Leisure, Sports and the Outdoors

Summer

Sports fans and lovers of the outdoors will be delighted by the facilities and activities offered in Greater Montréal during the summer. Montréal has three public beaches, plus some one hundred outdoor pools, several hundred kilometres of bike paths and footpaths, tennis courts in every neighbourhood, a hundred golf courses, including some in the heart of the city, and an abundance of parks and green spaces. Ten minutes from downtown, thrill-seekers can raft the St. Lawrence River or enjoy a quiet cruise along the waterway. Living in Greater Montréal also means having access, at less than an hour’s drive, to wide-open spaces and numerous lakes and rivers, where swimming, fishing and recreational sports are popular activities.

Winter

In winter, Montréalers skate or play hockey on the numerous indoor and outdoor city rinks, on the frozen ponds in the parks or under the lights of the Bonsecours basin in the Old Port. People can also ski or snow-shoe along the trails in Mount Royal Park, or make use of the 700 km of cross-country ski and snowmobile trails located less than two hours’ drive from Montréal.

Sports events

Montréal is home to the Montréal Canadiens one of the oldest professional teams in the National Hockey League (NHL). Some 40 games per season, not counting the playoffs, are played in Montréal.
Every year, Montréal welcomes the Canada Masters (Rogers Cup), a tennis tournament that attracts the top names from both the men’s and women’s circuits. Popular among players and the public, the event posted a record attendance in 2007 of over 185,000 spectators.