The 10 Most Impressive Buildings in Montreal

Designed for the 1976 Summer Olympics, this multi-purpose stadium is one of the most easily identifiable structures in the city. At 165 meters (541 feet), the distinctive, slanting Tour de Montréal holds the status of being the tallest inclined tower in the world. It’s also the sixth tallest structure in Montreal. Currently, the venue is used to host special events like concerts, conventions, and trade shows.

The Sun Life Building, completed in 1931, was under construction in some form or another since 1913. At the time, the structure was the largest building based on square footage anywhere in the British Empire. It currently stands at 24 stories and 122 meters (400 feet) high, making it the 17th tallest building in the city. Part of its historical significance comes from the fact that the building was used during WWI to store Britain’s gold reserves. The gold was secretly packed into crates labeled as “fish” and shipped across the Atlantic Ocean, where it was held in a vault three floors below the Sun Life Building before being shipped on to Ottawa.

Situated on Westmount Summit, St. Joseph’s is the largest church in Canada. According to Catholic lore, the basilica is associated with the miraculous healing powers of Brother Andre Bessette, who is now a saint. Construction of the current church building on the slopes of Mont-Royal started in 1917, and it is an important Catholic pilgrimage site.

Another one of Montreal’s impressive religious buildings, Mary, Queen of the World Cathedral (Cathédrale Marie-Reine-du-Monde) lies in the downtown area and stands as the third-largest church in the province of Quebec. Modeled after Saint Peter’s Basilica in Rome, the construction of this prominent Baroque Revival cathedral took place from 1870 to 1878 and from 1885 to 1894.

The Pointe-à-Callière Museum is one of the city’s most prominent museums, founded in 1992. Its three pavilions sit on three archaeological sites, which each represent significant moments in the city’s colonial histories. Some of the archaeological foundations uncovered during the construction of the museum remain as part of the Pointe-à-Callière’s permanent displays.

Located in the Quartier International, the World Trade Centre in Montreal, completed in 1992, is a “horizontal skyscraper.” From the outside, the structure looks like a classic late-19th-century block of business buildings, but a glassed-in atrium actually encases them. With its combination of historic and modern architecture, there’s even a piece of the Berlin Wall, which was given to the city in 1992, on public display in the building.