Things to do in Montréal this April 2025

Throughout April, spring begins to bud in Montréal. Picture daffodils, crocuses, terrasses opening and bunnies hopping in the parks — or maybe that’s just for Easter weekend! There are so many things to do on (and before, and after) April 18 to 21 that you’ll want to extend the long weekend if you can. Get some Easter chocolates at Montréal's favourite chocolate shops and don’t miss Easter brunch, it’s a bona fide Montréal must. 

Let the arty spirit of Festival Art Souterrain animate you until April 6, with a self-guided art trajectory that runs throughout the wonderfully weather-proof Underground City. It’s a feast for the eyes, ears — well, all of the senses.

Speaking of art, dozens of art galleries from Montréal, Toronto, New York and beyond will show work at Plural Contemporary Art Fair at the Grand Quai du Port de Montréal, from April 11 to 13.

And the Blue Metropolis International Literary Festival also returns with a full schedule of readings, workshops, discussions, children’s programming and more from April 24 to 27, including several free events in person and online.  

In the Old Port of Montréal, after snapping a selfie or three at the glimmering BONJOUR structure, see views of the city and the river from the Grand Quay of the Port of Montréal, where you’ll find a cruise ship dock, marine history displays, green spaces and a stunning attraction: the Port of Montréal Tower. Nearby, treat yourself to bird’s-eye views on La Grande Roue de Montréal observation wheel, where the four-season cabins are always the perfect temperature.

In Old Montréal, walk the cobblestone streets to the St. Lawrence River and visit the iconic Notre-Dame Basilica — see the gorgeous multimedia AURA Experience, a wonderful way to feel the grandeur of this landmark.

Downtown holds one of the city’s most lovely churches, the Church of St. Andrew and St. Paul, where you can admire the beautiful stained glass during services or during the regular organ concerts.

Find out what to do every day in Montréal (and throughout the province) on the Vitrinewebsite, or in person at their office at 2 Sainte-Catherine Street East in the heart of Place des Festivals. From plays to concerts to dance shows and beyond, it’s your go-to resource for cultural goings-on.

We hope you make yourself at home in Montréal’s incredible hotels — there’s an accommodation option for everyone, from landmark hotels to family friendly hotels and boutique hotels galore.

Visit the esplanade of Place Ville Marie, where the massive art installation The Ring glimmers above you. Or take a break for entertainment and a snack at Esplanade Tranquille at the corner of Clark and Sainte-Catherine Street. 

One of the best ways to discover the city is with expert guides on Montréal tours: bundle up and set your own agenda with private walking tours at your own pace. See the city like a local with MTL Detours, take a day trip outside the city with N-Tours, call upon the experts at Guidatours, or take yourself on self-guided audio tours thanks to TourBird. For an unparalleled taste of the city, savour one of the expert 2 or 3 hour walking tours given by Local Montréal Food Tours — they range from Mile End to Old Montréal.

If you’re wondering why Montréal has so many colourful murals, hear more about them and their artists on a street art tour with Spade & Palacio, including the most recent murals from the last MURAL Festival. For an electric bike tour of the murals (weather permitting), look to Fitz Montréal — their comfortable cycling tours cover anything from downtown Montréal to Jean-Talon Market. 
You can also devise your own self-guided art tour (or follow one of their expertly curated ones) thanks to Art Public Montréal, a fountain of information on Montréal’s hundreds of public artworks that are viewable for free year-round. Explore their selection of podcasts, too, for the inside scoop.

To fill up on fresh produce and local goods, explore the city’s beautiful public markets, including Jean-Talon Market in Little Italy and Atwater Market in Saint-Henri. Montréal’s smallest market, the Public Market of Lachine, in the southwest, also offers a great selection of products year-round to go with its quaint design.

Le vin dans les voiles is a natural, organic and biodynamic wine agency based in Montréal that offers fascinating wine tasting and educational events. Peruse the calendar here. The workshops happen in French, but hey — wine is a universal language!

