Montréal Biodôme

The Montréal Biodôme is a living-ecosystem museum housed in the former velodrome built for the 1976 Olympic Games at 4777 Avenue Pierre-De Coubertin, in the Hochelaga-Maisonneuve district of Montreal, Quebec. Instead of cycling tracks, the building now holds recreated natural environments from the Americas, laid out along a single self-guided route. Part of the Espace pour la vie complex alongside the Botanical Garden, Insectarium, Planetarium and Biosphere, it is one of the city's most visited family attractions.

The route passes through four ecosystems. The Tropical Rainforest is warm and humid, with free-roaming birds and monkeys, caimans, and dense vegetation. The Laurentian Forest recreates the maple and conifer woods of Quebec, with lynx, otters and beavers. The Gulf of St. Lawrence ecosystem features a large tank of cold-water fish and an intertidal zone, and the Labrador Coast and Sub-Antarctic Islands areas include seabirds such as puffins and colonies of penguins. Each zone has its own temperature and lighting, so visitors move through sharp climate changes in a single visit.

A typical visit lasts 1.5 to 2 hours. Adult admission is CAD 25.50, with seniors 65+ at CAD 23, students CAD 19, children aged 5-17 at CAD 13.50, a family rate of CAD 68 for two adults and three children, and free entry under age 5. Regular hours are typically 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM, with seasonal variations, so the official Espace pour la vie site should be checked before going.

Crowds are heaviest on weekends, during school holidays, and on rainy days when families look for indoor options. Weekday mornings outside holiday periods are the calmest, and the penguin and rainforest areas are easier to enjoy before midday. The building is adjacent to Olympic Park, so many visitors pair it with the Olympic Stadium tower or the Botanical Garden, which is a short walk away. The Viau metro station on the Green Line is about five minutes from the entrance, which makes the Biodôme easy to reach without a car.