At this time last week, we were either inhaling Thanksgiving treats or recovering from them. Now that we’re back to a full work week, it might feel a bit daunting. Luckily, Montreal has a slew of fun things to do.
The Habs are in town, and there are a bunch of great Halloween-themed things to check out, a bunch of pumpkins, and some seriously cool art exhibits.
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Here’s what’s worth checking out across Montreal this week, October 18 to 24.
RECHARGER/Unwind – Oasis Immersion
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Housed inside the Palais des Congrès, RECHARGER/Unwind is a stunning new digital world that aims to reenergize guests at Oasis immersion, Canada’s biggest immersive indoor attraction.
The walkthrough experience of 10 works by some of Quebec’s (and the world’s) most prominent digital artists offers a stimulating and soothing sensory walkthrough experience.
When: From now until January 30, 2022
Time: 10:20 am – 8:20 pm
Where: Palais des congrès de Montréal, 1001 Pl. Jean-Paul-Riopelle
Price: From $19 to $25, available online
Montreal Canadiens at home
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The Canadiens have three games at home in five days this week. They host the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday before welcoming old friend Jesperi Kotkaniemi on Thursday and the Red Wings on Saturday.
Considering the Bell Centre can now function at full capacity, this will be an experience that Montrealers haven’t experienced in over 580 days.
If there’s ever been a time to fork out cash for Habs tickets, it might be now.
When; October 19, 21, 23
Time: 7 pm
Where: Centre Bell
Price: Various prices, available online
Self-guided street art tours
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Montreal has a great collection of hidden (and not so hidden) street art tours that you can tackle by yourself.
Luckily, we’ve put together a handy guide of which mural pieces are the most photo-worthy to check out and where they are.
Fall foliage AND street art? Tough to top.
When: Daily
Time: 24/7
Where: Various spots around the city
Price: Free
Ballet – Vivaldi’s Four Seasons
Les Grands Ballets
There is never a bad time to hear Vivaldi’s wonderful Four Seasons! This triple bill will mark two great returns for Les Grands Ballets, that of Mauro Bigonzetti’s ballet The Four Seasons, set to Vivaldi’s iconic score of the same name, and also a new collaboration with Quebec choreographer Edouard Lock. Be sure to catch a live rendition of this while you can.
When: From now until October 23
Where: Salle Wilfred Pelletier, Place des Arts
Time: 8 pm
Price: Tickets begin at $39
Orionids Meteor Shower
Brian Spencer/Shutterstock
The Orionids Meteor Shower is set to peak in the early morning hours of Wednesday, October 20, and Montrealers will be able to get a peek.
A peek of the peak.
Experts say skywatchers in both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres can expect to see rates of up to 20 meteors per hour, but only under the best conditions away from city lights.
Orionid meteors are known to be extremely fast, plummeting into the Earth’s atmosphere at about 66 kilometres per second.
When: Wednesday, October 20
Time: Approximately 2 am ET
Pumpkinferno at Upper Canada Village
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How about more than 7,000 pumpkins in one place?
Pumpkinferno, the one-kilometre walk with a backdrop of the picturesque 19th-century setting, is only 148 kilometres from Montreal.
Fright Fest
If you’re looking for thrills and frills, look no further than La Ronde’s spooktacular Halloween events calendar.
After a one-year hiatus, La Ronde is bringing Fright Fest back throughout the month of October.
This year’s edition, which kicked off on October 2, features fan-favourite haunted attractions with some new spooky surprises sprinkled in.
When: From now until October 31
Where: La Ronde
Time: 1 pm – 10 pm
Price: All-day passes begin at $44.99
MALUMA
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Juan Luis Londoño Arias, known professionally as Maluma, is a Colombian singer and songwriter. He’ll be at the Bell Centre, rocking out a probable sold-out crowd to cap off the workweek.
When: Friday, October 22, 2021
Time: 8 pm
Where: Centre Bell
Price: Starting at $76, available online
Atwater Market
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If you haven’t yet decorated your home with pumpkins, it’s primetime pumpkin season at the Atwater Market. It’s the same result as going to a pumpkin patch, just you know, much less work.
When: From now until October 31
Time: 9 am – 6 pm
Where: 138 avenue Atwater
Price: Starts at $4 per pumpkin
Biodôme Montreal
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After being closed for more than two years for renovations (and a pandemic), the Biodôme de Montréal is finally reopened.
Using some elements from Biodôme’s original 1976 design, guests can now observe the birds in the Tropical Rainforest from treetop level, enter a beaver lodge, and really experience what subpolar cold feels like – just like the penguins.
Walk through replicas of four ecosystems found in the Americas without even leaving the island.
When: Daily
Time: 9 am – 6 pm
Where: 4777 Pierre-de Coubertin Avenue
Price: $16.50 – $21.50, available online
An Ode to the Moon – Gardens of Light
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Montreal’s Botanical Garden will shine bright with hundreds of illuminated lanterns thanks to the Gardens of Light.
