Could someone please tell me about both of these churches and should we visit both of these during our visit to Montreal? We have never seen either one but heard they are nice. Are they close in the same area?

If you are intending to attend mass at one of these churches, St. Joseph offers English masses, while Notre Dame is only in French. Both are very large very beautiful churches, although St. Joseph is more geared to tourists with several gift shops, a restaurant, gardens, and tours of the grounds. The larger of the two, it is situated near Mont Royal overlooking the city.<BR><BR>Notre Dame, where Pierre Trudeau's funeral took place and Celine Dion baptized her son is located in Old Montreal, about halfwway between the convention centre and the St. Lawrence river. (So it's not in the same neighbourhood as St. Joseph) There is a $2 admission fee if you are not there to pray, but it's definitely worth it. Several shops sell postcards of the interior of Notre Dame, but seeing it in person is so much better.<BR><BR>Hope this helps, enjoy your trip!

Of the two, Notre Dame would be the one I'd recommend. This is a beautiful cathedral that rivals anything in Europe. It's in the heart of old Montreal. Just make sure you are there before 4:45 to get inside. I saw a tour bus full of Japaneese tourists pull up at 4:50, and things got a little ugly between the tour director and the sexton trying to close the doors!<BR>St. Josephs is way on the other side of town. It is very impressive from the outside, and the surrounding grounds are beautiful, but the inside is not that memorable.

Notre Dame is more ornate like a big Easter Egg. We went for Easter Day mass and it was very nice, lots of comments on current events.<BR><BR>There is another big nice one downtown which I think is equal, it's a little less roccoco-the Notre Dame was renovated in the 18th century so there is a lot of gold and green. I can't remember the name but it is right next door on the West side of the Queen Elizabeth hotel. Perhaps someone can help out there? Here is a link http://www.montreal.com/tourism/churches.html<BR><BR>I have heard St. Patrick's is nice too.

The masses at both I mentioned are in French.

There are three large catholic churches in Montreal. These are Notre Dame Basilica (it is NOT a cathedral) in old Montreal. It was built in the 1820's in gothic revival style, very ornate, to the point of garish. Great tourist attraction because of its location and style. I would disagree with Zootsi that it rivals anything in Europe. <BR><BR>St Joseph's Oratory is on the north slope of Mount Royal, built between the 1920s and 1960s in Italian Renaissance style. It is more a place of pilgrimage than a tourist attraction, although the history of frere Andre and how he came to build this monument is interesting and perhaps inspiring, even if you are not religious and don't believe all the cures.<BR><BR>The cathedral mentioned by Candice is Mary, Queen of the World on Rene Levesque. It was built in the 1870s and 1880s and is a replica (half size?) of St Peter's in Rome.