Back Up Your Sleigh for Montreal’s Oh Sooo Sweet Holiday Markets! Joseph Decibus October 17, 2018 Interests, Shopping 1 Comment Do you want a getaway where you can get all your holiday shopping done in one fell swoop and at a discount to boot? Want to escape the frantic stampedes of Black Friday and, at the other extreme, the sedate, just-add-it-to-your-cart humdrum of online shopping? Then go to Montreal, Quebec, a holiday festive town that’ll put you in a joyful mood and serve up lots of fun while you shop for your loved ones, especially at two of our favorite markets: The Nutcracker and the SOUK. Before we go into these markets, we must admit that Montreal is a pretty swell town for shopping all year round. From its boutiques in Mile End and along Mont Royal Avenue up on the Plateau to its village of art galleries and gift shops in Old Montreal to its big, shiny “grande dame” department stores and Underground City in the Business District, Montreal is a magnet for shoppers. And with the re-opening of Montreal’s many winter holiday markets, shopping here becomes a sweet dream indeed. [perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]If everyday shopping in Montreal is special for the variety of high-quality merchandise and exemplary personal service, the holiday markets are extra special for their unique, locally made goods that are sold by the artists and artisans who created them. [/perfectpullquote] You can, for example, buy some wonderful jewelry and pottery at these markets (for gifts, remember, for gifts!) from the jewelry makers and potters who lovingly crafted them by hand, giving you a nice chance to gain insight into the care, skill, and hard work they put into them. If you can’t remember the last time that you spoke with a person who made something that you bought, then that’s just another big reason to visit these holiday markets. We provide some highlights of a couple of them below: The Nutcracker Market (Nov. 28th – Dec. 8th) – A Land of Sweets Like in the Ballet Brisk Shopping at the Nutcracker Market / Photo Courtesy of Palais des Congrès de Montréal The Nutcracker Market is a land of sweets, sweet things, and the sweet! It takes place on the ground floor of the Palais des Congrès de Montréal, a convention center in the Quartier International, whose bright, multi-colored façade of glass panels makes for luscious eye candy that jubilantly reflects the holiday treats that this market offers you within. Nearly 100 makers set up shop here for just 11 days. The Sweets A Treasure Trove of Macarons You can load up your sleigh at this market with oodles upon oodles of delectable, ungodly good goodies like boxes and boxes of parti-colored, delicious macarons and lickable lollipops you’ll be lickin’ all day long (for shopping energy!), gourmet chocolates, nougat, handmade candies with exotic flavors and quirky styles like the “sushi kit,” decadent caramel butter, jammin’ fruit jams, salad dressings and barbecue sauces made with Canadian maple syrup, and sweet libations such as Cassis and maple syrup liqueurs. The Sweet Things Handmade Necklaces of Beautiful Baltic Sea Amber There are plenty of sweet things to add to your sleigh as well such as beautiful, golden Baltic Sea amber jewelry and handmade pottery, including really nice coffee cups and complete sets of dishware too. You’ll also find cool and clever toys for children, scented candles, and perfumes and cosmetics, stylish clothing, pocketbooks, and even ballet apparel and other special dance-related products offered by Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montréal, which sponsors the Nutcracker Market. The Sweet Esabelle Chen. Danseuse / Photo by Daphné Caron. Courtesy of Les Grands Ballets Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montréal, an international dance company formed in this city in 1952, created the Nutcracker Market and the related Nutcracker Fund for Children in 2010 to raise money for the benefit of local children who have been stricken with illness or otherwise disadvantaged. With this year’s market, Les Grand Ballets will be celebrating its tenth anniversary as its host, admirably carrying on its tradition of helping children in need and adding a charitable dimension to its motto “Move the world. Differently.” The vendors generously contribute 10% of the proceeds from their sales at this market to the Nutcracker Fund for Children. So if you buy gifts here for your children, for instance, you’re also giving to Montreal’s children, including providing them with a chance to attend a performance of the Nutcracker Ballet by Les Grands Ballets. In other words, you’re pretty sweet too! Last year, the