Tipping & Etiquette in Montreal
Restaurants rarely add service charge onto the bill so it is usual to leave a tip of up to 15% for a good meal. Many eateries are happy for customers to 'apportez votre vin' or bring your own wine and they will rarely charge any corkage fee. Tour guides, salons and hotel porters should be considered for a tip of a couple of dollars if service is good, and it is also common to give taxi drivers an extra 10%.
Montreal Opening Hours
Shops in Montreal are open all day from around 9am - 6pm with many open late on Thursdays and Fridays until 9pm in major shopping centres. Most department stores also open their doors on Sundays at midday. Banks operate between 10am and 3pm on weekdays with a small number opening on Saturday mornings.
Disabled Access in Montreal
Montreal is an old city which may cause some problems for wheelchair users. Old Montreal has many uneven cobbled streets and some bars and restaurants are located in historic buildings which have not been adapted. However transport options are good across the city, with adapted taxis for hire which should be pre booked 1 hour ahead.
Montreal emergency numbers
Police – 911
Ambulance – 911
Fire – 911
Montreal
time zone
Montreal is typically five hours behind GMT, although this can change as different countries observe Daylight saving time at different times of year.
Embassies/Consulates
• UK Consulate Suite 4200, 1000 De La Gauchetiere West Montreal, Quebec H3B 4W5 Phone: (1) (514) 866 5863 Office Hours: GMT: Mon-Fri: 1400-2200 Local Time: Mon-Fri: 0900-1700
• US Consulate 1155 St-Alexandre Street, Montreal, Quebec H3B 3Z1.
Phone: (+1) (514) 398-9695 Office Hours: 08.30-17.00
Electricity
Electricity in Canada is 110V and the plugs are the same as in the U.S. If you come from a country that uses 220V electricity, you will have to bring a converter.
Currency
Canada uses the Canadian dollar which is not, as is sometimes mistakenly thought, the same as the US dollar. Coins can be found in denominations of 1, 5, 10 and 25 cents, and $1 (a large gold-colored coin) and $2 (a large bimetallic coin). Common notes include $5 (blue), $10 (purple) and $20 (green) and you can get $50s (red) and $100s (brown) from banks, though not from most cash point machines (ATMs). Some stores will be reluctant to accept notes larger than $20 because of counterfeits.
City centre shops are often happy to accept U.S. dollars. Major travelers’ cheques can be used in places that accept credit cards, but are not universally accepted as cash.
Almost all shops and restaurants take Visa and MasterCard and some accept American Express. You will usually find the best exchange rate by using your credit card. Most cash points are networked to Cirrus or Interac and will accept major credit or debit cards provided you have a Chip and PIN.
