Demographics show that Montreal residents come from 80 countries, forming many vibrant ethnic communities and neighborhoods.  You will quickly detect a distinct British influence in parts of the city, inherent in the culture since the days when English merchants controlled the city’s trade. The metro are has many neighborhoods here is a brief description of a few.

The Main
Splitting the city in half, both physically and psychologically, is St-Laurent Boulevard—The Main, as it is affectionately known. It is here that waves of immigrants first settled upon their arrival in the New World. Reminders of the past still abound in family-run Polish delis tucked in beside upscale restaurants and in dollar stores located next door to swank billiards emporiums. This is ground zero for the city’s addresses (streets number east and west from St-Laurent) and, historically, this was the demarcation line between English and French Montreal, with the French predominating to the east and the English to the west.

Old Montreal
This is where, in 1642, the city’s first European settlers staked their claim to a land they thought was theirs by divine right. You can still see the remnants of their original fortifications, and you can check out artifacts from the period at the Montreal History Centre (Centre d’histoire de Montreal) as well as the Pointe-à-Callière Museum of archaeology and history. Also found here are the oldest buildings in Montreal, with some, such as the Sainte-Sulpice Seminary (Vieux Seminaire Saint-Sulpice), dating back to the late 17th century.

Montreal Islands
Across the St-Lawrence River, the Expo 67 islands of Ste-Helène and Notre-Dame still glitter from when Montreal hosted the World’s Fair in 1967. Today the site is home to La Ronde amusement park, the Gilles Villeneuve Racetrack (Circuit Gilles Villeneuve) and Montreal’s world-class Casino.

Plateau Mont-Royal
On the other end of The Main is the Plateau Mont-Royal neighborhood, unusual in that it encompasses both ethnic shops and restaurants on Parc Avenue as well as the hip Francophone crowd along St-Denis Street. This is Canada’s most densely populated area.

Little Italy
Just a little further north and it’s “Viva Italia!” the original home of the first Italian immigrants and now one of the liveliest areas in the city with its espresso bars, boutiques and authentic Italian cuisine.

Underground City
Montreal-above-ground has been described as the tip of the urban iceberg. Beneath it lays the world’s most extensive system of interconnected pedestrian and Metro (subway) networks, linking buildings, boutiques, restaurants and even residential apartments. You could spend an entire winter in this subterranean city without ever once having to face the cold or snow.