Parks

Our city is densely populated, but is very green in the summer. Montreal has many parks: some are small and some are big.

Mount Royal Park

Mount Royal Park is a huge park in the heart of the city. Thousands of Montrealers visit the park every day, all year round. In the summer, people have picnic, barbecues and go hiking on the many kilometres of trails.

In the fall, people go to see the colourful leaves of the trees. In winter, people ski on the trails or skate on the frozen lake. All year round, they visit the Belvedere - a place to get an amazing view of downtown Montreal.

  • Metro Guy-Goncordia, bus 165 to the stairs
  • Metro Mont-Royal (orange) bus 97 or 11

Jean Drapeau Park

Jean Drapeau Park is the islands in the Saint Lawrence River between Montreal and the South shore. Saint Helen's Island has La Ronde amusement park and the Biosphere museum and the Stewart Museum.

Jean Drapeau Park

It is the site of the Snow Festival in winter and many activities and concerts in summer. Notre-Dame Island has the Montreal Casino and the Gilles Villeneuve racetrack where the F1 race happens.

  • Metro Jean Drapeau (yellow)

La Fontaine Park

La Fontaine Park has a beautiful fountain, a nice lake and many statues. In the summer there are free shows at the Théâtre de Verdure, which is an outdoor stadium for shows in the park. There are concerts and special events all year long.

La Fontaine Park

In the winter you can rent ice skates. This is very popular park to the south of the Plateau neighbourhood, between Sherbrooke East and Rachel and between Amherst and Papineau.

  • Metro Sherbooke (orange)

Des Rapides Park

Des Rapides Park is a great place to see the Lachine rapids - a huge section of white water in the Saint Lawrence river.

Lachine Rapids with Nun's Island and the Champlain Bridge in the background

The rapids were so strong that ships from the explorers could not go further up the river. In fact, the rapids are the reason Montreal was built, and why the Lachine Canal was built. There are many birds here - it is a great place to take photos or have a picnic.

  • Metro de l'Eglise, bus 58

Image of Mount Royal Park courtesy Montréalais, Wikimedia Commons
Image of Biosphère at Jean Drapeau Park courtesy Cédric Thévenet, Wikimedia Commons
Image of Lafontaine Park courtesy Jeangagnon, Wikimedia Commons
Image of the Lachine Rapids courtesy TCY, Wikimedia Commons