The Essential 101 Non-Touristy Walking Tour by Spade & Palacio
Description
We start our Montréal walking tour by skipping the line at the Notre-Dame Basilica before wandering Vieux-Montréal. We’ll pop into some historic and architecturally gems to get an understanding of the district before heading out and leaving the tourist crowds behind. We stroll through a segment of our interior or underground city. It’s the largest indoor network on the planet and lets us make our way to Chinatown for a quick snack as we get the skinny on the area. Then it’s off to our old Red Light District, turned entertainment Mecca to see where the biggest festivals take place. We pop into a whacky often missed institution for a visit. Up Saint-Laurent boulevard, we check out half a dozen impressive works of art from Montréal’s MURAL Festival in the borough that is home to the highest concentration of artists in Canada. With a coffee from a local third wave shop in hand we walk the hip parts of the lower Main before leaving you with a custom list of recommendations!!
Tour Options
Itinerary
We meet here to start the tour and learn about the eclectic architecture that surrounds the square before we enter the Basilica!
We learn about the beauty and history of the country's most ornate church and leave our guests some free time to take it all in on their own.
We walk the elegant streets, visit the old Wall Street of Canada and point out cool cultural events in the area as well get an idea of the history of the foundation of our city
From the World Trade Center to Chinatown we walk a stretch of the world's largest interior network.
We pop in for a snack to go at a local bakery and walk the pedestrian mall of our Chinatown!
We visit a bunch of street art from a massive festival. We visit a crazy thrift store and art gallery. We learn about this historic boulevard and its many waves of immigration. We walk through the old Red Light now entertainment district.
We visit this crazy thrift store for free time. 3 floors, a wild interior and a chance to check it out before returning on your own for free time!
We visit the borough home to a high concentration of artists. We see about a dozen murals and works of art. We point you in the right direction of cool shops and stuff to see when you are on your own and sit down at a coffee shop for a locally roasted coffee and hand you a list of recommendations.
Intro to the tour, your guide before skipping the line at the basilica!
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Specialized infant seats are available
- Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness
- Please advise any specific dietary requirements at time of booking
- A moderate amount of walking is involved, please be ready for that and to be wearing comfortable shoes.
- Operates in all weather conditions, please dress appropriately
- Minimum age is 5 years
Reviews(760)
I was intrigued by the idea of a "non-touristy" walking tour. That this focused on a number of districts away from the old port city of Montreal qualified it as such. We started in the Place d'Armes, where all walking tours seem to start, and met our guide Christopher Erb, a charming, energetic, informative, entertaining and engaging young man, who regaled us with his wide and deep knowledge of Montreal. We had included tickets to enter the Notre Dame Basilica, bypassing queues, and were blown away by how ornate the interior was in contrast to the simple exterior. This was explained by the severe winters, where elaborate carvings would eventually be frozen off, so all the efforts were concentrated within. We heard about the historical original banks of Montreal, the old St James Hotel, we saw the bit of the underground containing a graffiti'd piece of the Berlin Wall, the rainbow hued congress centre, followed by a small and compact Chinatown where we had large pork and cabbage Bao as a substantial snack. Heading up the Plateau, we entered the whimsical Eva B all-sorts shop with Michael Jackson dangling his baby from the upstairs window. We passed the old red light district to Le Central, a food court with stalls representing many restaurants in Montreal. Outside was where the current jazz festival was happening at night. We walked Le Main street, which traditionally divided the Francophones in the east from the Anglophones in the west, but now more nuanced. We ended in the street art district, having an included cold brew coffee at the Nocturne cafe. Chris gave us his Spade and Palacio's cheat sheet to various spots in the city. All in all, it was a fantastic introduction to many neighbourhoods in Montreal, giving me a chance to get oriented to the city. Many thanks to Chris for making it a most enjoyable and entertaining journey. I would highly recommend this tour as an unmissable complement to any walking tour that focuses on the old port city of Montreal.
This walking tour is great. Its just the right duration and number of cool things to see (not the typical tourist traps). Gabriella was terrific... she is a native and you can really tell she loves her city. Highly recommend.
Mel was a great guide. The tour was informative and we learned and saw many interesting things. We especially enjoyed seeing the murals.
Excellent tour. Great introduction to city for those with limited time. Gabrielle knew her stuff and handled the torrential rain situation well. We enjoyed the tour and highly recommend.
Great tour with lots of insight into Montreal’s past that informs and shapes its present. A positive and hopeful perspective told with humor and hope for the future. David deserves a 6 pack of Molsons!
Ha! Love that. Yes such a great tour as a way to see a lot, diverse areas and subjects and all under three hours. Glad you enjoyed! Check out our new Women in Wine tour next time!
Gabriella was great. She is funny, engaging and above all else, she is very knowledgeable. Her pace is reasonable. She was able to answer every question presented to her. I took 4 Montréal tours, I wish she had lead every tour.
She’s great! Glad you enjoyed the outing with Spade & Palacio. We’re lucky to collaborate with the best 11 guides in the city hands down. You sharing this means a lot being the small company we are.
Wow! In and out of interesting buildings, local history you can’t find on Google and a Hollywood style - back lot, behind the scenes tour. We were captivated by Fred’s genuine enthusiasm for her French roots and how they pair with the modern day blended French/ English community. Her knowledge of the past and present was woven with personal anecdotes and humor. The tour includes admission to the basilica, a warm bao bun in Chinatown and coffee/ tea in the international food area near little Portugal. We were inspired to explore the neighborhood beyond the tourist areas and were charmed by the nooks and crannies of this great city. Book now!
So great to read. This tour starts with classics and historic, moves to more current and cultural MTL. From pretty to gritty. A great walk and a stellar recommendations list to conclude! Merci merci merci
The weather absolutely did no cooperate with this tour but Amelie made the most of it. She made us all feel comfortable and welcome. This tour was interesting and moved at a nice pace. I very much enjoyed the stop for bao and also the stop for tea. That is a nice touch and a great way to give an even bigger sample of what the city offers. Thank you for a great morning. It was so good that I even forgot how bad the rain was!
I took this tour with Amelie and throughly enjoyed it. I liked that visited multiple neighborhoods. Amelie’s love of Montreal was obvious. I enjoyed that she shared a lot of history and that she could go off-script when people asked questions. I booked a second tour with this company based on this tour, that’s probably the best recommendation.
Great tour! Dave was great! Gave us some of the history of the city and current happenings. Would highly recommend Dave, especially for English speakers!
