The Auberge Bonaparte Hotel in Montreal

By, Jan Ross

The Auberge Bonaparte is one of those hotels.

You know the ones I mean.

Those hotels you see in movies and TV shows, those hotels that you enter through a discreet and classy door on a hidden side street into an intimate and beautifully furnished lobby with a warm fireplace flickering quietly in the next room. Those hotels which have a small and lovely restaurant adjoining them with skillfully prepared and quite, quite delicious food. And you wonder WHERE in the world those hotels are located because you want to stay in one of those hotels.

Now you know.

Entrance to the Auberge Bonaparte.

We were fortunate enough to stay at this fabulous hotel during our visit to Montreal and it is truly a little jewel in the crown of Old Montreal. Conveniently located near the Notre Dame Basilica, museums, restaurants and shops of Old Montreal, it is also easy to access the Metro or even the Bixi bike stands which are throughout the city.

We were astonished and pleased when we arrived from the airport late in the evening on a very cold, very wet and very nasty night to find that Michael Banks, the Director of Marketing for the Auberge Bonaparte, had upgraded us to a suite. We didn't realize until later how truly special this was, since this small and charming boutique hotel has only one suite exactly like this one. With only 30 rooms in a variety of designs, this very special, cozy hotel is truly an oasis in the middle of Old Montreal.








Roomy bedroom

With beautiful hardwood floors, large French dormer windows and high ceilings with crown moldings, the rooms all have a view of the quaint cobblestone streets or the gardens and the beautiful Notre-Dame Basilica in the background. This was one of the few times we never turned on our TVs (just too busy!), but they do have cable TV with movie channels included. One thing that really pleased the two techies (computer! iPad! iPhone!) is that wifi is available in the rooms and it was extremely fast - always a plus! All rooms are non-smoking, which we consider an even nicer plus.

All of the rooms are perfectly lovely, but if you can possibly arrange a stay in the same suite we had, I recommend it. We love a suite whenever we can manage one because it's so nice to have a living room area, in case one of us wants to sleep later than the other one or even take a nap in the afternoon. The living room in this suite is quite large with a comfortable couch, two chairs, a TV and a nice mini-bar area which is great to stock with drinks and snacks for your stay. There is also a very nice terrace with a wrought-iron table and chairs that would be very pleasant in nice weather. We went out long enough to take pictures, then came back in to our warm and cozy room.

The bedroom is also a nice size with a lovely king-sized bed, a desk and another TV. But my favorite room was the bathroom. This beautiful, marble bathroom has a glass shower and - my favorite - a huge whirlpool tub. This would actually be a great place for a honeymoon couple! I admit that I did sit in a tub full of hot water for a few minutes trying to turn knobs and push buttons before my husband figured out for me that the switch is actually on the wall. You can set it for 10, 20, 30 or 60 minutes. So, just fill the tub, hop in and relax completely. I know I did!

There are several other rooms that also include a whirlpool tub and some have queens and king-size beds; you can decide which will meet your needs.

The other thing that really pleased us immeasurably was the fact that breakfast daily is included in the price of your room. We had no idea what to expect when we went down to the beautiful dining room that first morning - toast? an unappealing buffet? - but no worries. Breakfast is absolutely wonderful, with a small but complete menu that includes French pancakes, French toast, omelets cooked to order (delicious! try the brie and spinach, it's yummy) and several other items. The bread basket changes daily and I just hope you are there on the morning they serve chocolate bread because it is really a treat. Not only are the breakfasts delicious, they are also a nice way to save money for the other things you will want to do in Montreal! Room service is also available (if you get breakfast in your room, you are limited to a Continental breakfast) and their dinners are seriously to die for.








Lovely dining room.


This is truly a unique and wonderful place to stay in Montreal. Don't even consider one of those huge chain hotels when you visit - what you want is the Auberge Bonaparte!

When you are ready to travel to Montreal and stay at the Auberge Bonaparte, The Travel Authority is ready to help you plan that trip. You can call 1-877-AXP-1515 for information and details about these cruises. Be sure to print out this post or mention the code BLAMA to get the best deal on your trip. I would love to hear your suggestions for future blog posts. You can comment below or contact me by email at jan.ross@thetravelauthority.com. Thanks for reading - I truly appreciate it!

Safe travel!








- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Nuances Restaurant at the Casino de Montreal

by, Jan Ross

The lights of Montreal sparkled like a giant, multi-hued gemstone necklace thrown over the city but they paled in comparison to the golden lights of the Casino de Montreal as we pulled up in our taxi. Located on the shore of the St. Lawrence River, this fabulous building was originally the French Pavilion for the Expo'67, but was inaugurated as the Casino de Montréal on October 9, 1993. At the time, it housed 65 gaming tables and 1,200 slot machines. The casino opened its doors on October 9, 1993 and was an instant success, with average daily visitor numbers reaching the 12,000 mark. It has expanded several times and major renovations began in the fall of 2009.

The Casino de Montreal is one of the world's largest casinos, provides five floors of gaming and is one of the city's star attractions. It now has more than 2,900 slot machines, 130 gaming tables and it never closes. That's right - it's open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Some gamblers will be dismayed to hear that the rules at this casino are a little different - no smoking at all and no drinking while you are playing.

We wandered through the gaming rooms where bright lights and colors combined with hundreds of visitors enjoying themselves to create an exciting panorama. But we weren't here to gamble. We were here to eat.

Dinner, to be precise. Dinner at Nuances, the only 5 Diamond CAA-AAA restaurant in Montreal and one which is maintained this lofty status since 2000. The contemporary beauty of the small restaurant located on the 5th floor of the Casino is set off by the huge windows which overlook the St. Lawrence River and the reflected lights of Montreal. We were seated at a small table by the windows and marveled at the incredible view before we were presented with our menus.





What a beautiful place!

We looked at each other, a little overwhelmed by all the choices. Nuances presents a truly unique dining experience with modern and classic French cuisine and everything on the menu looked absolutely wonderful. Our waitress, perhaps sensing that we were overwhelmed with the choices, suggested a special tasting or decouverte (discovery) menu. This is not even on the regular menu but consists of several small courses, chosen by the chef, which allow you to try a variety of items. This sounded just right, so we agreed. This was the best restaurant decision we have ever made in our lives.

I can't even begin to tell you about all the wonderful food we had, all in tiny portions beautifully arranged on the plate so they were just the right amount. I remember creamy asparagus soup with a crab-stuffed spring roll perched on top; halibut that had been pan-fried to a golden brown and covered with some creamy sauce that was the best thing I have ever tasted; mushroom ravioli; and thin strips of venison which I was leery about but she assured us would be delicious. And they were. By this point, we were completely full but, somehow, we managed to eat some sort of delicious, warm chocolate cake with a hot fudge center.

That might very well have been the best meal we have ever eaten. If you are in Montreal and looking for the perfect place to spend a little time being entertained by as many gaming opportunities as you can possibly imagine and having the best dinner of your lives, I recommend the Casino de Montreal. It was an easy cab ride from the Auberge Bonaparte - not more than 15 minutes and the cab was about $15 - $17. Dinner was a little more than that. But totally worth it.

When you are ready to travel to Montreal, The Travel Authority is ready to help you plan that trip. You can call 1-877-AXP-1515 for information and details about traveling to Montreal. Be sure to print out this post or mention the code BLAMA to get the best deal on your trip. I would love to hear your suggestions for future blog posts. You can comment below or contact me by email at jan.ross@thetravelauthority.com. Thanks for reading - I truly appreciate it!

Safe travel!







- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Montreal Tower, Botanical Garden, and Metro - Oh, My!

by, Jan Ross

I must say, I am pretty pleased with myself. We managed to get from the Montreal Tower all the way back to the lovely Auberge Bonaparte on the Metro - and we only took one train going the wrong way! Score! To his credit, my husband was completely befuddled by the whole Metro concept or he would have noticed that I carefully selected a train that was going not TO our destination but AWAY from it.

We figured it out pretty quickly when the announcer started announcing stations that were clearly heading away from our hotel on the map. We just got off at the next stop, climbed to street level, climbed back down and got on a train going the other way. Not hard at all.The Metro trains are clean, run every few minutes and are very fast - you should not hesitate to travel around Montreal using them.

But let me back up and tell you about our day before we ended up at the Montreal Tower. Montreal is a large, gorgeous, very historical city with many different neighborhoods, each of which is delineated by different shaped lamp posts - a clever and easy way to tell when you have moved from one neighborhood to another. There is a lot to see and do in this lovely city so the first thing I suggest is precisely what we did - have a tour of the city. We were lucky enough to work with Tourisme Montreal for our tour but there are several excellent tour companies available. This will help you understand the way Montreal is laid out and will give you some ideas about what else you want to see.

We drove all around the city, then stopped in a neighborhood restaurant called Valois to have some lunch. These neighborhood restaurants are where the locals go to eat, hang out and have long conversations. It's the type of place where, if you leave your wallet, you can just go back and get it the next day. It's also a great place to eat. We had burgers and our very first frites, which are basically french fries but much, much, MUCH better. They are smaller, crispier and quite delicious. I was tempted to again take pictures of our food but it was the middle of the day, we were surrounded by local people and I didn't want to act like too much of an American. So you will have to take my word that they are wonderful.

After lunch, our guide dropped us off at the Montreal Botanical Garden where we saw gorgeous orchids, teeny tiny bonsai trees and the largest cactus I have ever seen. The Botanical Garden covers 180 acres and has 10 exhibition greenhouses and over 30 outdoor gardens. It should be on the must-see list for everyone who visits Montreal.










Beautiful orchids!









Gorgeous Flowers!










Seriously HUGE cactus!

From there, it's an easy walk to the Montreal Tower. The Olympic Stadium and Tower were built for the 1976 Olympic Games and are quite spectacular. A tram or "funicular" takes you up to the top of the Tower, which is the tallest inclined tower in the world and has a fantastic view of the city.








The Montreal Tower (Tour de Montreal)

From the Tower, it's an even easier walk to the closest Metro station and from there, you can go anywhere in the city.

Just make sure you take the train that is going the right way.

When you are ready to travel to Montreal and stay at the Auberge Bonaparte, The Travel Authority is ready to help you plan that trip. You can call 1-877-AXP-1515 for information and details about traveling to Montreal. Be sure to print out this post or mention the code BLAMA to get the best deal on your trip. I would love to hear your suggestions for future blog posts. You can comment below or contact me by email at jan.ross@thetravelauthority.com. Thanks for reading - I truly appreciate it!

Safe travel!




- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Bienvenue a Montreal

by, Jan Ross

When you drive from the Montreal airport into Old Montreal, it's roughly like journeying from the 21st Century back to the 15th Century and into a story from Grimm's Fairy Tales. Aside from the people strolling the streets in skinny jeans clutching cups of designer coffee, of course. You drive by towering skyscrapers which comprise the supremely modern cityscape of Montreal and suddenly you are driving down narrow alleys hemmed in by small buildings hewn of rough stone with your tires bumping over cobblestones. It is quiet, serene and lovely with people strolling the sidewalks, hand in hand, visiting the shops and restaurants.

But it wasn't until we reached the door of our hotel that we fully appreciated the timeless beauty and fairy-tale quality of this part of Montreal. I'll be writing in more detail about the wonderful Auberge Bonaparte but, for now, just let me say that when we stepped into the small and precious front lobby and felt the warmth of the fireplace which was matched only by the warmth of the greeting we received, we knew we had arrived at a truly special boutique hotel.

We will be touring the city tomorrow and I'll be sharing with you all about that experience, as well as more information about our hotel but for now let me just tell you that if you are ever in Montreal? You seriously need to stay here. And one of the reasons?

Is the Auberge Bonaparte restaurant. After a delayed flight, we arrived late in the dark, cold and fog just in time to check into our completely fabulous suite (whirlpool jaccuzi! balcony overlooking the park!), spiff up a little and head down for our dinner reservation at 7:30.

And. OH. MY. WORD. This is the place you want to have dinner in Old Montreal. SERIOUSLY. It's warm and cozy and the wait staff is absolutely wonderful in every way.

Beautiful flower on our table. In a POOL OF LIGHT. Not sure how they managed that so beautifully.






My dinner. Chicken breast with Brie and Sage Sauce. Melted, warm Brie. YUM. I would have taken a picture of the completely fabulous bread which we ate with a veritable slab of some of the best butter I have ever had IN MY LIFE but we ate it too fast. Um. SORRY.






A veritable dessert montage because really? Who can pick just one? And again...YUM.

Our only problem at this point is waiting for breakfast to find out what culinary delights the restaurant has to offer.

So. My first post about our whirlwind tour of Montreal, Amsterdam and a wine-tasting river cruise with AmaWaterways and it's all about the food. Not sure what this says about the future vacation posts, but you might want to have a snack close by.

When you are ready to travel to Montreal and stay at the Auberge Bonaparte, The Travel Authority is ready to help you plan that trip. You can call 1-877-AXP-1515 for information and details about these cruises. Be sure to print out this post or mention the code BLAMA to get the best deal on your trip. I would love to hear your suggestions for future blog posts. You can comment below or contact me by email at jan.ross@thetravelauthority.com. Thanks for reading - I truly appreciate it!

Safe travel!





- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad