Celebrate American Thanksgiving in Montréal

In Montréal, we’re thankful year-round for the amazing range of live performance options at our disposal, and Thanksgiving weekend is no exception, especially at the city’s crown-jewel performing arts complex, Place des Arts, in the Quartier des Spectacles. Choreographer Guillaume Côté sets the stage alight with his latest work for nine performers, Burn Baby, Burn, a powerful metaphor for the urgent need to take action on climate change, at PDA’s Théâtre Maisonneuve, November 25-29. From November 22-30, the elegant Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier gets romantic with the opera Jenůfa, directed by renowned Canadian filmmaker Atom Egoyan and featuring Montréal’s very own Nicole Paiement conducting the city’s stellar Orchestre Métropolitain.

Speaking of top-tier orchestras, the Orchestre national de jazz de Montréal (ONJ) revisits Charlie Parker with Strings, and will see the city’s finest alto saxophonists paying tribute to the legendary 1950 album at Cinquième Salle on November 27. And don’t miss out on a chance to experience the mesmerizing ORB, a majestic, illuminated public art installation beautifying the water basin on the Esplanade of Place des Arts.

Saturdays are hockey nights in Canada, and one of the hottest tickets in town is for Montréal’s Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) team, the Montreal Victoire. Founded in 2023, the Victoire are enjoying unrivalled popularity, drawing enthusiastic, very family-friendly crowds to games that are setting league attendance records, including sold-out marquee games at the large-capacity Bell Centre, home of the city’s storied National Hockey League (NHL) franchise, the Montreal Canadiens. Catch the Victoire at their new home-ice arena, Place Bell, on Montréal’s north shore — a short metro (subway) ride from downtown Montréal — and check here in the weeks to come for home game schedules.

Given that it’s U.S. Thanksgiving, and not the Canuck one, traditional turkey dinners with all the fixins may not be all that common, but they do exist. For example, the esteemed Alexandre et fils Parisian brasserie in the heart of downtown has, for over 40 years, been offering a holiday turkey dinner but with a French twist and presentation. It will do so again this year over three days, during both lunch and dinner hours. Also, Sir Winston Churchill Pub on Crescent Street, a Montréal institution, will once again be doing a traditional American Thanksgiving turkey dinner with all the trimmings. However, if the taste of turkey is all that’s required, famous Montréal smoked meat eatery Schwartz’s does a mean smoked turkey plate. 

Or why not camp out in the heart of downtown? Les Refuges du Bivouac — a seasonal dining creation by the wholly unique Restaurant Bivouac — invite you to set up camp for an evening under a magnificently decorated dome overlooking Place des Arts in the Quartier des Spectacles. Under the stars and among pine trees, this warm and magical dinner experience features a menu with boreal flavours that take advantage of the best that Québec and its culinary artisans have to offer. And with the highest concentration of kitchens on the continent (approximately 65 restaurants per square kilometre), Montréal is a veritable horn o’ plenty for foodies this holiday season.

While Canadians don’t celebrate Thanksgiving on the fourth Thursday of November like Americans do, weirdly enough, the final Friday of the month — Black Friday — has become a staple of the retail sales calendar here as the Christmas shopping season begins in earnest. This year, Black Friday falls on November 28. 

Downtown Montréal — including its renowned Underground City, a 33-km (or 20.5-mile) warren of stores and eateries — is a shopaholic’s dream come true. Both below and above ground, the city is home to hundreds of exclusive boutiques and brand name retailers. Central downtown commercial corridor Sainte-Catherine Street is the gateway to chic shopping malls ranging from Complexe Desjardins to Promenades Cathédrale, Les Cours Mont-Royal, Place Montréal Trust and the Centre Eaton de Montréal, all within easy walking distance of each other. And our U.S. friends might also be thankful that their stronger dollar basically makes the whole town a giant, more than 20% off sale.

When it’s getting cold out there, it’s getting hot in here, in one of Montréal’s many top-notch spas, each exceptional for their own singular character. Bota Bota, Spa-sur-l’eau (“spa on the water”) is a favourite among locals and visitors alike for its chic, contemporary appeal and its location on a converted ferryboat docked in the Old Port. The iconic Fairmont The Queen Elizabeth is home to the beautiful Moment Spa, a downtown oasis where you can enjoy long, languid moments of indulgence or a quick hit of wellness. One of the many perks of staying at the Ritz-Carlton Montréal is the Spa St. James. The spa itself includes waterfalls, a relaxation lounge with fireplaces, spacious treatment rooms, a mani-pedi suite and a state-of-the-art salon, but bookings also give you access to the stunning rooftop pool as well as the sauna and steam room. Spa William Gray is a destination unto itself within the Hôtel William Gray, and features a full-pampering circuit including an herbal sauna, a Himalayan salt room, a Finnish sauna, a eucalyptus steam room and an especially delightful hot quartz bed.

You can also experience the northern tradition of Scandinavian baths in the cutting-edge Scandinave Spa at Hôtel Saint-Sulpice. Nestled among the historic buildings of Old Montréal, this leading day spa has garnered numerous awards for its architecture and design. And speaking of Old Montréal, the perennially popular Rainspa, in the cool and classy Hôtel Place d’Armes, manages to be exclusive and inclusive at the same time, a serene space with a vast Middle Eastern-style hammam that we can all be thankful for.

The holiday season in Montréal comes with a heightened sense of excitement and anticipation, which makes November ideal for exploring and experiencing the city’s completely unique, world-renowned attractions and entertaining activities. When in Rome, it’s good to roam, and Old Montréal is always a great place to start. Notre-Dame Basilica is one of the city’s must-see stops, and is currently hosting the AURA experience, a captivating display of projections, light and orchestral music accompanied by a massive 7,000-pipe organ. Just a few short blocks away, Amplified, presented by Rolling Stone, invites visitors to experience a unique, immersive and interactive  musical happening that is at once nostalgic, electrifying and intergenerational (at the Palais des congrès de Montréal until November 30). And music nostalgia is also in the air at the Casino de Montréal in Parc Jean-Drapeau, where the Avenue 54 Disco Show will be reviving timeless disco hits that defined an era, all courtesy of a sensational live band and dancers, November 27-29.

A downtown journey will likely take you past the Grand Marché de Noël de Montréal (or Great Montréal Christmas Market) at the one-of-a-kind Place des Festivals in the Quartier des Spectacles. The market transforms the city into a dazzling holiday wonderland featuring picturesque chalets offering unique artisanal creations, local treasures and gourmet treats. And the nearby, visually and sonically splendorous Maison Symphonique de Montréal will be ground zero for the prestigious Festival International Bach Montréal, which will present over 30 concerts honouring the timeless musical genius of J.S. Bach.

It’s U.S. Thanksgiving in Montréal everyone — time to dig in!