The 10 Best Day Trips From Montreal

There are few places better than Montreal. While there’s no place like home, sometimes you need a change of scenery from pothole-ridden roads and frigid winters, if only for the day. Luckily, the city is located so that within a few hours’ drive, you can encounter mountains, rolling farmland, or riverside towns in Quebec, Ontario, and Vermont.

This guide spans destinations within the province and just across the border, from the ski slopes and gondolas of Mont-Tremblant to centuries-old streets of Quebec City, wine routes of the Eastern Townships, and the small-town charm of Northern Vermont.

If you want a more focused outline of what to do in these day trip destinations, check out our road trip guides for the Eastern Townships and Le Chemin du Roy, the highway between Montreal and Quebec City. For those aching to hit the slopes, you can reference our guide for skiing in and around Montreal.

Laurentians (Mont-Tremblant)

Travel time: 1.5 to 2 hours from Montreal

About an hour and a half from Montreal lies the Laurentians, a mountain region that includes the popular ski destination Mont-Tremblant. Besides the myriad of land and water sports—everything from canoeing to golf—available throughout the area’s 16 parks and reserves year-round, there are restaurants, wineries, farms, cider houses, and a year-round gondola. For those who want a taste of the range but don’t want to go all the way to Tremblant, Saint-Sauveur and Val-David are worthwhile stops along the way.

Eastern Townships

Travel time: 1 to 2 hours from Montreal

Bordering Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine, the Eastern Townships take up more than 12,000 km² in southern Quebec. There are a host of wineries, microbreweries, cider houses, and distilleries for those wanting to indulge in a range of Quebec-made spirits (follow the Route des Vins for a wine-focused trip), not to mention the four national and five regional parks, ski resorts, and hiking trails for the outdoors-inclined visitors. Though the area is home to over 100 municipalities, those to visit are Sherbrooke, Granby, Magog, and Bromont.

Ottawa

Travel time: 2 to 2.5 hours from Montreal

Ottawa, the nation’s capital, is the middle child to siblings Montreal and Toronto—which is to say it’s geographically in between and often overshadowed by its more cosmopolitan, trendier counterparts. Two hours from Montreal, the city is home to Parliament Hill (where visitors can watch The Changing of the Guard during the summer), the world’s largest skating rink, and a host of shopping, eating, and drinking.

This is a more city-oriented option, contrasting with the more nature-focused spots on this list, for those who prefer roaming different neighbourhoods, checking out museums (the Canadian Museum of History is just across the river in Gatineau), and browsing local shops and markets, as opposed to hiking, skiing, or drinking at vineyards.

Burlington, VT

Travel time: 1.5 to 2 hours from Montreal

Burlington, Vermont, is just over an hour and a half from Montreal—the closest major (-ish) US city to Montreal, and containing much more than just a Trader Joe’s and Target. The city itself is bustling with college students and residents, with an over seven-mile-long bike path along Lake Champlain, a farmers’ market, a pedestrian shopping district (Church Street Marketplace), and several galleries and museums. Just outside the downtown area, there are plenty of outdoor spaces for more active pursuits, including hiking trails, beaches, ski mountains, and farms. Just don’t forget your passport, or you’ll have to turn around at the border.

Quebec City

Travel time: 2.5 to 3.5 hours from Montreal

Around three hours from Montreal is the province’s other major municipality: Quebec City. This over 400-year-old city is one of the oldest European settlements in North America and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site with plenty of activities for the whole family. Head to one of its many urban parks, including Bois-de-Coulonge Park, with its many gardens; the Plains of Abraham, the site of the 1759 battle of the Seven Years’ War; and the waterfall-side Parc de la Chute-Montmorency. Beyond parks, bike paths, an aquarium, and a waterfall, Quebec City is home to the world-famous Fairmont Le Château Frontenac, one of only two two-Michelin-star restaurants in the country, and the pedestrianized Petit-Champlain—a shopping area with boutiques, specialty stores, and other shops.