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| *Travel Tips>>>Montreal Travel Tips |
I need some advices ....? |
Travel Info I want to visit Montreal. This is my long-time dream (since I was a kid). So, I want to make it special and avoid mistakes. That's why I need your help. 1. What is the best time to visit Montreal? 2. I can not speak French. Is it a problem? (I am international student from Europe in USA) 3. How expensive Montreal is? 4. Do I need a rental car? How good public transportation is? 5. I heard about special place where I can try hamburger/sandwich with very delicious meet? As I understand it is a famous place among locals (I hope it is famous enough). Do you know it? Thanks !!!!!!!!!! Travel Tips (1). It depends. Montr茅al is full of festivals, several of the most famous (jazz festival, comedy festival and others) occur during the summer but it can get hot (up to 36-38C with humidity). The nicest weather is September and early October (the latter is also our beautiful autumn foliage time). (2). Almost every Montr茅aler speaks English, too (and often a third language; Montr茅al is full of immigrants). But be aware that our crazy language law requires that service people must speak to people first in French (although the latest statistic reported by the language police is that about 30% were caught violating this - they actually do stings!). What is appreaciated by fundamentalist francophones and considered the polite thing for English-speaking tourists and other visitors to do is to say at the outset, in French, "I am sorry but my French is poor." ("pardonnez-moi mais ma fran莽ais est tr茅s mauvais."). Do this and you will have no problem, even from any separatist radicals you chance to meet. (3). I do not know where you are going to school. But for the most part for tourist visiting Montr茅al is about 10 - 15% cheaper than major American international and metropolitan visitor destination cities like Boston, New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, etc., etc. The VAT here (called the G.S.T./Q.S.T.) is 14%. (4). For a North American major city Montr茅al has a very good public transit system, with a good m茅tro and many bus lines that run all night. But is does not as good as that in London or Paris. But if you wish to visit the lovely countryside and wildernesses to the north (the Laurentian Plateau) or to the southeast (the Eastern Townships and Appalachian Mountains, or perhaps to see the lovely American northern Vermont (the best part of the USA, especially politically) you will need to rent a car. (FYI; at the present time, like in the USA the company Enterprise rent-a-car has at suburban locations here its $ 9/day on weekends special). (5). Unfortunately you have heard incorrectly - there are no special hamburgers here. What there is that is so famous in Montr茅al smoked meat (viande fum茅e) which is pastrami that is better tasting and leaner and cheaper than New York's (in fact someone out here put a Question about a month ago asking about this and, as I recall, every Answerer who was familiar with both New York and Montr茅al pastrami responded that he/she thought Montr茅al's was better). Most Montrealers will say the Swartz' smoked meat sandwich is the best, with Dunn's and Lester's very close runner-ups. I also think that from New System (the actual name of what is otherwise a very ordinary restaurant) rates as good. But the city is full of other places serving fine, if not quite as spectacular, smoked meat sandwiches. And for making my own I go to charcuterie (deli shop) Felix, one of many take-away delis that cure their own smoked meat. (Felix will also sell you a roll and make a take-away sandwich if one asks). The only problem with smoked meat restaurants is that at many the only mustard available is the sweet yellow kind; at a few there is (you must ask!) dijon and Coleman's hot, but none have spicy brown which is generally not sold here (we bring our own which we usually buy in the States, although some take-away delis with home-cured meats and sausages will have spicy brown mustards imported from eastern Europe). Others the best time to visit Montreal is spring or autumn the language no problem we also speak English the same as us cheaper than Europe... the public transportation is great i don't have many problems except for a few occasions sorry don't know the place you are talking about i would eat smoke meat and Canadian steaks and Canadian donuts and the all Canadian hot dog hope you have a nice trip and a good stay in Montreal 1. Summer is the best time to visit Montreal. This is when the city is the cleanest and nicest looking, with the most things to do. There are also tons of festivals happening all the time - the most popular one (and the one with the most FREE shows is the International Jazz Festival, which is happening June 28 to July 8 this year). You can also partake in famous Montreal "terrace" culture. All Montrealers spend the majority of their summers sitting on outdoor terraces at bars and restaurants throughout the city. 2. Not a problem. All of the "tourist" areas of the city are very much accustomed to receiving English tourists. 3. Not as expensive as some cities in the United States, but it may still be expensive on a student budget. You should be able to find a hostel for as little as $20-30 a night, or a budget hotel for as little as $60-70 per night. A decent restaurant meal will cost between $10 and $20, and of course you can eat fast food for cheaper. Public transportation (bus and metro) costs $2.75 per trip, though you can buy multi-day tourist passes. Admission to museums and other attractions is usually around $10 per person or less, with student discounts. 4. Public transportation is great. The metro system will take you to all of the major attractions. No need to rent a car unless you plan on travelling to a remote area more than an hour from the city (like Mont Tremblant). Visit www.stm.info for maps and schedules of bus/metro. 5. The place you heard about is called Schwartz's, where you can get amazing smoked-meat sandwiches. It's located on Saint-Laurent boulevard at the corner of Napoleon (south of Duluth) as is extremely famous and popular among both tourists and locals. There is actually a documentary in theatres right now called Chez Schwartz, if you're interested in learning more about it. Other than that, Montreal has many. many great restaurants, so you should explore! Have a great trip! |
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