Montreal Mount Royal Self-Guided Audio Walk: Kondiaronk Lookout, the Cross and Beaver Lake
1 hour and 30 minutes
About this experience
Montreal has a mountain in the middle of the city, and Frederick Law Olmsted designed its park so that nobody would reach the top in a rush. The views arrive one at a time, bend by bend. Climb from the bronze Cartier Monument to a hairpin on Olmsted's carriage road and learn why it zigzags. Look east over the Plateau from the Camillien-Houde lookout, stand beneath the riveted steel cross that schoolchildren raised money for, five cents at a time, and reach the Kondiaronk lookout with downtown spread below. Hear why no downtown tower may rise above the summit, and how the Wendat chief Kondiaronk helped make the Great Peace of 1701. Then drift down past the 1964 sculpture clearing to Beaver Lake and its folded concrete pavilion. Seven stops, about 3.4 km and 90 minutes with a steady climb, in English and at your own pace. Toilets at the chalet and at the lake.
- Experience type
- Day tour or activity
- Duration
- 1 hour and 30 minutes
- Guide
- English
- Audio guide
- English
- Categories
- Walking tour · Cultural and theme tours · City tours
What's included
Self-guided audio tour in English: 7 stops, 3.4 km, 1.5 hours Stops at Kondiaronk lookout over downtown, Mount Royal Cross, 1930s chalet and Beaver Lake GPS map and walking directions in your phone browser, no app needed Lifetime access: start any day, at any hour, and replay it
What's not included
A live guide: you set the pace and the pauses A fixed start time: begin whenever you arrive Museum and monument tickets, all optional extras Tip or gratuity Food and drinks Entry or admission fee
Please note
To start the tour, enter the ticket code from your confirmation on the Roamer redemption page linked there. Do this before you set off, while you still have signal. The tour then opens in your phone browser, with no app to download. Bring a charged phone and earphones. Mobile data helps; if you have none, open the tour on wifi before you set off. Best time: Any clear day from late spring to autumn, when the lookouts have long views and the paths are dry. Sunday afternoons in the warmer months bring the drummers to the Cartier Monument at the start. In winter the walk is still possible on packed snow, with ice grips. Short on time? From the Kondiaronk lookout (stop 5), about 630 m of stairs and paths lead down to Avenue des Pins at Rue Peel, dropping about 100 m; downtown and Peel metro are a short walk further down Peel Street. You skip the sculpture clearing and Beaver Lake. The Chalet du Mont-Royal is free to enter and open daily 8:00 to 20:00, with toilets until 19:30 and a café inside (checked 30 September 2026). There are no toilets between the start and the chalet. The Beaver Lake pavilion is open 8:30 to 21:00 (to 22:00 on Friday and Saturday), with toilets and a snack bar (checked 30 September 2026). STM bus 11 is listed as stopping at Lac aux Castors, a short walk west of the lake, and running to Mont-Royal metro; confirm the route on stm.info before you rely on it. In winter the city grooms the mountain for walking, skiing and snowshoeing, but the stairs and the carriage road are packed snow and ice: wear boots with grip, or strap-on ice cleats, and allow extra time. In winter the stairs on the east face and the Peel stairs are icy; ice grips are strongly recommended, and the climb takes longer. Between the monument and stop two the route climbs earth paths and earth steps with no handrail, and the paths on to stop three are unpaved too; they are slippery after rain and in winter, so wear shoes with grip. The Camillien-Houde lookout sits across a car park from a road busy with cars and fast cyclists; the route never crosses it, so stay on the terrace side of the car park. At the cross, stay on the paths: the ground is uneven and the east face of the mountain falls away steeply. Do not climb the structure. At the time of writing, Smith House is closed for works until spring 2027, with no toilets, café or exhibition; use the chalet or the Beaver Lake pavilion (checked 30 September 2026). The carriage road is shared with runners and cyclists; keep to the side. The City has announced a redesign of the Voie Camillien-Houde and its lookout, with works expected in 2027 and 2028; the lookout may change or be fenced off during works (checked 30 September 2026). Public transportation nearby
Itinerary
- 1Day 0
Cartier Monument: A Map of Canada in Bronze
Monument à Sir George-Étienne Cartier, Avenue du Parc, Montreal
This monument turns the making of Canada into bronze figures you can walk around. A winged Fame crowns its granite column, with Cartier and the provinces around its foot.
- 2Day 0
Olmsted's Carriage Road: Why It Zigzags
Chemin Olmsted, Montreal
A hairpin on the carriage road shows why the park climbs so slowly. Olmsted's rule was never steeper than five per cent.
- 3Day 0
Camillien-Houde Lookout: The View a Car Road Brought
Belvédère Camillien-Houde, Montreal
This lookout opens east over the Plateau to the Olympic Stadium. It came with the 1958 road that crossed the mountain.
- 4Day 0
Mount Royal Cross: Riveted Steel Paid For in Nickels
Boucle du Sommet, Montreal
A thirty-metre cross of riveted steel stands on the summit's east edge. Schoolchildren raised the money selling five-cent stamps.
- 5Day 0
Kondiaronk Lookout and Chalet: Downtown Below the Summit
Belvédère Kondiaronk, Montreal
The great terrace looks straight down on downtown and the river. It is named for the Wendat chief who helped make the Great Peace of 1701.
- 6Day 0
Sculpture Clearing and Smith House: Art Made on the Mountain
Chemin Olmsted, Montreal
Eleven large sculptures from a 1964 open-air symposium stand in and around this clearing. Nearby is the last farmhouse on the mountain.
- 7Day 0
Beaver Lake: A Lake Made in the Depression
Chemin Remembrance, Montreal
Beaver Lake is a Depression-era lake dug to Frederick Todd's design. A folded concrete pavilion of the 1950s glows on its shore.
Meeting point
Cartier Monument, Montreal Monument à Sir George-Étienne Cartier, Avenue du Parc, Montréal, Québec, CA
Pick up
Pickup is not provided.
Cancellation policy · Montreal Mount Royal Self-Guided Audio Walk: Kondiaronk Lookout, the Cross and Beaver Lake
Standard Viator policy
- Cancellation 0–24 hours before departure: 100% cancellation fee.
- Cancellation 24–24000 hours before departure: 0% cancellation fee.
Good to know
Operated by Roamer and sold by AGORA. Your voucher and booking reference arrive by email straight after payment.