Montreal Overview
Montréal, Canada's second largest city is geographically as close to Europe as to Western Canada, and in look and feel it combines some of the finest aspects of the two continents. A welcoming, cosmopolitan city with legendary dining, interesting museums, varied performing arts and fashionable shops, its North American skyline of ultramodern glass and concrete rises above 19th century mansions, Victorian brownstones, stone churches and monuments in a medley of European styles. Passion and pride run as deep as the waters around this stylish, bilingual island city. The second largest French-speaking city outside of France, with two-thirds of the city's two million people of French extraction, the remaining third are a cosmopolitan mixture of English Montrealers and immigrant communities from around the world, all of whom contribute to the rich cultural heritage and lively atmosphere in the city.
The result is a truly multi-dimensional city, a population ferociously proud of its language and culture, with a global variety of excellent eateries, bars and clubs, matched by a calendar of large-scale festivals which have won the city international acclaim and make Montreal the most vibrant place in Canada.