Laval has been long overdue for some festival love and we recently got to enjoy our first Rib Fest…read more It was great! Location was very important and it happened across the street from Montmorency Metro station, this location is easily accessibly by metro and train. Many buses come here as well. The only outstanding issue is for people like me who came by car. Simply put, parking is practically non-existent unless you walked 10 minutes. In a way, that's a good thing. You'll need to waddle a few minutes after you leave this festival filled to the rafter with yummy grub. Rib Fest held many guests of honor that are local or from very far away. I visited this festival 3 times and it was GREAT! The food is amazing, music is solid and it is quite kid friendly as well. My only qualms were the parking as well as not enough seating during their busy time. Looking forward to their next one, hopefully in Laval!

Great Jazz festival that happens every year late June to early July…read more Artists from all over the world come to several stages to perform for free or for a fee in some cases. This year, we saw many great artists along with thousands of other music lovers from all over. Metro Place des Arts or St Laurent for easy access.

Let it be known that you're going to Montreal in the summertime and the next thing you'll hear is…read more"Are you going for the jazz festival?" I was not. Regardless, when I realized my trip coincided with the festival I researched artists, venues, and dates only to come to the realization that a whole lot of Montreal's jazz festival takes place for free at multiple venues in a fairly concentrated area of the city. Assuming you can find the schedule (at staffed kiosks in the area) and locations and understand the program (no joke, it was a challenge), you can learn when and where everyone is playing and identify the free performances. Multiple nights on end I found myself at large outdoor spaces filled with folks there to enjoy the free offerings. Was it jazz? Let's just say that jazz is in the ear of the beholder because not once did I experience music that I consider to be jazz though that seems somewhat beside the point. Free live music is almost always enjoyable and this is no exception. The outdoor spaces are clean, the sound is good, and the large crowd is considerate even as they come and go. Were I returning to Montreal during another summer I'd most certainly plan my visit to coincide with the jazz festival and again attend several events.

I was realy impressed with the beers. My friend showed me a few breweries and the beers blew my…read moremind. I've never tasted in a row so many beers that were clearly above the rest. Usually you can kind of guess what you will have, and the experience is not that much different than going to a corner store and trying another commercial brand. Not this time! Also even though it was raining, i was suprised that there was so many people friday night. There were also a few interesting attractions like the one where you try to hammer as hard as you can on a pad. I didn't hammer hard enough to ring the bell, guess i'm too weak :(... Finaly the blacksmiths on the site where not just for show and they were working hard to create beautiful works of art. I enjoyed listening to one of the blacksmith explaining the process of forging. Very, very cool I cant wait to go there next summer :D

I hadn't been to this gathering in previous years primarily for the fact that it is hosted in Laval…read morewhich can feel like an impossible trek when you don't drive. However, a partnership with the STL and a few shuttle busses made it far more accessible. The festival is hosted on the Laval Nature Center site which I didn't even know existed. Holy cow is it beautiful! I would spend my weekends there on a regular basis if I lived in the area. It's huge, rolling mountains, man made lake with boating and tons of activities throughout the site. The Fest itself was on the southern end of the Nature Center which allowed for one big open space with accessible parking areas. There were dozens of brew houses and local companies ranging from Popcorn to Pretzels and back to Jerky and pickled goodies. The event's entry cost was only $10 at the door (even cheaper presale) and I loved that 17 and under get in free of charge to play the inflatable games and other activities.Their set up made it possible to have this Beer Festival be a family event which is a challenge all on its own! The collection of exhibitors were very well balanced with smokehouses and blacksmiths on site. What would I change? Honestly, nothing. Particularly for the fact that this was only their 3rd year, I would say the organizers have managed wonders! Hats off to the team, can't wait to return next year.

It's that time of the year, when the cold starts to really bother us and geetting everyone…read moredepressed - but then BAM! Time for Igloofest! One of the best things about this festival is its timing, although it is really cold in January/February it's actually a great thing that it happens when it does because it really helps breaking the winter and it always givees me something to get excited about! Igloofest always gathers a bunch of amazing DJ's and artists and their line up is always a great mix of well known DJ's and local ones. It's a great festival to learn about new musicians - this time I learned about Rezz and I reallly loved her music! The whole ambiance is fun, colorful and with a lot of extra activities on the side which I love! Little branded huts to get you warm for a bit, free marshmellows you can roast on the fire pits, and free little branded gifts are part of the experience! I totally recommend you go and check it out :)

Igloofest is one of my favorite music festivals I've been to. Artists are always incredible, and…read morethe vibes are great! Love seeing everyone come together in their ski/cold weather clothing and dancing to the music. Would recommend!

Small, good for families but my husband and I were able to walk through it quickly and there wasn't…read moreanything for us to do or see. We ended up a a restaurant having some nice margaritas just people watching but we could have done that anywhere.

The showcasing of Montreal musicians and new artists!…read more I used to attend many Art workshops & miss them!. It is a Montreal treasure!

The experience here presented by Renoir of Chef extraordinaire Lionel Rodríguez is an absolute…read moreawe... the service by Derrick is exquisite with great insight to the menu. Ambience of the restaurant is casual and yet relaxing with the finer touches of the 5-6 Star it deserves. Highly recommend for a nice place to dine, talk and not to forget the delicious cuisine.