Indulge in more incredible food at Montréal’s variety of restaurants, where there’s always something new and exciting to nosh on. Discover Montréal’s newest restaurants and buvettes, and don’t miss a classic Montréal brunch, whether you’re looking for elegance or comfort food. For some crowdsourced favourites, try Montréalers’ favourite lunch restaurants, from Old Montréal and downtown to Villeray or the South-West. Get a taste of long-time Quebec classics like smoked meat, poutine and Montréal bagels and keep on ticking the boxes on your must-eat list with these other musts for foodies in Montréal.

Explore superb restaurants and cafés along Beaubien Street in the Rosemont-La-Petit-Patrie neighbourhood (also where you’ll find Little Italy).

Stop for a bite at the beautiful COMMODORE in Hôtel HONEYROSE downtown, or clink oyster shells in your own private holiday seafood celebration at Maestro SVP in the Plateau.

Downtown, explore the wide variety of excellent meals at gourmet food halls including Time Out Market, Le Cathcart and Le Central — or venture out to the de la Savane metro station to explore Le Fou Fou in the huge and tawny Royalmount mall. 
Get your caffeine fix at Montréal’s indie coffee shops — and why not snag some fresh-baked doughnuts to go with it! Add more sweetness to your life at Montréal’s best bakeries and pastry shops, best chocolate shops and candy shops.

Eat plant-based with our ultimate guide to vegan eating in Montréal or join the debate over who makes the best pizza in Montréal — or the best tacos. Warm up with authentic Japanese ramen and Vietnamese pho. 

By night, discover the city’s 31 top cocktail bars, inventive Montréal microbreweries and late-night eats. Or mix Montréalesque cocktails at home with gin, vodka, rum and more specialty spirits from these Montréal specialty alcohol and spirit makers.

April is also an excellent month to have dinner and see a show at the Casino de Montréal: live music and cabaret shows will entertain you and your date while you enjoy incredible seafood and more on the grill at Le Montréal, a gourmet buffet at Pavillon 67, and quick delicious eats at L’Instant. 

Cheer on the Montréal Canadiens as the NHL season reaches a crescendo with lots of nail-biting matches happening on home turf at the Bell Centre. See the whole month’s schedule here. If you can’t make the games in person, watch all the hockey, soccer, football, basketball, MMA and more at Montréal’s sports bars. 

The Bell Centre is also welcoming the Harlem Globetrotters on April 18 as part of their 2025 world tour: it’s a roaring good time for the whole family filled with incredible basketball tricks and skills. 

The Grand Chelem Baseball Centre, located downtown, invites you to step up to the plate: whether you’re an elite player or a casual hitter, Grand Chelem offers baseball and softball training for all levels and any age. 

Wanna play games? Head to the Centre Eaton de Montréal where the PLAYBOX Centre has a game for everyone, from internationally renowned crane games to arcade games, skill games and VR attractions. Super Super at DIX30 in Brossard is another super lively, family-friendly option, while Royalmount has a very fun arcade at The Rec Room, next to the Cineplex cinema, where you can duke it out in VR games and more before munching burgers or nachos (with accompanying cocktails, for parents) at the onsite eateries. Montréal loves exploring the retro side of play with its selection of arcades. 

Montréal Bowling is the perfect spot downtown to play a few rounds of bowling, play some pool, watch some sports, play some arcade games and grab some great snacks and cocktails.

Get swinging with a foray into the circus arts (since Montréal is a bona fide capital of circus) at the Montréal Circus Academy, where you can learn flying trapeze, pole fitness, exotic pole dance, aerial silks, aerial hammock, straps, handstands, flexibility and more. 

If you’re feeling more artsy, Art Chaos is a fantastic family- or group-friendly activity in Mile End, where you can paint crazy creations on rapidly spinning canvases, for a truly interactive experience. And while you’re in the neighbourhood, stop into 3 Wizards Shop on Avenue du Parc — it offers an immersive foray into the magical world of the Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts sagas, with a selection of official products. You can take your quidditch to the next level.

Savour the rising temperature of spring with a visit to Montréal’s parks. At the Espace pour la vie museums, enjoy the Montréal Botanical Garden’s sprawling tropical greenhouse environments or its slowly burgeoning outdoor space. Experience several wild ecosystems at the Biodôme (there are penguins, otters, monkeys and more), explore the mysteries of the universe at the Planétarium, and learn about the thousands of butterflies, moths and other insects at the Insectarium.

