Montreal and Quebec City
 

Planning Travel, trying to determine best area to stay (will be renting apartment/condo as we are a family of 4 and like to cook and relax).
We are trying to avoid needing a car or taking taxis (so we can skip taking car seats) but looks like it might be hard to get from airport to city in Quebec via public transport

Montreal
http://www.stm.info/English/metro/a-mapmet.htm
In Montreal it looks the best bet would be to stay in the old town which is near Champ-de-mars Metro Stop (or mabye better to be near Berri-uqam since that is a double stop)

Looks like the downtown area is neer Peel stop, but may not be best bet for tourist?


Quebec City
Looks like we might want to stay in Latin Quarter.. or Upper Town areas?

Quebec is a small city - anywhere you stay should be okay. The airport in Quebec has no public transit but there is plenty within the city. Montreal's downtown is more interesting than the old port area. The McGill University area would be good in the summer with student apartments for rent and it is in an excellent location. Public transit from YUL will be a challenge - it is possible but awkward.

A cab is $35 flat fee from YUL to downtown Montreal. I would suggest that you specify you want a minivan; this would be much more convenient than any public transportation option.

I personally would steer clear of the Berri-UQAM area. It's not that it is particularly unsafe but it is popular spot for pushers. You see lots of questionable activity going on in this area after the sun goes down (and some even when the sun is up).

I agree with the assessment about the McGill area. Great downtown location and probably only a 15-20 minute walk from Old Montreal. If your really tired, it would probably cost less than $10 to catch a cab back to the downtown, which is what it would cost 4 of you to purchase tickets for the metro (subway).

If you are going from Montreal to Quebec City, I would suggest you consider taking the bus or train. The bus leaves from the terminal at Berri-UQAM while the train leaves from Place Bonaventure. It is way cheaper and faster than flying, especially when you factor in the costs of transportation to and from the airport.

As for location in QC, I prefer the Upper Town simply because of the views. I also get the impression there are more opportunities for lodging than in the lower town but that may be my impression only.

Take a look at Tripadvisor.com as there are a number of condotels listed for the Montreal area which have kitchenettes. You can also look at Craigslist to look for short-term furnished apartments.

Thanks for the great hints...

I probably will be doing subway instead of taxi, just because of the car seat issue.. my wife is pretty stubborn about it for our 5 & 6 year old.. and I'm not going to carry around a booster seat while siteseeing..

and it loks like a subway pass for a week is only $20,$20,$11,free for the four us respectively..

Looks like a lot of the apartments are in the sherbrooke or jean-talon areas.. which would definitely require subway ride to main areas..

casey