Amidst all the excitement for the World Championships that will be held in Montreal next month, you might think: I need to start doing all my travel research. How do I get to the rink? What is around the rink? How far is the airport from the rink? Is my lodging all finalized for this trip? What do I wear? What can I do to save money since I already spent an arm and a leg for tickets to go to this competition?
Have no fear, we have created this thorough guide to help you!
We have separated this guide into two sections: the essentials such as transportation, lodging, about the Bell Centre, etc… And then a recommendation article featuring many lovely recommendations from ice dancer Lilah Fear! These articles serve as helpful side piece that complement our Montreal Guide episode! Everything has been separated into sections so we hope that we’ll be able to answer any questions you might have.
The Essentials
A quick overview of Montreal: Montreal is located in the province of Quebec. It is the second most populated municipality in Canada. However, Montreal itself is quite small. It is located on an island and you can drive from one end to the other in under an hour! And yes, we are a French province but you do not have to worry about not speaking French. Specifically in Montreal, it’s pretty split in language with most people being bilingual or can get by with understanding English even though they cannot speak it.
Transportation
The metro:
These underground trains are the easiest way to get around Montreal on a budget! The Montreal metro system has four different lines: green, orange, blue, and yellow. Though, the only one we need to remember is the orange line because the Bell Center is located there.
The station to get to the rink would be Metro Lucien-L'Allier which is directly connected to the rink so you barely have to walk outside once there (yay for not having to face the winter cold!). Thankfully, due to Canada’s harsh winters, many of the metro stops are connected through underground passageways so that you also have the option to walk from one station to the other without going outside. This isn’t the case for every station, but many of the ones close to the Bell Center have that option so I feel like it is worth mentioning. Hopefully, this map proves useful!
There are many fare options. If you are staying in town for a week, I recommend you get the unlimited week fare. If you’re only here for a few days, maybe consider the unlimited 3-day pass or the unlimited weekend pass!
One thing that’s great with these unlimited passes is that you will have - wait for it - unlimited access to the metro and buses in town! That means you won’t have to worry over how many times you use your card or if you have enough money left on it. It’s unlimited! It’s great if you want to explore Montreal as this leaves you more opportunities to go around everywhere, and leaves you a margin for error if you need to use the metro or bus to go back a step or two.
Bus
There are many bus options around town so I cannot be as specific on how to get to the rink as when describing the metro above but I highly suggest the Transit app (IOS/Android). It’s a useful app that will tell you the available busses in your vicinity that will lead you to your destination. One reason why I suggest this over google or apple maps is that the app was originally created by Montreal locals and is very much tailored for Montreal even though it is Mr. Worldwide and has transit information for other countries.
One bus that stops nearby the rink is the 747 bus that leads to the airport. For anyone who plans to head directly to the rink from the airport, or leave directly at the end of the exhibition gala Skating Awards, this could be useful if you want to save a bit of money instead of taking a taxi or uber.
Driving
Driving is an option though beware of the Bell Centre’s parking rates, and of parking meters and their prices if you park on the road outside. At the Bell Centre, there is a fixed daily parking rate of $15 from Monday to Friday from 5:30am to 7pm. Carpool services like Uber are available, though Lyft is not available in Montreal.
Train
Lucien-L'Allier station is also a commuter rail terminal, though I'd doubt anyone would use these unless they're already a Quebec local because they mostly lead to the suburbs but I’ll point out its existence just in case!
About the rink
The Bell Centre is located in the heart of Downtown. There are so many options of things to do that are at a walking distance from the rink but before diving into that; let’s address the rink itself.
Your Montreal local who is writing this article has been to the Bell Center a handful of times. The last being in December 2019. Here are some things that I noted during my visit.
Seats are cushioned and there are armrests on each side. However, the legroom could be better… Please note that I am quite small and I am fine when it comes to legroom on airplanes and such but I have to say that it was a bit tight at the Bell Centre. Cheers for the fact that it means that we are all closer to the ice since all the rows are being smushed close to each other? 😂
I think it’s important to note in case you want to bring a large bag of plushies with you, it might be hard to store away, or it can become an inconvenience for anyone sitting in your row if they want to exit or move. That being said, there is some space under the seats! It is possible to store a vast amount of plushies to throw onto the ice for later, just take into account making a clear pathway for other spectators (especially if you are in the middle of a row!!) who may want to go to the bathroom or get food.
The Bell Center has a few water fountains! Bring an empty bottle and stay hydrated during the long hours in a cold rink! Highly recommend for good health!!
