Montreal’s Plateau Mont-Royal neighbourhood is affectionately nicknamed The Plateau by Montreal’s locals. Considered by many to be Montreal’s trendiest and hippest neighbourhood, the Plateau is famously known for Montreal’s unique architectural feature: the exterior staircases that are present on many of the houses in this neighbourhood. You will find many brick houses and popular streets in this trendy neighborhood. You will also find many multi-colored buildings, clothing stores, boutiques and bakeries along with various bookstores in this neighbourhood.
The plateau feels like a little village inside Montreal, much like New York’s Greenwich village or London’s Soho district. Many Montreal locals consider it to be the center of cultural and intellectual activity in Montreal.
Plateau Mont-Royal’s Architecture
On just about every corner of the Plateau, you can experience Montreal’s unique architecture. Many of the buildings in the Plateau Mont-Royal area feature old-style masonry, iron staircases, and exterior staircases. In the midst of this all, you can also find cozy bookstores, cafés, pubs bars, galleries and gourmet shops.
Creativity and The Plateau
Creativity and The Plateau go hand-in-hand. According to Statistics Canada, The Plateau has the largest number of creative people in all of Canada. Because it is so densely populated, many of the residents of Plateau Mont-Royal travel by bicycle or public transportation. It is a great neighbourhood to get a true feeling of life in Montreal. The population is mostly Francophone (French-speaking) and features a mixture of young families, students and artists.
The Plateau’s Nightlife
Because one of the main streets located on the Plateau is Boulevard St-Laurent, it is impossible to talk about the Plateau without mentioning its unbelievable nightlife. With so many bars, clubs, lounges and cafés at walking distance from each other, the Plateau is where many is where many clubbers go for a good time. Plateau Mont-Royal’s nightlife gets more intense during the summer, when many tourists flock to the crowded streets of St-Laurent and St-Denis.
Plateau Mont-Royal Streets and Landmarks
The very popular Prince Arthur Street, a pedestrian-only street with many bars and restaurants, is located in The Plateau. Many of the restaurants on Prince Arthur Street have terraces and encourage customers to bring their own wine. The other important streets in Plateau Mont-Royal include Saint Laurent Boulevard, Saint Denis Street, Mount Royal Avenue and Sherbrooke Street. One of Montreal’s best parks, Lafontaine Park is also located in The Plateau.
Boulevard Saint-Laurent
Boulevard Saint-Laurent is locally known as The Main (because it is considered by many to be Montreal’s Main Street). Boulevard Saint-Laurent also happens to be Montreal’s dividing line between Montreal’s English speaking community in the West and its French speaking community in the East. Some of the important landmarks on this street include Shwartz’s Deli, which is famous for its smoked meat. But what sets the Main apart is its trendy bars, chick clubs and upscale stores. Click here to learn more about Boulevard Saint-Laurent.
Rue Prince Arthur
Prince Arthur street is a street made up of paving blocks that is dedicated to pedestrians. Because this street is pedestrians-only street, you will see many street performers and sidewalk artists outside the various restaurants located on this street. This street tends to get busier at night as cluphoppers flow from one bar to another. At the Edge of Prince Arthur Street lies Carré St-Louis.
Carré St-Louis
One of the many charming places to visit in the plateau is Saint Louis Square, which was built in 1876 and is surrounded by beautiful Victorian homes. Carré St-Louis is beautiful park with mature trees and a pavilion at its center. There are plenty of park benches and resting areas in this quiet urban garden.
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