The West Island’s Ecomuseum Zoo is a wonderful place to glimpse local wildlife in their natural outdoor habitats — and you can even have breakfast with some of them throughout April.

Among the many free things to do this season, see incredible city views from Mount Royal Park: head for a walk through the park and up the stairs to the lookout or bus or drive up to Beaver Lake. Stroll (or bike) around Parc La Fontaine, go to St-Michel’s Parc Frédéric-Back, or cross the river to Parc Jean-Drapeau for a riverside walk and a different view of the city. While there, visit the Espace pour la vie Biosphère too, for environment-focused exhibitions and more. 

For the ultimate relaxation session after a day of trekking (or just because you deserve it), visit Bota Bota, spa-sur-l’eau, a unique spa in a moored boat on the St. Lawrence River in the Old Port, and other world-class spas like Scandinave Spa Vieux-Montréal, Avie Spa & Coiffure, Rainspa and Strøm Nordic Spa.

Shop for some new springtime style staples in Old Montréal’s boutiques, downtown along Sainte-Catherine Street and in the Underground City malls. The Centre Eaton de Montréal and Place Montréal Trust are full of the latest looks from the hottest shops, including Uniqlo, Nike, Aritza, Decathlon and many more boutiques (and remember to ask for a VIP Visitor Card at Guest Services for exclusive discounts only for tourists). 

Keep your eye out for items made by Montréal designers, relaxing self-care staples and plenty of sparkly goods from the coolest Montréal jewellery stores.

Find foodstuffs from local artisans as well as imported delicacies at Montréal’s public markets, and shop local and eco-friendly at the most fabulous vintage boutiques in the city. Pick out the perfect new books for friends and family from Montréal’s bookstores, and dive into a wide world of music at Montréal’s excellent vinyl stores.

Forgot to pick up souvenirs? Fear not, Montréal-Trudeau International Airport (YUL) has got you covered. The focus on local goods in both the domestic and the international zones range from foods to goods, including scarves and bags from m0851, yoga gear from Lolë and novels by local authors. Start your foray at Découvrir Montréal. 

Springtime is in hyperdrive in museums and galleries around town, so get the full low-down in our overview. 

This lively art month kicks off with the last week of Festival Art Souterrain, a self-guided art trajectory throughout the wonderfully weather-proof Underground City. Plus, it’s free. Only in Montréal!

Throughout the month, celebrate 20 years of excellence in puppetry at the Galerie d’art d’Outremont. GAUDEŌ! is a festive exhibition of puppets, sets and designs that have marked the last 20 years of the popular Festival des Casteliers puppetry festival.

Anytime in April is also a good time to experience Chant du verglas at the Saint Joseph’s Oratory of Mount Royal — a unique 10-stop immersive journey centred around the 1998 ice storm. Dozens of everyday heroes and heroines share their experiences in a poetic and moving soundscape, which you can listen to on headphones as you stroll onsite.

At PHI Foundation for Contemporary Art, experience the story of a Quebec filmmaker shaped through music in the exhibition Jean-Marc Vallée: Mixtape. With the participation of Marc-André Grondin, Evelyne Brochu, Denis Villeneuve, Reese Witherspoon, Vanessa Paradis, Laura Dern and others, it’s a multimedia journey into the memory and work of the director for whom emotion was a rich territory, lived, felt and expressed through music.

Explore the art of globally acclaimed, Montréal-based artist Jana Sterbak in the admirably curated solo exhibition Corpus Insolite, happing throughout April and beyond at the Musée des Hospitalières de l’Hôtel-Dieu de Montréal. Throughout her career, Sterbak has explored power, desire and the fragility of existence in works that often incorporate unconventional materials, so this pairing of her work with objects from the hospital museum’s own collection is particularly prescient and playful.