As for food, there are some concession stands, a sports bar brewery that is directly connected to the rink called La Cage Au Sport, and there is also the M2 Marché Montreal which offers a variety of food (Tacos, BBQ, sandwiches, sushi, pizza, etc...), and a bar with 16 different beers on tap.
Outside the rink, there are more food options, however, I’ll address places that are directly outside the rink that you can walk to in under 3 minutes. For coffee, there is a Starbucks and Café Dépôts. Both are coffee shops that are barely a minute’s walk outside. This is great for those early morning practices in case the rink’s concession stand isn’t open yet. If you are looking for some snacks to bring inside the rink such as energy bars or fruit snacks, there is also a grocery store called Provigo. Lastly, if you want some junk food, there is also a Mcdonald's right across the street. It’s a large one too that has two floors so you can go as a group and hang out there for a bit in case you are short on time and want to eat some non-rink food.
Lodging
If you have not booked lodging, Worlds offers a few hotel options with discounts: Sheraton Centre, Fairfield Inn and Suites Montreal Downtown, and the Marriott Montreal Chateau Champlain.
Airbnb is a cheaper option, though beware of scammers. If you plan on booking an Airbnb and are taking the metro, I highly suggest staying near a station that is on the orange line (some boroughs that are on that metro line: Old Montreal, Plateau Mont-Royal, Ville-Marie, NDG, Cote des Neige) that way it is an easy route to and from the rink.
Choosing lodging based on how close it is to public transport (if you have no car, or do not want to bother with parking) is very useful for those early morning practice sessions that you may want to watch, or for those late nights post-competition nights when all you want to do is go home and immediately roll in bed and sleep. It will save you a lot of energy and will allow you to sleep more knowing you won't have to spend too much time traveling to and from the rink.
Other good options: staying near the metro stations Lionel Groulx, Atwater, Guy Concordia, Peel, or Mcgill. These stations will take less than 10 minutes via the metro to get to the rink. Atwater, Guy Concordia, Peel, or Mcgill will require a metro transfer at Lionel-Groulx because they are located on the green line but it’s not too confusing because there are not many platforms and is a pretty small station. It is also possible to walk to the rink from those stations. The length of the walk depends on which station you are walking from but in general, it should take 30 minutes or less from the five stations mentioned above.
Packing
It will still be wintertime during Worlds. Winter can get quite cold so I suggest packing warmly since you will face cold weather inside and outside of the rink. Layering is a great way to go about it. Long sleeves, sweaters, jackets, scarves… that way you can remove any layers if you get too warm.
A good jacket and boots that are waterproof and that have traction are a must (the traction on the boots helps with the snow and ice if there is still some on the ground)! Though the weather can get mild in mid-march (this would be -6°C to 0°C) there is always the possibility of snow and cold wind chills that will make the weather be colder than it seems.
I remember mid-march two years ago, we had -15°C weather with wind and a lot of snow. Weather is unpredictable so I would suggest packing as warm as possible, and buying more (like hats, gloves, or a scarf) if it’s really necessary.
Keep an eye out for the weather a week before you leave for Montreal. Maybe the weather will drop a snowstorm a week prior and that’s when you know you will need to pack good boots for walking around town. Or maybe the weather will be quite nice and we’ll be lucky to have all the ice and snow melted away for Worlds week and therefore won’t need any heavy-duty winter boots.
Skating related activities
If you’re not only a fan of watching skating, but also the activity of skating: here are a few recommendations!
Le Atrium 1000
This public skating rink is located right next door to the Bell Center and is a mere 5-minute walk! This rink is usually open all afternoon, once you pay the admission fee it will be valid for the entire day, rental skates are available, and this option is probably the easiest rink to go to for some fun active skating times!
Complexe récréatif Gadbois
If you're familiar with this rink, this is where the I.AM Ice Dance Academy is located and where many ice dancers from around the world train. There are free public skating sessions available and maybe if you're lucky, you can absorb some talent from the many skaters who have skated on this ice before 😂 Public sessions take place from Tuesday to Friday from 4:30 pm to 5:30 pm. As well as Saturday from 1:30-3 pm, or 9-10:30 pm.
Beaver Lake
If you are visiting Montreal a week early before Worlds, the Beaver Lake in Mont-Royal is an outdoor skating rink available for the public. Though, whether it is open will be entirely up to the weather, but the last day before the skating rink closes will be on March 15th! The rate goes for $10 for two hours of skating and is a great location if you want to skate, and take some pretty pictures on top of a frozen lake with trees around.
Finally…
Keep an eye out for part two of this guide, as well as a recommendation minisode featuring a surprise guest 👀