Things to do in Montréal in November 2025

Welcome to Montréal!

To enjoy the best the city has to offer during your stay in November, please don't think of yourself as a tourist, but as one of us. Whether you're here for a few days, a few weeks or a few years, we're counting on you to enjoy Montréal in a spirit of respect, responsibility and celebration!

As the weather shifts into fall, Montréal’s fall festivals and other major events celebrate artistry, culture, food and the city itself. Explore the many free things to do this fall, which range from outdoor performances to cultural festivals. 

Festivals continue to entertain downtown and throughout the city, starting with the foodie flagship event, MTLàTABLE, which returns for an 13th delicious edition from October 30 to November 16. Read more in the food section below. 

November is the perfect time to cozy up at the cinema, with a plenitude of film festivals on offer: from the French language films presented in English of CINEMANIA from November 4 to 16, to the real-world subjects of the Montréal International Documentary Festival (RIDM) from November 20 to 30, to Canada’s first LGBTQ+ film  festival Image+Nation from November 20 to 30. Read more in the film section below.

World music festival Mundial Montréal showcases the best in new global music at several great local venues from November 18 to 21, overlapping with indie music festival M for Montréal, back from November 19 to 22. Classical lovers will thrill at the Bach Festival, which presents more than 30 concerts featuring hundreds of incredible musicians, singers and conductors from November 15 to December 7. See more in the live music section below.

Expect a musical cornucopia at the Arab World Festival of Montréal as well, which from October 31 to November 16 will animate Place des Arts and spaces throughout town with original productions in dance, music, theater and multidisciplinary arts, debates, conferences, lectures and films.

The Salon du Livre returns for its 48th edition introducing you to Montréal’s literary community, featuring author readings, roundtable discussions and plenty of books for sale,  from November 19 to 23 at the Palais des congrès de Montréal. 

Starting on November 27, get your first view of the shining lights that will animate the winter in Place des Festivals courtesy of the incredible interactive art of LUMINO. And since the annual Santa Claus Parade happens on November 22, Christmas is definitely already in the air: Montréal’s Christmas Village starts on November 27 at the Atwater Market and will last well into December, while The Great Christmas Market kicks off on November 21 and presents the perfect opportunity for early Holiday shopping at Place des Festivals — but don’t worry if you’re busy, it runs until the New Year.

November’s foodie adventures

A flagship event of Montréal’s culinary scene, MTLàTABLE — also known as Montréal’s restaurant week — returns for a 13th edition from October 30 to November 16. Discover dishes from around the world, BYOB hot spots, vegetarian delights, delectable desserts, date-night destinations, bodacious brunches and more. See the MTLàTABLE event website for the lowdown and the full list of 150 participating restaurants. Book your meals now, spots are going fast! 

Fall sports and relaxation

Cheer on the Montréal Canadiens as the NHL season gathers full steam with lots of nail-biting matches happening on home turf at the Bell Centre. See the whole month’s schedule here! Cheer on the CF Montréal soccer team at home at the Saputo Stadium, the Roses MTL female soccer team at various locations, the Montréal Alliance basketball team at various locations and the Montréal Alouettes football team at the Percival Molson Memorial Stadium. You can also catch the Royal de Montréal team compete in the Ultimate Frisbee Association games at Complexe sportif Claude-Robillard. If you can’t make the games in person, watch all the soccer, football, basketball, MMA and more at Montréal’s sports bars.

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

Onstage this November

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 November, catch the Theatre of Dreams dance show by the Hofesh Shechter Company will take its audience on dizzying dive, headfirst, into a fantasy world where dreams and reality collide. It’s at Théâtre Maisonneuve from November 4 to 8.

Also in dance, catch Pupo by star Italian choreographer Sofia Nappi, who is charming worldwide audiences with her captivating, hyperdynamic movement language. At Cinquième Salle from November 11 to 15.

From November 25 to 29, choreographer Guillaume Côté brings Burn Baby, Burn to the stage of Théâtre Maisonneuve, featuring nine performers along the theme of climate change and the need for collective awareness.

