Historic Neighborhood Tour: Colonial Past Revealed

Discover the city’s oldest neighborhood from a fresh perspective, shedding light on the concealed and occasionally harsh realities of its colonial history.

Duration: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Place d’Armes - Learn the colonial secrets hidden in plain sight in the epicenter of Montreal’s tourism industry.
  • Cours Le Royer - Visit the original site of the Hotel Dieux hospital
What's Included
  • Live guide
Location
Montreal Museum of Archaeology and History
Place Royale
Meet the guide in front of Pointe-à-Callière, 350 Place Royale
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
5.0
(15 Ratings)
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686virginiad
Nov 9, 2025
We love Haunted Montreal tours! - We have attended every tour by Haunted Montreal. If you love history, love Montreal, you will appreciate a guided tour with Donovan & Sophie. Our tour guides were very professional and friendly! You can tell they have done a lot of research to provide information that is not easily accessible and explanations about the statues that will leave you with a different perspective. Well worth your time for anyone visiting or just want to learn more about the city of Montreal. Thanks for a great afternoon!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Explore42857777580
Nov 8, 2025
An eye-opening visit - The visit was amazing! Sophie-Claude explains everything with passion and sensitivity, helping us better understand the realities that are often overlooked — from slavery to the erasure of Indigenous peoples. She even made us taste her banana house, a native bread, a real moment of sharing! I recommend this tour to anyone who wants to discover the back of the decor and the true history of Old Montreal. I’m definitely going back with relatives this spring!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
554embera
Nov 8, 2025
♡ - Every Montrealer and visiting tourist alike should experience this tour. Huge thanks to the guides for sharing their knowledge. I will be recommending this often.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Nomad68449705093
Oct 30, 2025
Enthralling colonial secrets walking tour - Challenging, engaging, enthralling. A model walking tour of Old Montreal that visits its main attractions while reimagining and reinterpreting them from the perspectives of Indigenous Peoples, African slaves, and those subjugated by colonial violence. A tour that brings history to life.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Victorbu7865da
Oct 27, 2025
A great way to spend around 90 minutes on a nice Montreal summer's day - I was fortunate to attend the soft launch of Donovan King's new tour Colonial Secrets of Montreal which delves into some of the little known and even lesser shared history of Montreal's Colonial past. Well researched and expertly presented with Donovan's usual flair. I brought my 12 year old granddaughter Emma who was spellbound. Never looked at her phone once! A great way to spend around 90 minutes on a nice summer's day. Congratulations Donovan!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Seanfu6287ub
Oct 26, 2025
The missing components of Montreal's story. The hidden history that paints a better picture. - I was given the opportunity to join the trial run of the Colonial Secrets tour on August 6, 2025. I was not disappointed. As an Indigenous person, I tend to take all history based tours with a grain of salt, because of the constant whitewashing of history. This one was very different. For the first time, I felt like MY history was acknowledged. Donovan took the typical colonial narrative head-on. He discussed the more realistic aspects of early colonial Montreal, from interactions with Indigenous people to the slave markets and a few of the dark episodes of colonial life. I highly recommend that if you see a "traditional" tour of Old Montreal, you complement it with this tour, to get a far more complete view of how colonial life actually was. By putting both together, you start to see how the glory and the gory coexisted in a time when life was not easy for anyone. A must-see.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Thomas_s
Oct 23, 2025
Always great to see... - Always great to see something/learn something/view something through a different lens. I know little to nothing about Canadian First Nations and enjoyed the view(s) that our guide showed us while learning about the historic area.
Review provided by Viator
Go687686
Oct 7, 2025
Decolonial visit to Old Montreal - Great informative and authentic visit with Sophie Claude. I've always been Montrealer and I really learned to look at my city differently. I loved it.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
837stephaniec
Sep 30, 2025
Gave us a deeper understanding of Old Montreal history - As frequent visitors to Montreal, we are always looking for new activities and attractions when we visit. Having done several of the Haunted Montreal tours in the past, we knew we could expect a good quality experience with this new tour offering, and we were not disappointed. The tour was well-researched and gave us a deeper understanding of the history of this area. As someone with ancestral ties to New France, it was a humbling and enriching experience to learn more about the realities of this time in history. We appreciated the guide's sensitive handling of the subject matter, and the personal connections she shared with us as well.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
S2923rvianj
Aug 31, 2025
Chilling! - Great overview of the Colonial history of Old Montreal with a refreshingly progressive perspective. The on-site presentation provided an immersive experience that was truly haunting! Did not see the sites the same way afterwards. Would highly recommend!
Review provided by Tripadvisor