I always forget to review this festival but it's my favourite winter event! It's so fun and lively,…read moreit'll make you forget it's cold outside. I try to visit every year because they always have new additions and activities. This year there were a few changes: -reservations ahead of time for the big 3 activities (ferris wheel, zip line, and slide). I think this change made sense theoretically but in practice it was very messy. They didn't advertise well enough that the tickets existed, so tons of people just showed up and were very confused. Also at first the tickets were available at 5pm BEFORE the day you planned on visiting and then it was changed to 1 hour before the festival opened for THAT day and that day only. Tickets were for 20 minute to 15 minute time slots. The scanning process was slow since so many people didn't know to reserve in advance, and sometimes the employees would just not care and let anyone in so the tickets served no purpose. -Less food trucks but more food booths (from sponsors like the milk company and maple syrup company). -The bell lounge didn't have phone cleaning or VR activities anymore, It was more for drinks and live music performances. - New Tim Hortons game where you threw pucks at a giant screen. -Cheese festival inside the mall! (very packed though so didn't visit) I really love this festival but it's too short! Make it available for 3 weeks and still end on the Nuit Blanche!

Even though I'm a picky poutine eater I went apprehensively to the Poutine Fest in Laval....I gotta…read moresupport Laval festivals! Truth be told, we were missing a lot of the big hitters who don't own food trucks. The first time I went with the Smoking BBQ Combo with Italian sausage and bacon and it was amazingly good!!! So yey! The sauce on this was BBQ and sweet and it went perfect with it. The next time I visited I went with a classic poutine with chicken at a food truck called Fat Lees and it was simply terrible! Among the worst I've ever eaten. I hope next year they have better trucks, selection is important.

I got to experience the Ribfest several times this year and at its best thanks to Yelp. It is an…read moreawesome summer event with an outstanding location, you can't get a better spot than the Old Port for it. Ribfest caters to everybody, parents and kids can be happy with the food, and entertainment. Besides many, many delicious ribs, the participants offer variety of grilled meats, there are also poutine, churros and food trucks that bring diversity. I personally think the bar should offer a little bit more beer options, yet beer is just a supplement to your delicious ribs, and Oh! delicious they are. There are a lot of tables where you can sit and consume your ribs and fortunately many stations with paper towel rolls as eating ribs is a messy business. The event is very busy, even on the launch date it was pretty crowded. The line ups in front of the ribs stands on my second Sunday visit were pretty long, yet not unbearable. Conclusion: great way to end up the week with a great food in the company of friends or family!

Long overdue for a review, no idea how I missed this…read more Rib Fest is one of the BEST events found in Montreal, that is, if you're willing to deal with the crowd it generates. IT SURE GETS BUSY!!! Solution is to show up super early so you can get this amazing food with as little wait as possible. This year it was hosted in the Old Port, so the line-ups looked PAINFUL. Other than that, this event is awesome. I love trying out BBQ from new places but I always go back to BILLY BONES BBQ, their ribs are TOP OF THE LINE and add that with some of their cornbread and that meal MADE MY WEEK.

There is so much going on at the Quartier des Spectacles especially on a weekend or even on…read moreweeknights. You will find a lot of tourist in the area. We arrived on a Tuesday night to Montreal and because we were staying 13 mins walk from Quartier des Spectacles, we came here for a visit. We didn't expect that there would be performance happening at night in the center of Quartier des Spectacles (near Desjardin Complex). At the Quartier des Spectacles, you will find a lot of restaurants and as mentioned before the entrance to the beginning of the Underground Tunnel is located at Desjardin Complex. This part of the city is quite busy after 10 am to 11 pm. Places des Art is also located smack center at the Quartier des Spectacles for those who wants to watch any live orchestral performances. https://www.quartierdesspectacles.com/fr/carte/#places-publiques-animees

Every time I spend time in Montreal, I go to the Quartier des Spectacles because most Ville Marie…read morefestivals take place in this area. In the summer, it's pedestrian only on the area right around St Catherine, so it's easy to get around on foot and see all the stages and sights. The present-day Quartier des spectacles largely overlaps the site of Montreal's former Red Light district, whose history extends back to the beginning of the 19th century. Between the 1920s and the start of the 1960s, the neighborhood was home to an impressive number of cabarets that headlined famous artists. Montreal garnered a reputation as a fun-loving city, and tourists started to arrive in great numbers. The American Prohibition (1920-1933) increased Montreal's popularity, but also created conditions that led to the growth of organized crime, prostitution and illegal gaming houses. It is during this time that the neighborhood was christened the Red Light district. Beginning in the 1950s, professional theatre started to take hold.... in this neighborhood, the new energy took shape in the construction of Place des Arts, the metro system (three stations service the Quartier) and in the establishment of Hydro-Québec's headquarters. The following decade was marked by the building of Complexe Desjardins, which spurred commercial activity in the area, and the campus of the Université du Québec à Montréal, a university founded on the values of the democratization of knowledge and culture. In 1982, the Montreal International Jazz Festival presented outdoor concerts in the neighborhood for the first time. The natural vibrancy of the downtown area along with the many empty lots supported the proliferation and expansion of festivals over the years. Important cultural events became one of the Quartier's motors and one of the principal attractions of the city for tourists and locals alike.