After breakfast, the group will be joined by a local guide. Our city tour will take us through time in Old Montreal, as we visit Place d’Armes, the Old Port, and the Bonsecours Market before visiting the new Quartier International. We will also visit the Mount Royal Park, the Saint-Joseph Oratory, and the incredible Notre-Dame Basilica. The Notre-Dame Basilica, originally built in 1672, was actually demolished and rebuilt in 1824. Traces of the original site are visible at Place d’Armes. In 1982, Pope John Paul II recognized the significance of Notre-Dame, and raised it to the rank of a Minor Basilica. Today, the Notre-Dame Basilica continues to play a role in the artistic community as the home to the evening Aura experience.
Following our tour, enjoy a few hours on your own for lunch, your own explorations of Montreal, and time to freshen up before we head to the evening’s festivities. Tonight, we enjoy a 5-Course dinner cruise on the St. Lawrence River, which will put us in the perfect place to view the first performance of the Fireworks Festival. Known in Montreal as L’International des Feux Loto-Québec, this festival is the world’s largest and most prestigious fireworks competition, drawing the biggest pyrotechnics firms to produce 30-minute pyro-musical extravaganzas. (B, D)