Montréal with Kids

By:  Jennifer Milano, traveled in February 2010

When our kids were three and six, I planned a surprise family birthday trip for my husband.  He loves to ski and his birthday is in February, so I planned for four days in Stowe.  Wanting to amp up the excitement a little bit, I added on a couple of days in Montréal.  I was a little bit concerned about the seven-hour drive home from Montréal at the end of the trip, with a preschooler and kindergartener in the backseat, but decided the prospect of leaving the country, even if it was "just Canada", was worth the risk. 

I made a few mistakes.  The first one was confiding in my three- and six-year-olds.  "Daddy knows we are traveling for his birthday, but don't tell him where we are going," I revealed to them excitedly, "we will surprise him!"  The kids loved being in on a big secret.  But a few days before the trip while we were all at the dinner table, my three-year-old said something about Daddy's surprise birthday trip.  I reminded him not to say anymore, to which he replied, "what? I didn't tell Daddy we're going to Vermont and Canada".  Strike one against Mom.

When choosing destinations for the trip, I thought I was selecting places where my husband had never been.  After all, he is married to me, and I am obsessed with travel, so we spend quite a bit of time discussing our prior trips.  When we were on the road heading north, he tried to guess where we were getting off of the highway.  "It's someplace we've never been!" I announced.  When it became clear that we were going to Stowe, he reminisced about his first trip to Stowe with his college buddies years ago.  Strike two.

Despite these bumps in the road, I managed to do some things right.  I had packed a bunch of surprises for the kids to keep them busy in the car:  sheets of tin foil (they create shapes or animals out of them in their car seats), Valentine's Day gift bags that contained heart-shaped lollipops that kept them occupied for a good half-hour, and sticker books.  (For more tips on traveling with kids, click here.)  I warned my husband that the condo we were renting was not luxurious - we were on a moderate budget - but it turned out to be surprisingly perfect for our family.  Our trip happened to coincide with the Winter Olympics, which meant that every night after we had skied, swam in the indoor pool, eaten a pasta dinner in our cozy kitchen, and showered, we cuddled up together in the living room in our pajamas and watched snowboarding, skiing and ice-skating.  Our three-year-old enjoyed his first time on the slopes, and we all fell in love with in Stowe (click here for more about skiing in Stowe). 

Even though my husband had been to Stowe before, it WAS his first time in Montréal.  Our reasonably-priced hotel featured a huge suite for our family, an indoor pool and a wonderful staff with whom my kids loved practicing their first French phrases ("Bonjour!" and "Merci!").  We happened to be in the city during its winter festival.  An amazing ice slide was built in the old town, surrounded by ice sculptures, a Ferris wheel, and warming huts with hot chocolate.  Our ride down the ice slide on plastic sleds was thrilling, and it was our first time on a Ferris wheel in the snow.  We admired how the Canadians embraced winter instead of hibernating like we New Englanders tend to do! 

Even if there is no winter festival going on, Montréal is a great city to visit with kids.  My kids loved the Biodome, where we walked through replicas of the four ecosystems found in the Americas.  They could have (enviously) watched the otters playing on their water slide for an entire afternoon.  Another favorite was the Montréal Science Centre, for which our one-hour visit was not nearly long enough.  We all loved ice skating at the outdoor Old Port of Montréal Ice Skating Rink, just adjacent to the St. Lawrence River.  But just like in almost every city, our top-rated family activity is wandering around the old section of town with no particular agenda, except to stop in every café that features irresistible desserts in the window.

And how was the 7-hour car ride home, you may be wondering?  Long.  Even saving a few car activities for the return trip wasn't enough to keep everyone happy.  But a little fussiness was a worthy sacrifice for a wonderful weekend in Montréal.

When to Go:  In my opinion, you can enjoy Montréal any time of year.  We had an especially great time in February, because of the festival with the ice slide and the ice-skating rink. 

How to Get Here:  Driving into Montréal was not overly stressful.  Once we found our hotel, we left the car in the garage for the weekend and walked everywhere.  I have also flown to Montréal and taken a taxi into the city center, which is easy enough.

Where to Stay:  We loved the Le Square Phillips Hotel for its spacious suites that easily accommodate a family of four, complete with a kitchenette.  The indoor pool was great for the kids, and the staff was friendly and accommodating.  At $150 a night, the hotel was a bargain.  The only downside was that it took about 20 minutes to walk to the old town.  I would stay at this hotel again, although I also may search TripAdvisor for a good option in the heart of the old town.

Where to Eat:  Remember how I'm Type A and take meticulous notes on the successes and failures of my trips?  I did not record where we ate in Montréal!  I can only assume I was overly occupied with keeping my young children entertained.  Instead of personal recommendations, I can offer only these links on where to eat in Montréal:  https://www.zagat.com/b/toronto/8-hottest-restaurants-in-montreal         http://montreal.eater.com/maps/best-montreal-restaurants-38  http://www.seriouseats.com/2008/09/montreal-guide-eating-best-food-48-hours-canada.html

What to Do:  Our favorite attractions were the Biodome and the Montréal Science Centre.  For activities, we loved ice skating outdoors at the Old Port of Montréal Ice Skating Rink, and riding the ice slide at the winter festival.  We didn't get a chance to try it, but sledding, cross-country skiing and snowshoeing are all possible at the city's Parc du Mont-Royal.