Visit the Montréal Museum of Fine Arts to enjoy the Canadian premiere of Ravel Ravel Interval, an immersive video installation by world-renowned French-Albanian artist Anri Sala in its Contemporary Art Square. Sala trains his lens on the left hands of the two performers, Montréal pianist Louis Lortie and French pianist Jean-Efflam Bavouzet, who play Ravel with varying levels of synchronicity. Don’t miss Heart On, as well, a career retrospective celebrating the radical art-making of Joyce Weiland, one of the most influential Canadian artists of her time. There’s also the Glenn Gear: ulitsuak | marée montante | rising tide exhibition and Two by Two, Together, featuring recent additions to the MMFA’s collection, to see this month.

At the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal in Place Ville Marie, catch the brand new exhibition Skyscrapers by the Roots, running throughout the month. It explores the long life of late modernism in the field of architecture by bringing together a series of works created over the last decade by Shannon Bool, Kapwani Kiwanga, Rachel Rose and Jonathan Schouela, a new film installation by David Hartt, as well as works by Lynne Cohen and François Dallegret produced in the 1960s and 1970s.

Go to Pointe-à-Callière, Montréal Archaeology and History Complex in Old Montréal to board the good ship D’Iberville to embark on an immersive and interactive seafaring adventure taking place in the days of New France, with their permanent exhibition Come Aboard! Pirates or Privateers? While you’re there, also take in the last week of Witches: Out of the Shadows, a captivating journey of discovery exploring the mythical, multifaceted and little-known history of witches. It ends on April 6.

You’ll also be near the kid-friendly Montréal Science Centre, where you can explore interactive exhibitions that investigate the scientific world, like the permanent exhibition Human: a voyage to the very heart of human evolution through a fully interactive and highly energetic environment.

The McCord Stewart Museum bridges past and present in its exhibitions, which throughout the month of April include Costume Balls: Dressing Up History, a fun and eye-popping show featuring outfits from extravagant costume balls and skating carnivals that were the pinnacle of society entertainments at the turn of the 19^th century, as well as Little Burgundy, the latest in the Evolving Montréal series, presented by guest artist Andrew Jackson. Over a two-year period, the photographer documented important Little Burgundy landmarks for the Black community and met people who grew up there, live there or still have ties to the area. The result is an exhibition of 61 photographs of the individuals and sites that bear witness to urban and social transformations.

Visit MEM – Centre des mémoires montréalaises, a cutting-edge museum dedicated to the voices of Montrealers presiding over the corner of Boulevard Saint-Laurent and Rue Sainte-Catherine. 

Experience a massive immersive art experience in surround-sound and laser light at OASIS Immersion, where Root for Nature extrapolates on biodiversity in all its splendour. You can also dive headfirst into the work of Van Gogh, or into the wonderful world of Imaginature.

Travel back in time as you tour the rooms of Château Ramezay and visit historical site Château Dufresne near the Olympic Stadium. The Musée des Hospitalières de l’Hôtel-Dieu de Montréal marks the bicentennial of Mount Royal Park’s creator, architect Frederick Law Olmsted with the exhibition Our Mountain: Memories of Mount Royal. 

Not far from the city, climb aboard railway cars, learn about the history of the railroad and explore miniature railways at the Exporail the Canadian Railway Museum.

Discover the vivid history and present of Québec ceramics at the Musée des métiers d’arts du Québec. And for another slice of Québec history, visit Montréal’s stunning churches and sacred sites.

And don’t forget Montréal’s plethora of small, independent art galleries, from Bradley Ertaskiran to Hugues Charbonneau, Galerie B-312, SBC Gallery and Ellephant downtown, Oboro and MAI in the Plateau, Centre Clark and Dazibao in Mile End, Galerie d’Outremont in Outremont and many, many others in every neighbourhood.

Montréal’s cultural calendar is packed this season, with entertainment for everyone on the city’s many stages. Among the world-class theatre, dance, opera, circus and more gracing the city’s stages throughout April, you’ll find comedian Sugar Sammy’s You’re Gonna Rire 2 one-man, bilingual show at Salle Pierre-Mercure from April 11 to 20.

At TOHU from April 10 to 21, catch Paperplane: a theater, circus, dance, music and light journey featuring eight multidisciplinary artists.

At Cinquième Salle at Place des Arts, from April 1 to 5, catch some contemporary dance by the Alan Lake Factori(e) with the show S’abreuver des volcans, a poignant foray into the myth of Orpheus that testifies to the redemptive power of art. 

