Montreal: Best Hiking Areas Near The City
Heads up: some links here are affiliate links. Book or buy through them and we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. We only point you to things we would actually use.
Montreal itself isn’t a hiking destination, it’s an island city, but the mountain at its center and a handful of true day trips give you real trail time without renting a car for a week. Here’s where to actually go.
Mount Royal, inside the city
Mount Royal is the obvious starting point and, for most visitors, the only hiking you’ll need to add to a city itinerary. Frederick Law Olmsted, who also designed Central Park, laid out the park’s network of paths around the mountain the city is named for, and they’re free and open year-round. The Kondiaronk Belvedere lookout is the main destination, a genuine panoramic skyline view reached by a walk up through the trees rather than a drive. Give it an hour if you’re just doing the lookout, half a day if you want to loop the mountain properly and add the Chalet du Mont-Royal and the cemetery grounds.
Eastern Townships, for a true day trip
About one to two hours southeast, the Eastern Townships (Cantons-de-l’Est) pair wine-route driving with genuine hiking country around Magog, Lake Memphremagog, and the Bromont/Sutton hills, especially good in fall foliage season. This is a real day trip, not an overnight commitment, and it’s the closest thing to mountain hiking within easy reach of the city.
Laurentians and Mont-Tremblant, for longer trails
About 90 minutes north, the Laurentians around Mont-Tremblant work as either a long day trip or an overnight. It’s a ski village in winter, but the same terrain opens up to genuine summer hiking and lake access once the snow clears, more substantial trail time than you’ll find on the island itself.
Montérégie and Mont-Saint-Hilaire, the closest true day trip
Roughly 40-45 minutes from the city, Mont-Saint-Hilaire anchors Montérégie’s apple and cider country, best visited in early fall when the orchards are in season. It’s the shortest true day trip on this list and a good option if you only have a few free hours rather than a full day.
Keeping it a day trip
All three options beyond Mount Royal are built around VIA Rail or a rental car rather than city transit, so plan the return trip before you go, especially in the Laurentians where an overnight is genuinely tempting once you’re there. If day trips like these are the main reason you’re visiting, our Montreal, Canada guide is built around exactly that itinerary shape.
Read more: Montreal Nature Spots for what’s worth seeing without leaving the island at all.