de Montréal) http://www.stm.info/English/asomm.htm
Montreal has four subway (metro) lines. The green line goes east/west in the south, the orange line goes in a big U, the blue line goese east/west a bit further in the north, and the yellow line connects Montreal with the southern shore of the St. Lawrence River. There are also many bus lines, typically following the main streets (such as Sherbrooke, Park, St. Denis, St. Laurent, etc.). A single ticket is 2.75 CAD (the bus accepts cash but does not return change), and there are sets of 6 tickets, and 1-day and 3-day tourist tickets. They can be bought at the metro stations or corner stores (depanneurs).
• Bixi Bike (http://www.bixi.com)
New to Montreal are bixies, bicycles that can be rented at locations throughout the town to bike short distances. There should be plenty locations around downtown. To rent a bike, one has to first get a 24-hour access for 5$. Then, one can rent a bike whereby the first 30 minutes are free, the second 30 minutes are 1.50$, the third 30 minutes are 3.00$. Payment is via credit card at the bike locations.
• French or English
Montreal is the second-largest primarily French-speaking city in the world, after Paris. But the city-centre is very bilingual. It is not rare to hear people switch in their conversations from English to French and back as some things are better said in English others in French. Nevertheless, wherever you go, it is very likely that people address you in French. As long as you stay in the tourist areas or you deal with stores and restaurants, responding in English is no problem and people will immediately switch to English. However, if you go to the French speaking areas of Montreal or you leave the Montreal island, you show courtesy and respect if you first ask whether English is spoken (in French: "Parlez-vous anglais?")
Useful Links
Montreal:
Jeremy & Vinita's Montreal Restaurant Guide
Quebec:
Canada: