Montreal and Melbourne both made it to the most livable cities list released by the Economist Intelligence Unit in 2018. Melbourne dropped to second place from a consecutive seven-year run as the most liveable city while Montreal bagged the 19th place. Although there is a huge gap in ranking between the two cities, they are similar in so many ways. Here are some of the reasons why:
Cafe Culture
Melbourne has a huge coffee culture and they take pride in it. In fact, big-named coffee shops like Starbucks is almost non-existent in Melbourne and why should it when there are plenty of independent cafes in the city with baristas that serve some of the most amazing flat whites and short blacks you could ever have in life? Montreal also boasts quite a number of amazing cafes with Cafe Olimpico even being named by The Telegraph as one of the best on earth. This love for lounging in a cafe while working or studying may have come from the fact that both Melbourne and Montreal are greatly influenced by Europeans. Melbourne being the city that holds the biggest Italian population outside of Italy and Montreal being a French city, both created their own amazing cafe culture.
Food
Both Montreal and Melbourne are foodie heaven. Melbourne is a multi-cultural city that offers all kinds of cuisine but with the influx of students mainly from Asia, there are a lot of Asian restaurants. Melbourne is also known for many cool brunch places. As for Montreal, which was named the world’s best city for students in 2017, it isn’t a surprise that there are also a lot of options when it comes to restaurants that cater to the growing international student population.
Street Art Scene
These two cities have taken art to the streets. A common thing tourists do in Melbourne is check out street art with the most famous ones found in Hosier Lane. As for Montreal, thanks to the annual Mural Festival held in the summer, the city’s streets and murals are consistently filled with fresh artwork for everyone to admire. In fact, Montreal has been included in the list of best cities in the world to see street art.
Museums and Art Galleries
Art and museum lovers will definitely find a home in Montreal and Melbourne as these two cities have plenty of art to offer. The most visited art gallery in Melbourne is the National Gallery of Victoria. If you are in Montreal, be sure to check out Musée des Beaux-Arts (great news to anyone under 30, as you can get in for free!).
Markets
Locals from both cities support their own farmers and small business owners by providing an avenue for them to sell goods in public markets. In Montreal, no matter the season, locals can buy fresh food from Jean Talon, Lachine, and Atwater markets. Melbourne is the same with the most popular markets found in Queen Victoria, Footscray, South Melbourne, and Prahran.
I haven’t been to either Montreal or Melbourne but they look like fun places to visit! I’m a fan of seeing street art around the world and would love to see them at both places. Looks like I need to plan two trips. Thanks for the inspiration!
You’re so lucky to be able to visit all of this, Australia is for a long time on my bucket list, I hope one day I will cross it 🙂
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I went to school in Montreal but haven’t been to Melbourne. What an interesting article comparing the two. I would definitely like to try that hot chocolate that you picture and I loved the sound and look of the museums/art galleries in Melbourne. Thanks for the post.
Living somewhere with a good coffee shop will be a must for us even if we have our own Keurig. It is always nice to spoil yourself from time to time. I would not have thought these two cities would share a lot of similarities. We have started to enjoy more of the markets when you travel and will definitely continue to when we visit these cities.
This post definitely inspired me to visit both Montreal and Melbourne. I especially love the street art in both the cities. And that food, those desserts! Cant keep my eyes away from them. Hope to visit both soon.
Lovely city! That museum with the huge skulls look interesting. But the best thing about this post is the food! I just came from a midnight snack….and looking at these sumptuous dishes is making me hungry again!
Aw I’m so envious, as I’ve not yet been to either Melbourne or Montreal! That brunch looks out of this world, and I never knew about Melbourne having the largest Italian population outside Italy! We spend half the year in Italy, so will tell my partner this!
You had me at food! Although I have been to Montreal, I haven’t been to Melbourne yet and I am travelling to Australia in 2019, spending 4 days in Melbourne. I am a foodie who also loves coffee so I am sure I’m going to love Melbourne, as much as I did Montreal. Good to know how similar these two cities are!
You have spent good amount of time both in Australia and Canada. And it is great to know both the cities that I have not been to yet. Yes, they have significant similarities, and I find the coffee culture very attractive.
This is such a super post – comparing Montreal and Melbourne through photos. I’ve been to Montreal and liked it a lot. Now I can see from your post, I must visit Melbourne one day, too!
I have never been there, but it looks great place to visit! I love all the cakes x
Laura
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I love all the photos showcased here! Although I have not visited both cities, I would love to head there now after reading your post
Two amazing and so interesting cities that I would love to visit one day! Thank yo for this great comparison!
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I have been to Montreal!!!! Such a lovely city. However, I’ve never been to Melbourne. I would love to visit one day
Interesting article. Being a native Montrealer, I wasn’t aware that my hometown shared so many similarities with Melbourne. One correction, however. Melbourne is not the city with the largest Italian community outside of Italy. In fact, Sao Paolo, Buenos Aires, New York City, and Toronto are listed by Wikipedia as the international cities with the largest Italian populations outside of Italy.