Opera lovers won’t want to miss the highly anticipated production of Jenůfa, directed by Atom Egoyan while Montréal’s very own Nicole Paiement leads the Orchestre Métropolitain as conductor. Catch it from November 22 to 30 at Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier.

Starting on November 23 at the Segal Centre, the Tony-winning musical Kimberly Akimbo dubbed a “howlingly funny heartbreaker” by the New Yorker comes ready to charm Montréal audiences. 

At the Centaur Theatre, Kisses Deep is a long-awaited English-language premiere that tells the story of the transformational relationship between a troubled, gifted young man and his complex and inspiring mother. Starts on November 26.

November art and exhibitions 

The fall season is in hyperdrive in museums and galleries around town, so get the full low-down in our seasonal exhibition overview.

At PHI, take in Manuel Mathieu: Unity in Darkness, an art exhibition that interrogates the invisible forces that shape our world and affect our individual and collective lives, and Keiken: Sensory Oversoul, in its North American debut: this show features two major immersive and participatory installation works that will undoubtedly blow your mind. Both exhibitions run through the month. 

Visit the Montréal Museum of Fine Arts to enjoy the Kent Monkman exhibition titled History is Painted by the Victors, among others. Through his subversive lens, this major Canadian artist and member of ocêkwi sîpiy (Fisher River Cree Nation) revisits history painting to challenge colonial narratives and offer new perspectives on the past and our present. His iconic and monumental paintings are full of humour, poignant commentary, and simply not to be missed.

At the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal in Place Ville Marie, catch the fall exhibition In Praise of the Missing Image throughout the month. Part of the 19th edition of the MOMENTA Biennale d’art contemporain, it’s a group show that focuses on what escapes visibility, silences and gaps in individual and collective memory.

Go to Pointe-à-Callière, Montréal Archaeology and History Complex in Old Montréal for their show starting on November 27: Sherlock Holmes is an immersive exhibition that combines history, literature and investigation. Journey back to 19th century London where you’ll explore the author’s sources of inspiration and follow the trail of the master of deduction amid life-size settings.

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 November includes Africa Fashion: a travelling exhibition from the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, and one of the largest ever exhibitions dedicated to the creative energy of designers from across the African continent, from the 1960s to today. There’s also On the Menu – Montréal: A Restaurant Story starting on November 26: witness the evolution of Montréal’s restaurant scene in all its forms since the 1960s.

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. Throughout November you can catch Detours – Urban Experiences, an immersive exhibition that takes you into the world of Montrealers with singular backgrounds.

At the Montréal Planétarium, tickets to any of the shows gets you access to Rouge 2100: A Martian Adventure, an exhibition running throughout the month that offers a journey in five chapters and as many rooms, where we realistically imagine the first steps of a rare humans in 2100 on the fascinating red planet. A fantastic world that also questions the place of humans in our universe and the fragile balance that must be maintained if all species are to prosper.

Travel back in time as you tour the rooms of Château Ramezay and visit the historical site of Château Dufresne near the Olympic Stadium. The Musée des Hospitalières de l’Hôtel-Dieu de Montréal explores the history of medical care in Montréal with the exhibition Exploring a Hospital Heritage. (Don’t miss out on exploring the museum’s grounds, too, i.e. the Monastery Garden, which is beautiful in fall.)

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.

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.

Speaking of immersive experiences, the Fabulous FAB Exhibition is an all-around trippy space spanning three floors in the Centre Eaton de Montréal, where you can experience no less than 20 extraordinary worlds. See it to believe it.

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.

Onscreen in November

Start with an international buffet of French-language films (with English subtitles), conferences and more at the CINEMANIA film festival from November 4 to 16. Then take a deep dive into real-world subjects at the Montréal International Documentary Festival (RIDM), with over 150 new documentaries from around the world, from November 20 to 30. And Canada’s first LGBTQ+ film festival Image+Nation continues into its 38th edition with over 100 features, docs and short films from around the world, from November 20 to 30.

Film buffs will get a kick out of these musical performances at Place des Arts: embark on a philosophical journey with the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal and the OSM Chorus as they accompany Stanley Kubrick’s iconic sci-fi masterpiece, 2001: A Space Odyssey, on November 19 at Maison Symphonique. And on November 25 at Cinquième Salle, catch ANIME GROOVES: The Best of Japanese Animated Series, a concert featuring clips of Naruto, Pokémon, Dragon Ball and One Piece that will appeal to jazz fans just as well as symphonic music enthusiasts.

The Montréal Science Centre’s IMAX cinema puts nature on the giant screen in all its glory — this month you can see the incredible T. REX 3D: Greatest of all Tyrants throughout November, where you can discover the most gripping and scientifically accurate portrait ever made of this titan and its formidable carnivorous cousins.

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.

Live music in November

We’ve got the perfect overview of Montréal’s big, can’t-miss concerts in 2025so you can plan your highlights of the year.

World music festival Mundial Montréal showcases the best in new global music at several great local venues from November 18 to 21, overlapping with indie music festival M for Montréal, back from November 19 to 22. Classical lovers will thrill at the Bach Festival, which presents more than 30 concerts featuring hundreds of incredible musicians, singers and conductors from November 15 to December 7.

At Place des Arts, classical music shines throughout November with everything from spooky music along the theme of Symphonic Spells on November 1,to A Viennese Evening of Songs, Waltzes & Romance on November 2, to Carmina Burana and The Rite of Spring on November 7 and 9 — see the full Place des Arts programming here.

At the Bell Centre this month, catch Paul McCartney on his GOT BACK tour on November 16 and 17.

You’ll find all sorts of fun music shows at MTELUS, including Coeur de Pirate on November 6, Sammy Virji on November 7, Matthew Good and I Mother Earth on November 11, Death to All on November 12, Tape B on November 13, Layton Giordani on November 14, Klô Pelgag on November 15, The Franklin Electric on November 12, Gowan on November 25 and Blind Guardian on November 28. 

At Théâtre Fairmount in Mile End, catch Joel Sunny on November 4, Lil Mo Mozzarella on November 7, Kerala Dust on November 8, Mon Rovîa on November 12, French Police on November 13, Bolden. on November 15, Bktherula on November 17, Geoffrey Asmus on November 20, Like Moth to Flames on November 26 and Billie Marten on November 29.

The world’s best EDM artists come to New City Gas to get you moving, starting with Sonny Fodera, Sam Blacky and MVNGO on November 1, Tom & Collins, Andrew Polopos and Mezz on November 13, LIQUID:LAB, Adam Sellouk and Eve Lauren on November 14, and &friends and Mekki on November 20. See the full programming here.

At the SAT this month, don’t miss Lebanon Hanover on November 5 and Kettama on November 14. See the full programming here.

Want to experience music and entertainment in a sparkling, velvet-clad theatre? Look no further than Caf’Conc. Find the programming here.

Groove to live soul, disco, jazz, funk, salsa, Cuban music Fridays and more at Le Balcon, where you can have dinner with a show, go dancing, and enjoy a gospel brunch on weekends.

Hear live jazz nightly at Montréal’s amazing jazz and blues clubs, like Diese Onze and Upstairs Jazz Bar & Grill. And go out dancing late into the night at Montréal’s dance clubs.

Indie venues Casa del Popolo and Sala Rossa have chock-a-block full monthly programs featuring both local and visiting bands, which you can find here. Look here for the many live events at hole-in-the-wall Barfly. Same for Bar Le Ritz PDB, where there’s a show nearly every night. Explore the lineups at Le Ministère and Turbo Haüs, and follow L’Escogriffe on Facebook to stay on top of all their upcoming shows. L’Hémisphère Gauche, up in Little Italy, is packed with music lovers for their nightly shows, as is Quai des Brumes on the Plateau — it never takes a night off.