Montreal was another spontaneous getaway for me. Only about an hour plane ride away, but I wanted a change of scenery for a week and decided it would be a more affordable option than going to Europe because I was having a rough time.

This time, I was able to rope a friend into coming with me, which honestly made all the difference. Without her by my side, this would have been a very quiet trip. Because she came, we both had more confidence to explore the city and make it a trip to remember.

Climbed the stairs to the lookout at Parc du Mont Royal

Once we landed and put our bags in the Airbnb, the first thing we did was find a restaurant for lunch then headed towards the steps that would lead up to the Parc du Mont Royal chalet lookout.

Neither of us realized how much of a hike these stairs would prove to be, but once we got to the top, the beautiful view of the city was definitely worth it.

Inside of the Basilisque Notre-Dame

The next day was spent wandering Old Montreal, which had a very European vibe. We stopped and had a poutine, and enjoyed finding cute souvenir shops, and ate ice cream and we strolled along the riverside. But I think my favourite part of the day was spending an hour or two inside the Notre-Dame Basilica.

I’m a huge fan of architecture and sculptures, and this basilica was absolutely incredible. We spent a lot of time wandering and examining all of the gorgeous artistic details of the church, then we just sat and took it all in for a while. It was really calming.

Montreal Jardin botanique

On our third day in the city, the weather was actually so lovely so we hopped on a train and made our way to the Jardin botanique (Botanical Gardens).

There were a few different gardens in the park, but my favourite was by far the Chinese garden (pictured above). The different types of flowers and trees, the bridges, the waterfall – we must have spent such a long time just taking photos from every angle. I’m so glad we ended up going to visit the gardens.

Bota Bota sur de l’eau

On our final day in Montreal, we ended up wandering the Village and having some delicious food. But the highlight of day four was our spa morning at Bota Bota.

I’ve never been to a spa or even had a massage before, so getting to have that experience at a spa on a boat on the water was pretty cool!

Overall, our Montreal trip was actually the perfect getaway. We were still in Canada, so we didn’t have to worry about the stresses of international travel, but the language expectations were different from back home so it still felt new enough.

We spent half the day exploring the city, then came back and spent the other half relaxing at the Airbnb, cooking dinner together and watching Netflix.

It was the perfect staycation without really ‘staying’.