Montreal: Travel Tips That Actually Matter
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 is an easy city for first-time visitors, genuinely safe, mostly walkable, and forgiving of imperfect French, but a few practical details actually change how your trip goes.
Money and tax
Currency is CAD. Cards work nearly everywhere. The Quebec sales tax, 14.975% (5% GST plus 9.975% QST), gets added at the register rather than shown in the sticker price, so factor it into anything you’re budgeting. Tipping has settled around 18-20% pre-tax at restaurants and bars, higher than it used to be, don’t rely on older 15% guidance.
Entry requirements
US citizens need a passport but no visa and no eTA. Other visa-exempt visitors (UK, EU, Australia, and similar) need an eTA, an electronic travel authorization, CAD $7, valid for air travel only. ArriveCAN / Advance Declaration is optional, not required, despite some older advice suggesting otherwise.
Language
French is Quebec’s official language under Bill 96, which governs business and workplace use, not visitor service. The tourist core, Old Montreal, downtown, the Plateau, is fluently bilingual, and the local greeting is “Bonjour-Hi.” A little French goes over well, but English works fine everywhere you’re likely to go as a visitor.
Getting around without a car
The STM metro ($3.75 a ride) and buses cover the city, and Old Montreal, downtown, and the Plateau are all walkable. The RÉSO underground city, roughly 33 kilometers of tunnels, is a genuine winter lifeline linking the metro, malls, and hotels. You don’t need a car in the city itself, save that for day trips.
From the airport
Montreal-Trudeau (YUL) is about 20 kilometers from downtown. The REM light-rail line does not reach the airport yet, that branch isn’t expected to open until around the end of 2027, so don’t plan around it. Take the STM Bus 747 ($11.25, runs 24 hours) or a flat-rate taxi (about $49.45 by day, $56.70 at night) instead.
Safety, honestly
Montreal is a genuinely safe major city with no elevated advisory. The one real caution is petty theft and pickpocketing in dense tourist zones, Old Montreal, the RÉSO, the Berri-UQAM metro station, and festival crowds, the same low-level risk as any busy old-town core. Keep bags zipped and in front of you and you’re fine.
Etiquette basics
A “Bonjour” or “Bonjour-Hi” when you walk into a shop or sit down at a restaurant goes a long way. Many neighborhood restaurants are BYOB, “apportez votre vin,” with no corkage fee, bring a bottle. Smoking is banned in restaurants, bars, and most public indoor spaces.
Read more: Montreal Day Trips for how to use a car or VIA Rail once the city itself is done.