If all those studies about people more and more seeking unique experiences when they travel hold true, no other place offers that more than Old Montreal.
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Many of us opt to travel to sunnier, warmer climes for a winter holiday, even during the Christmas period, through New Years’ Day. However there are many options within Canada’s borders.
Old Montreal: Over 370 years of history
We have written on Old Montreal before – a place of European glamour, kind of a Christmas balm for the soul, a Cat 5 cable connecting what’s magical about the holiday season with your inner self.
Old Montreal is one of our nation’s jewels – over 370 years old, when it was first a fur-trade town, now a cosmopolitan city. Old Montreal was declared a “historic district” in 1964. Your arrival there marks a re-generation of sorts, a celebration of the season.
At the centre of it all is Le Saint-Sulpice Hôtel Montréal, at 414 St. Sulpice St., the four-star, four-diamond all-suite boutique hotel just off of Saint-Paul St. W., steps from Notre Dame Basilica and Old Port of Montreal.
Le Saint-Sulpice Hôtel Montréal offers an authentic Old Montreal experience
The hotel, with 108 spacious and cozy suites, features electric fireplaces in the winter in most of the suites, kitchenettes with refrigerators and stovetops, LCD televisions, complimentary wireless internet access, and plenty of luxury touch points like onsite massages, body treatments and facials. French cuisine is on the menu at Oskar, a restaurant that features a bar/lounge and a garden terrace, refined cuisine with local products.
In Old Montreal, we always recommend heading out for an early morning walk. A few years back we left our hotel just after 7 a.m., Christmas week, just after daybreak. Snow was falling lightly, the temperature had hit well below sub-zero. It was still and silent, all under the twinkling lights and festive decorations and Santa Claus figurines.
Travellers more and more searching for unique experience
We went for our morning coffee – Café Olimpico. A stroll down Saint-Paul St. W., and you are in the middle of everything – art galleries, world-class dining, eclectic shops, and the district’s iconic architecture.
Le Saint-Sulpice Hôtel Montréal is celebrating its 20th anniversary. Coming out of pandemic restrictions, people have been calling out for authenticity when it comes to their travel, and the Saint-Sulpice Hotel committed every day to making your stay in Old Montreal different. If you’re an art enthusiast the hotel lobby is adorned with works from their partner Gallea, the largest online art gallery in Canada.
Old Montreal: Vibrant art scene and fine food
Suite Stories is a cool idea where the hotel invited authors to stay at the hotel to get inspired and write a short story. What came out of it are detective stories, poems, fiction, and romantic work making for a rich collection offered to hotel guests – a nice feature for those people who just want to cozy up in their suite.
Since its creation in 2001, the Saint-Sulpice Hotel has been committed every day to making your stay in Old Montreal different and authentic.
“It’s part of our DNA,” says Karin Janssen, marketing manager, Le Saint-Sulpice Hôtel Montréal. “Our independent boutique hotel goes beyond and above to bring the typical Montreal touches to your stay – from the welcome by our staff, to the care taken in the maintenance of your suite through all the precious advice of our teams at the reception. Every day we strive to create original and exclusive experiences with the sole objective of making your stay unforgettable and unique, simply SoSulpice.”
Small, personal touches made all the difference
The artwork of Jean-Claude Poitras, a famous Quebec fashion designer, is on display in front of the elevator accessing the hotel’s fifth floor, transformed into a real art gallery. The hotel does a lot to connect guests with Old Montreal, something we liked. This month guests can savor Juliette & Chocolat’s famous hot chocolate every Saturday afternoon. Guests receive a welcome gift from the Le Magasin général du Vieux Montreal, a beautiful boutique located just two steps from the hotel.
Head to Montreal Tourism for more information on things to do while you’re in Old Montreal, or the city at large, this winter. Le Saint-Sulpice Hôtel Montréal has a promotion starting January 7 – stay at the hotel and have a chance to win a hidden gift in your room.
I am a 50-something Torontonian who loves everything about my city. It’s been my home, my playground, for my entire life. I went to school here. I met my wife here. I own real estate here. I love writing about the transformation of my city on the world stage, which hasn’t been anything short of dramatic. That continues on, as I write this. I write on the real estate scene. I write on travel and fashion. I like following the world of luxury watches.
But I love writing about cars – check that, luxury cars, a level of superior, engineering sophistication, high performance and style, that transports you not just from one destination to another but also out of whatever you are going through on a particular day, whatever mood you are in, all to another head space. It’s complete and total exhilaration, head to toe.
Check out my stories, and email me direct at mkeast@regardingluxury.com