Nutcracker Market drew about 72,000 visitors, raising tens of thousands of dollars for its charity. Admission to the market is free. The Nutcracker Market is located in the Palais des Congrès de Montréal at 1001 place Jean-Paul-Riopelle, and starts at 11 a.m. each day. The SOUK (Nov. 27th to Dec. 1st) – Like A Bazaar in North Africa, Sans Snake Charmers Lots of Cool Gifts for Souking Up Your Holiday / Photo by Steve Montpetit. Courtesy of SOUK A “souk” is like a Moroccan market where you never quite know what unique and exotic treasures you might find, but are at least certain that you absolutely must have a look. The SOUK in Montreal gives you some of the same intrigue and style as it brings together about 70 Montreal artists and designers to hawk their innovative arts and crafts in a loft-like, industrial space. Last year and for many years before, this market was held at the Society for Arts and Technology (SAT), an internationally recognized non-profit promoting the digital and media arts, in the Quartier de Spectacles and was called souk@sat. This year, however, the caravan of artists will unpack “take 16” in a new venue: the historic RCA Building near the Westmount section of the city. A Chance to Meet Montreal’s Newest Artists The exciting SOUK gives you an evanescent chance to meet some of Montreal’s newest artists and to buy their works all in one stop. Though their location has changed, you’ll probably still find them displaying their goods on long, low tables that beckon you to crouch down to touch and feel before you buy – just like you might do with a Marrakech street vendor’s wares. (There’s something about squatting on the ground with a vendor that just says “let’s make a deal.”) A Range of One-of-a-Kind Goods from Utilitarian to Très Chic Low Tables Bearing Pottery and Art Books / Photo by Steve Montpetit. Courtesy of SOUK While the SOUK is a lot more refined than a Marrakech market, another of its strong parallels is that it’s a place where you’ll find quite novel gifts indeed since what’s on offer in any given year depends on what a new group of artists brings. You’re sure to discover a range of interesting goods from utilitarian yet stylish things like doormats with designs to high fashion dresses and chic jewelry. One year there was even a cleverly designed laundry bag for sale that you could stand up in a closet, fill, and then convert into a backpack for carrying to the laundromat. We’ve also seen wonderfully woven wool blankets and sweaters here that were beautiful, warm, and comfortable. Soon to be in its sixteenth year of operation (“take 16” in media terms), the SOUK is located in the RCA Building at 1001 Lenoir Street. It starts at 10 a.m. on each of the five days that it’s open to the general public, and admission is free. A Few Sweet Tips for Your Holiday Shopping Trip Tips to Make Your Holiday Happy / Photo by Tolikoff Photography for Shutterstock Where the Discounts Are Since major currencies like the U.S. dollar and the Euro are strong against the Canadian dollar now, you can effectively get a discount on almost everything you purchase in Canada. For example, something that costs CA $100 only costs about US $76 when adjusted for currency conversion. If you buy with a credit card that forgives currency conversion fees, you get to keep all of the discount. Tourisme Montréal offers a “Fall Sweet Deal” that enables you to get as much as 50% off your second night’s stay at participating Montreal hotels as well as a booklet of coupons with special offers from local stores and from popular tourism sites. Furthermore, some hotels have partnerships with local businesses that enable their guests to get discounts off merchandise and services so be sure and inquire about this at the one you choose. Some vendors in the markets will charge you a bit less if you pay in cash. Airfare to Montreal Is Cheap Flying to Montreal from any of the East Coast states in the U.S. is pretty cheap. Recently, we saw nonstop fares for American Airlines from the New York area to Montreal selling for about $303 round trip on CheapOair, but be sure to look for special Black Friday flight offers. Book Your Hotel Room Early Montreal has plenty of hotel rooms at a range of different price points, but the best deals get booked pretty quickly around the holidays so don’t delay reserving your stay. What to Bring Finally, bring a big, cozy sleigh (wink). [perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]Have you ever visited any of the many holiday markets in Montreal? If so, let us know what kinds of sweet things you picked up. If you haven’t, will you be planning a trip this year?[/perfectpullquote]
