From a poutine festival to electronic music: What to do this weekend around Montreal
Looking to explore Montreal this weekend? All kinds of events are going on, from a poutine festival to electronic music.
Here are a few fun ideas:
Le Grand Poutine Fest
When: Friday – Saturday (12 p.m. to 9 p.m.) Sunday (12 p.m. to 8 p.m.)
Where: Clock Tower Quary, Old-Port of Montreal
Cost: Free entrance
How to get there: Nearest metro is Champ-de-Mars (orange line)
Highlights: Explore what lies beyond the traditional poutine and discover more than 40 unprecedented poutine styles prepared by some of Québec’s greatest chef poutineers.
Avenged Sevenfold + Alexisonfire
When: Saturday at 6:30 p.m.
Where: Centre Bell
Cost: Tickets on Evenko starting at around $20
How to get there: Lucien-L'allier (orange line)
Highlights: Avenged Sevenfold performs with special guests Alexisonfire and Kim Dracula
Free Guided Tour of the Quartier des Spectacles
When: Sunday (10 a.m. to 12 p.m.)
Where: Quartier des spectacles
Cost: Free
How to get there: Place des arts (green line)
Highlights: This is a two-hour walking tour by a guide certified by the Institut de tourisme et d'hôtellerie du Québec (ITHQ). A pleasant walk in a sometimes unsuspected Montreal, it is aimed at tourists and Montrealers alike.
Palestine Festival
When: Saturday (1 p.m. to 8 p.m.)
Where: Parc Angrignon
Cost: Free
How to get there: Verdun (green line)
Highlights: Come take a peek into the heart of Palestine, from its culture to its unwavering steadfastness in the face of occupation.
Trikk At Piknic Electronik
When: Sunday at 4 p.m.
Where: Jardin Le Petit Prince, Parc Jean-Drapeau
Cost: Tickets starting at $22
How to get there: Jean-Drapeau (yellow line)
Highlights: Piknic Électronik is a weekly electronic music festival which takes place every Sunday during the summer in Montreal. This weekend's performers include Tokimonsta, A-Rock B2B Shaydakiss and Poptrt, as well as Portgual's Trikk.
Nuits D'Afrique International Festival
When: Ticketed shows all weekend; free shows start Tuesday.
Where: Ticketed shows - Le Gesu, Club Balattou, Le Ministere, Theatre Fairmount. Free shows - Place des Festivals
Cost: Ticketed shows between $15 and $35.
Highlights: Kaleta & Super Yamba Band, Bianca Rocha, Delgres and others through the weekend.
Pollinator festival at the Insectarium
When: Saturday and Sunday, 10 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Where: Montreal Insectarium
Cost: Free
Highlights: Learn more about the role of pollinators by helpin plant a garden and participating in an insect "sound experience." Activities like face painting, a dance workshop and a relay race will be on site.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories

'Shadows of children': For the youngest hostages, life moves forward in whispers
After seven weeks held hostage in the tunnels of Gaza, they are finally free to laugh and chat and play. But some of the children who have come back from captivity are still reluctant to raise their voices above a whisper.
Extremely rare white alligator is born at a Florida reptile park
An extremely rare white leucistic alligator has been born at a Florida reptile park. The 19.2-inch (49 cm) female slithered out of its shell and into the history books as one of a few known leucistic alligators, Gatorland Orlando said Thursday.
Minnesota grocery store clerk dies after customer impales him with a golf club, police say
A Minneapolis store clerk died after a customer beat him and impaled him with a golf club, police said. The 66-year-old clerk was attacked Friday at the Oak Grove Grocery, a small neighborhood store in a residential area near downtown Minneapolis. A 44-year-old suspect is jailed on suspicion of murder.
A Soviet-era statue of a Red Army commander taken down in Kyiv
City workers in Kyiv on Saturday dismantled an equestrian statue of a Red Army commander, the latest Soviet monument to be removed in the Ukrainian capital since Russia launched its full-scale invasion last year.
Ibrahim Ali found guilty of killing 13-year-old girl in B.C.
A jury has found Ibrahim Ali guilty of killing a 13-year-old girl whose body was found in a Burnaby, B.C., park in 2017.
Protests at UN climate talks, from ceasefire calls to detainees, see 'shocking level of censorship'
Activists designated Saturday a day of protest at the COP28 summit in Dubai. But the rules of the game in the tightly controlled United Arab Emirates meant sharp restrictions on what demonstrators could say, where they could walk and what their signs could portray.
Bill 15: Quebec health reform passes after gov't invokes closure
After sitting through the night, early Saturday morning, members of the Quebec legislature finally passed Bill 15 to reform the health-care network, voting 75 to 27.
Marathon Conservative carbon tax filibuster ends after nearly 30 consecutive hours of House votes
The Conservative-prompted filibuster in the House of Commons ended Friday night, after MPs spent nearly 30 hours voting non-stop on the government's spending plans.
New U.S. aid for Ukraine by year-end seems increasingly out of reach as GOP ties it to border security
A deal to provide further U.S. assistance to Ukraine by year-end appears to be increasingly out of reach for President Joe Biden. The impasse is deepening in Congress despite dire warnings from the White House about the consequences of inaction as Republicans insist on pairing the aid with changes to America's immigration and border policies.