As I mentioned in an earlier thread my friend and I are going to be in Montréal at the end of July for a few days to see the Police and then hang out and do Montréal-y type stuff.
I need recomendations for a hotel or B&B. We’re not planning on renting a car - we’ll walk, take taxis or the Metro instead so we would like a place kind of downtown within walking distance of some cool stuff.
I assume the concert is at the Big-O (which is no longer an O I think) and we’ll need to take a taxi there, so it more shopping/eating/museum-y type stuff we would like to be close to.
The place doesn’t have to be shwanky, as long as it’s clean and the chance of us being mugged on the way in is on the lower end of the probability scale.
I prefer smaller hotels/B&B’s as opposed to massive Hilton type chains. Victoria and I both have a passing ability at speaking french so if it’s a small family owned place with a French speaking crew that’s ok.
So - please suggest some hotels for me. 
Thanks!
The only hotel in Montréal I’ve ever heard of is the Queen Elizabeth Hotel (l’Hôtel la Reine Elisabeth), but that’s from a vague memory of when family members went there.
Paging matt_mcl! Paging matt_mcl!
http://www.tourismemontreal.ca/
I see it’s the Fairmont Queen Elizabeth now. Five-star hotel, owned by the same lot who own the Royal York in T.O.
I suspect the concert isn’t at the Olympic Stadium - usually the huge concerts are at the Forum, which is pretty much in the heart of downtown.
Other than that - I’m useless. What can I say, I’ve never stayed in a hotel in Montreal!
The tickets say Bell Centre - which one is that?
Check the B&B listing (http://www.bbcanada.com/quebec/montr�al/montreal). I’ve stayed at The Little Prince downtown which is on the Metro line. It’s rather expensive ($150+ per night) but exquisite. I also like a very cute place in Laval that’s much less and very cool but it’s not as easy to get to the Metro out there. If you want I can find out the name of it. I highly recommend it - Madam makes breakfast looking like a Parisien June Cleaver.
Ok, I found it - Gite & Appartements du Marigot (http://www.bbcanada.com/4849.html). It’s one of the largest rooms I’ve stayed and has a wonderful jacuzzi in the bathroom.
I love the little symbols at the bottom of the page: No Smoking; Man in a Boat; Two Men in a Boat, Dog is in the House, yo!; No Dogs; Little Girls Mandatory. 
But it’s always good to know how many people you can fit in the little boat!
Au Bon Matin is a B&B a few minute’s walk from the Bell Centre. (It used to be called the Molson Centre, just to confuse your search further.) Here’s hoping you enjoy your show and visit!
Sorry, the OLD hockey stadium was known as the Forum. The Bell Centre was what I meant - it’s just south of St. Catherine on, like, de Montagne or something. Very middle-of-downtown and accessible by walking and metro - Lucien-L’Allier and Bonaventure, I think.
Here’s the venue’s website.
Ok - I’ve sent an inquiry to this place:
It seems nice, walking distance to downtown in the Gay Village which I think is nice.
Has anyone heard of it/seen it, etc? Or does anyone know the area at all? The website says they’re close to a Metro station.
That’s actually a pretty cool location - really close to St. Denis, which is a great place to hang out, a little further from St. Laurent and a fair walk from the St. Catherine area of downtown, but an easy metro ride. I can’t say I know anything about the actual B&B, though.
That looks like a very cool place! I’m gonna bookmark it for my next trip since St Denis is my favorite shopping zone.
Are all of these rather expensive, or am I just out of touch with the price of hotel and B&B accommodation? (Okay, that last one doesn’t look too bad…)
When I go to Montréal it looks like I’ll be staying at the youth hostel as usual. (I have a lifetime membership.)
Humm - I thought $55 a night seemed very reasonable, actually. Do you really think I could find a nice place for less than that? I’m not sure if that’s what you’re suggesting, or just commenting on the price. I certainly can’t imagine finding a place cheaper than that in Toronto, and the local B&B’s that I’m aware of tend to charge about $80/night.
Wow - that place looks lovely, but maybe a bit more posh than we require. We’re not planning on spending a huge amount of time there.
I hope the Gingerbread House people get back to me…
The Big O is not normally used as a concert venue… but why isn’t it an “O” any more? It is no longer an “Owe…” as, in, the city has paid it off, but it’s shape hasn’t changed!
The Bell Centre is more downtown.
The Pepsi Forum is now a mall and (mostly) English language movie theatre.
http://www.bbcanada.com/associations/montreal/ Can help you find B&Bs in the area, but I’m afraid I don’t know any of them, other than the Auberge de Lafontaine, which isn’t especially close to downtown or even a metro (though it’s certainly walkable). It is, however, facing a lovely park (Lafontaine) and is close to the Mont-Royal shopping area. My FIL stays there when he visits us.
No recommendations, but I hope you have a great time!!
Well, we’re booked and confirmed in the Gingerbread House.
It seems like it’s in a nice location and it looks pretty cool.
Thanks for everyone’s help. Now, if anyone has other trip suggestions, I would love to have them. You guys did a great job when I went to LA last year.