The eight-week festival will offer a “brand new journey,” says the Espace pour la vie website, focusing on this year’s theme, “An ode to the Moon.”
The lantern fest will be devoted to the Moon this fall, the “universal beacon that has guided human beings since the dawn of time.” Espace pour la vie says the Moon will be the light that ushers guests on their path to discover the Gardens of Light.
When: From now until October 31
Time: 7 – 10 pm, nightly
Where: 4101 Sherbrooke Est
Price: $8.25 – $16.50
Festival SPASM
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Since 2002, the ever-growing SPASM short-film festival has been highlighting the efforts of local horror and science fiction filmmakers.
Now in its 20th edition, this year’s festival, which officially kicks off this week, will feature online and in-person showings of films from Quebec and the rest of the world.
And for the first time in SPASM’s history, all of the short films on the program will be made available online as well as in-person.
When: October 21 to 31
Time: Various times
Where: Various venues across Montreal
Price: $40 – $75
Ferme Marineau – Pumpkin patch
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This farm has an impressive selection of fall-based activities on-site, including pumpkin tic-tac-toe, pumpkin bowling (which is exactly what it sounds like), a giant pumpkin house, corn maze, a petting zoo, tractor rides, and of course, food and drink.
When: Weekends from now until the end of October
Time: 9 am – 6 pm
Where: 4356 Boulevard Dagenais Ouest, Laval
Price: $4
D.J. Demers at The Comedy Nest
As seen on Conan, America’s Got Talent, and through his own special on Crave, D.J. Demers lands at The Comedy Nest this week, and he’s bringing his clever persona with him to sling jokes around all weekend.
Including acts and hosting duties from local comics, why not have a few laughs this week?
Or at least some of the Nest’s free popcorn…
When: October 21 – 23
Time: 8 pm and 10:30 pm (Friday and Saturday)
Where: 2313 Rue Sainte-Catherine O (3rd Floor)
Price: $6 – $17.50, available online
Iontkahthóhtha – Indigenous art show
Scott Berwick/Submitted
An Indigenous art show will take place at the Riverside Inn in Kahnawake from now until October 24.
Iontkahthohtha will showcase artwork by Onkwehón: we artists from Tuesday to Saturday every week for the rest of the month.
When: From now until October 24
Time: Tuesday – Thursday, 1 – 6 pm; Friday & Saturday, 1 -8 pm
Where: The Riverside Inn
Find the Key – Escape Room
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‘Tis the season of good frights and cheap thrills, and what better way to celebrate that than going to one of Montreal’s premier escape rooms?
Find the Key is the perfect spot for a one-of-a-kind group activity and can be found in the downtown area. The facility contains four unique escape rooms and experiences that you and your group can participate in.
When: Daily
Time: Tuesday – Thursday, 4 pm – 9 pm; Friday, 2:30 – 10:30 pm; Saturday, 10 am – 10:30 pm; Sunday, 10 am – 9 pm
Where: 1000 Atateken #101
Price: $20 – $25
Leonard Cohen: A Crack in Everything
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Maybe you’re not in the mood to go out on the town? If that’s the case, this virtual exhibition of Leonard Cohen might be up your alley.
The online exhibition is divided into four main themes that are omnipresent in Leonard Cohen’s body of work: Poetic Thought, Spirituality & Humility, Love and Loss & Longing.
When: From now until February 2024
Time: 24/7
Where: Online
Price: Free
THE INFINITE
THE INFINITE is a new, groundbreaking virtual reality multi-sensory exhibition that takes guests on a journey aboard the International Space Station.
Freely explore a life-sized reproduction of the ISS in virtual reality as if you were there. Using several different mediums (VR, augmented reality, and projections), the exhibit offers “exceptional realism in an experience that lasts 60 minutes,” says the Centre PHI.
Go to space without having to leave Earth. Great deal.
When: From now until November 7
Times: Friday to Sunday, 10 am – 8 pm; Tuesday to Thursday, 10 am – 7 pm
Address: Arsenal Contemporary Art Montreal – 2020, rue William
Price: $10 – $40 (from Tuesday to Thursday), $12 – $50 (Friday to Sunday)
Barbie Expo
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Montreal is home to the Barbie Expo, the largest permanent collection of Barbie dolls in the world.
Guests have the chance to see and snap pics of over 1,000 one-of-a-kind Barbie dolls, all dressed by the city’s leading fashion designers.
When: Daily
Time: Friday, 10 am to 9 pm; Saturday, 10 am to 6 pm; Sunday, 10 am to 5 pm
Where: 1455 Rue Peel
Price: Free admission
AURA
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October is the last month to take in AURA, one of the Old Port’s most popular and beautiful events.
Moment Factory presents the immersive light show at the timeless Notre Dame Basilica.
It’s seriously breathtaking.
When: October 21-23
Time: 6, 7, 8 and 9 pm
Where: Notre-Dame Basilica, 110 Notre-Dame St Ouest
Price: Ranges from $21 to $32, available online
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