What is the Montreal self-guided walking tour?
The Montreal self-guided walking tour is a walk from the downtown streets into the old town and out to the river, taken at your own pace, with audio narration on your phone where a guide would otherwise be. Allow about 3 hours: 59 minutes of that is walking, the route measures 4.7 km, and at 10 stops you stand still and listen. There is no departure time and no group to keep up with.
At Mary, Queen of the World the narration explains why Bishop Bourget had his cathedral built between 1875 and 1894 as a smaller version of St Peter's in Rome. On Square Victoria you hear how an original Guimard metro entrance came over from Paris, at Notre-Dame Basilica that its Protestant architect James O'Donnell converted and lies buried in the church he drew, at City Hall what Charles de Gaulle called out from the balcony in 1967, and in the sailors' chapel why ship models hang from its ceiling.
- Durationabout 3 hours
- Walkingabout 59 min · 4.7 km
- Stops10
- LanguagesEnglish, German, French, Spanish, Chinese
What you do on the walking tour
Listen
At every stop the audio gives you the history of the place, the stories attached to it and the details you would otherwise walk past. The same text sits on screen if you would rather read.
Stroll
The route runs downhill from downtown to the quays: 59 minutes on foot in all, 4.7 km in total, with Google Maps pointing the way.
Break off
Stop for coffee in the old town or an hour in a museum, then pick the walk up again, the same day or another one.
Eat and browse
Tips for food and shops near the route come with the walk. The opening stop and the order of the stops are yours to change in the app.
See the route and attractions →
How it works
- Book online Choose the number of people. Your booking reference arrives by email straight away.
- Get the app Download the World City Trail app from the App Store or Google Play and enter your booking reference.
- Walk when you like Start whenever you are ready, walk at your own pace and pause any time. No guide, no fixed schedule.
Who the walking tour is for
A first visit
One walk ties downtown, Old Montreal and the Old Port together and explains what you are standing in front of.
Walkers who dislike groups
No umbrella to follow and no meeting point: you stay where something holds you and move on when you feel like it.
A day in the city
3 hours covers the historic core, which leaves the afternoon for Mount Royal, a museum or the market halls.
Good to know
- Bring a charged smartphone with mobile data; a power bank helps.
- No entry tickets needed: everything happens outside the buildings. Going inside is optional and paid separately.
- Family friendly; children must be accompanied by an adult.
- Not suitable for wheelchair users and difficult with strollers.
- Groups of up to 5 work best; larger groups split up, one ticket per person.
- Every purchase helps support stray cats and dogs in Greece.
The walk stop by stop: the cathedral, Pointe-à-Callière, Notre-Dame Basilica, the Old Port
10 stops · about 59 min walking · start: Mary, Queen of the World Cathedral · finish: Clock Tower
Stop one is the downtown cathedral, Mary, Queen of the World, with Place du Canada directly opposite. The route then goes south by way of Square Victoria, where the Art Nouveau metro entrance from Paris stands, and reaches two museums near the water: MEM, which collects the city's own memories, and Pointe-à-Callière, above the ground where Ville-Marie began in 1642. Place d'Armes brings Notre-Dame Basilica, after which the old streets lead past Montreal City Hall to the Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours Chapel. The Old Port finishes the walk with La Grande Roue and the Clock Tower on its quay. Another opening stop or another order takes one tap in the app, and no stop asks for an entry ticket.
Open the route map ↗
1Mary, Queen of the World CathedralStart
Montreal's Catholic cathedral was built between 1875 and 1894 as a smaller-scale copy of St Peter's Basilica in Rome. Bishop Ignace Bourget wanted it as a sign of loyalty to the Pope, and a row of statues of saints stands along the top of its façade.
2Place du Canada
Place du Canada is a green square opposite the cathedral that once formed the southern half of Dominion Square, together with today's Dorchester Square. On its edge rises the Château Champlain hotel, a 1960s tower known for its rows of half-moon windows.
3Square Victoria
Square Victoria, named after Queen Victoria, marks the gateway between downtown and the business district of the Quartier international. A bronze statue of the queen stands here, and one entrance to the metro is an original Art Nouveau design by Hector Guimard, a gift from Paris in the 1960s.
4MEM – Centre des mémoires montréalaises
MEM is Montreal's city history museum, devoted to the stories and memories of the people who have lived here. It continues the work of the former Centre d'histoire de Montréal and tells the city's past through the voices of Montrealers themselves.
5Pointe-à-Callière
Pointe-à-Callière, Montreal's Museum of Archaeology and History, stands on the spot where Ville-Marie, the settlement that became Montreal, was founded in 1642. It opened in 1992 for the city's 350th anniversary, and its modern building with a slim lookout tower faces Place Royale.
6Notre-Dame Basilica
Notre-Dame Basilica was built between 1824 and 1829 to plans by the Irish-American architect James O'Donnell, and its twin Gothic Revival towers face Place d'Armes. O'Donnell, a Protestant, converted to Catholicism before he died and is buried in the church he designed.
7Montreal City Hall
Montreal City Hall was built between 1872 and 1878 in the Second Empire style and rebuilt after a fire gutted it in 1922. In 1967 the French president Charles de Gaulle called out his famous words 'Vive le Québec libre' from its balcony.
8Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours Chapel
Marguerite Bourgeoys, Montreal's first teacher, had the first chapel built on this site in the 17th century, and the present stone chapel dates from 1771. Known as the sailors' church, it has ship models hanging inside, and a statue of the Virgin on the roof stretches out her arms towards the river.
9La Grande Roue de Montréal
La Grande Roue de Montréal is a Ferris wheel about 60 metres high in the Old Port, opened in 2017 for the city's 375th anniversary. Its closed gondolas give views over the St Lawrence River, Old Montreal and Mount Royal.
10Clock TowerFinish
The Clock Tower at the end of the Quai de l'Horloge was completed in 1922 as a memorial to the merchant sailors who died in the First World War. About 45 metres high, it looks out over the St Lawrence River towards the Jacques Cartier Bridge.
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