Paris is a beautiful city to visit but since it’s more than 4,000 miles away in France, it can be a costly and time-consuming trip. Recently we discovered a pretty good alternative just a couple of hours away as the plane flies: Montreal, Canada.

Montreal is the second largest city in Canada after Toronto. In 1967, it hosted the World’s Fair and Expo ‘67 and in 1976, the summer Olympics. It’s home to both the world’s largest jazz festival and comedy festival. Their hockey team, the Montreal Canadiens, have won the Stanley Cup more times than any other team.

Nestled in the heart of Quebec province, it’s also the second-largest French speaking city in the world after Paris.

We stayed in the downtown area and although there were plenty of stores and restaurants around us, it lacked the French “je ne sais quoi” I was seeking. So armed with our schoolkid French and the Google maps app, we set out to find some.

Although French is the main language of the area, with more than 85% of residents speaking it fluently, 58.5% are bilingual. What we found was if we tried out our French, the locals were so happy they would help us out by replying in English. (Either that or they couldn’t bear us torturing their beautiful language any longer.)

Apart from the signs on streets and buildings, it didn’t feel much like France at first. But as we neared the beautiful Le Vieux Montreal — or the Old Port of Montreal — it was as if you crossed a border in time.

The first thing to catch my eye was one of those iconic Metro entrances like you see in Paris. Beautiful art nouveau ironwork proudly holding the Metropolitain sign between its fingers. I half expected Toulouse Lautrec to come walking out.

Before long, the roads changed from wide boulevards to quaint cobblestones. Where Paris has the Seine, Montreal has the St. Lawrence River. You can even take a Bateau Mouches boat cruise along it, although we opted for a more pedestrian boat ride with more outside seating.

The views may not have been as interesting as those in Paris — there are far fewer iconic landmarks to watch out for — but it’s great to see any city from a water perspective.

It didn’t take long until it was just like being in Paris. People sitting outside cafes sipping cappuccinos and glasses of wine. Quaint restaurants and tourist shops. Before long, were arrived at Place Jacques-Cartier. The Old Town square, while not exactly the artist colony of Montmartre, has plenty of booths selling artwork, jewelry and caricatures and street performers playing cellos or guitar, prompting some to suddenly grab hold of one another and start dancing in the street.

Notre Dame Cathedral may be one of Paris’ most famous churches but Montreal proudly boasts its own version, Notre Dame Basilica. Not be quite as lovely as its French cousin on

the outside, but the inside does not disappoint. It’s spectacular and definitely worth the $14 ticket price.

What makes it particularly special is the lighting around the main altar, which makes it look like a cross between Cinderella’s castle and Hogwarts. The azure blue paint against the gothic ceiling beams is mesmerizing, not to mention the wooden carvings and stained-glass windows. Rows of red and white candles glimmer in glass jars, held in place by hundreds of copper fleur de lis.

Just like Paris, Montreal is well-known for its great food scene. We only had time to visit a couple of neighborhoods during our short visit, but it’s definitely worth a return trip just for a second helping.

A place I was particularly keen to try was a bakery called Olive and Gourmando. Since opening in 1998, this boutique establishment on the corner of Saint-Pierre and Saint-Paul streets has developed something of a cult following. As a result, it’s tough to get a table.

We persevered and on an otherwise quiet Sunday morning, it felt like half of Montreal had made its way inside the bakery. With a cool vibe and the friendliest servers, eager to make suggestions, Grumpy and I dined on a cup of hot chocolate and three pastries between the two of us.

It is no exaggeration to say that the pain au chocolat (chocolate croissant) was better than any I’d ever had in France. The crisp laminations of pastry were baked to perfection, but it was the chocolate filling that set it apart. The two small fingers nestled inside were rich and dark, perfect against the sweetness of the pastry.

The almond croissant was almost crushed by the weight of the slivers on the outside, hiding the sweet marzipan filling buried beneath. We also enjoyed a brioche laced with ribbons of cinnamon icing, which I’m afraid made Cinnabon look like a brash American tourist.

Unfortunately, when I say “we,” I mostly mean me. When it comes to sweets, I’m not very good at sharing.

As for parks, I’m afraid I have to give the prize to Paris. It’s not that Montreal doesn’t have many beautiful ones. It’s just that their most famous one is inconveniently perched atop of a small mountain.

In an effort to spend some time in the great outdoors and out of the cafes, I thought visiting Mont Royal was a good idea. A little drizzle, a little humidity, a little smoke from the nearby wildfires did nothing to dampen my enthusiasm. It was the steep walk to the top that did that.

We weren’t even at the entrance to the park when I stopped to catch my breath. The surrounding streets were getting steeper and steeper. Hadn’t these people heard of a funicular? As if that weren’t bad enough, as we neared the entrance we still had to navigate a flight or three of stairs. Once inside, we had a choice of yet more stairs or a winding path through the woods.

They say the view from the top is spectacular, but I’m afraid I can’t testify to that as I never made it. It was only afterwards I learned you can make the journey in an Uber so, unless you’re a mountain goat, that’s what I’d advise.

Montreal may not be as iconic as Paris, but it still has much to offer travelers. So, as the French — and French Canadians would say — jusqu’a la prochaine fois (until next time).

Hilary Decent is a freelance journalist who moved to Naperville from England in 2007.

hilarydecent@gmail.com