Later in the month, from April 8 to 13, head to Théâtre Maisonneuve for some contemporary ballet courtesy of Les Grands Ballets, who will be presenting Vendetta: an epic mafia spectacle.

From April 9 to 13, let Shen Yun take you on a journey through China’s five millennia of divinely inspired culture at Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier. Ancient legends of dynasties past, inspiring stories of the modern day, the world’s finest classical Chinese dancers, and dazzling animated backdrops with patented effect converge in a spectacular performance accompanied by a grand East-West orchestra.

The Belgian dance troupe Peeping Tom has been making waves on the European dance scene since the early 2000s with its offbeat, genre-bending universe portrayed by extraordinary performers, and it’s coming to Montréal from April 16 to 19 at Théâtre Maisonneuve with the show Triptych. Don’t miss its unconstrained imaginary world where horror and extravagance go hand in hand.

A poetic coming-of-age story imagined by choreographer Philippe Saire, a pioneer of Swiss contemporary dance, Hocus Pocus comes to Cinquième Salle from April 22 to 26. Expect a surreal universe that will astonish and delight young and old alike.

Street dance lovers, head to Cinquième Salle on April 27 for Intertwine, a series of duos composed of a street dancer and a beatmaker that will challenge each other through freestyle exchanges.

Starting on April 27 and going into May, at Théâtre Maisonneuve, Portuguese choreographer Marco da Silva Ferreira — the new darling of the European dance scene — presents his most ambitious work, Carcaça, celebrating the contemporary body with phenomenal intensity.

Starting on April 27 and running into May at Segal Centre, catch Our Little Secret, a musical about the hilarious, moving and completely true story of Noam Tomaschoff's discovery that he wasn't an only child… he actually had more than 35 siblings around the world.

Musical lovers, head’s up: Mean Girls comes to Montréal, direct from Broadway! Brought to stage at Salle Wilfried-Pelletier by an award-winning creative team, including Tina Fey and composer Jeff Richmond, it’s going to be an unmissable watch.

Theatre-wise, catch the play Jordan at Centaur Theatre from April 3 to 13. Awakening in a hospital, Jordan discovers newfound abilities to speak and move, guided by his animated teddy bear, Maskwa. The story addresses the healthcare challenges faced by Indigenous children, highlighting the significance of Jordan’s Principle in ensuring equal healthcare for First Nations youth. 

On April 2 and 3, experience the marriage of animation and orchestral mastery at Disney’s Fantasia, a classical entertainment experience presented by the Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal at Maison Symphonique.

On April 4, it’s Avatar: The Last Airbender that will come to life to the sound of music at Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier thanks to the Orchestre FILMharmonique. Meticulously composed and arranged by Jeremy Zuckerman, the original composer of the show’s music, the concert features a fusion of Eastern and Western traditional instruments such as Taiko drums and erhus.

Gamers unite on April 6, when Ubisoft and Overlook Events present the Assassin’s Creed Symphonic Adventure, a new official symphony concert featuring the most beautiful themes from the various games the legendary saga. It goes down at Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier.

Dirty Dancing lovers, April 17 is your day! Catch the classic entirely remastered and shown in the original English version with French subtitles at Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier while three singers and five musicians perform the songs live. Immediately after the screening, the band is unleashed for a 25-minute afterparty with rousing renditions of the film’s greatest hits, creating a total immersion in the glamour of the 1980s.  

The Montréal Science Centre’s IMAX cinema puts nature on the giant screen in all its glory — this month you can see the incredible Australia 3D: The Wild Continent throughout April, where you can discover flora and fauna that have evolved in splendid isolation, explore ancient landscapes sculpted by great geological forces, and learn from traditional custodians of the land. 

See independent features, family films, documentaries and more at Montréal’s indie cinemas including Cinéma Moderne, Cinéma du Parc, Cinéma du Musée at the Montréal Museum of Fine Arts, and the iconic Cinémathèque québécoise in the Quartier des Spectacles (the city’s entertainment district). 

Explore the city through cinema in these Hollywood movies made in Montréal.