Here’s how you can easily get from Montreal (YUL) Airport into the city by express bus. The city has a dedicated express bus called the 747. It is an airport bus from Trudeau Airport to Montreal city center.
The airport makes it quite easy for you to take the 747. First, there are blue signs pointing you to the 747 bus.
Even when there is a sign that tells you were to go to pick up an Uber, where the parking is, where the taxis are located, the 747 sign stands out because it’s in blue while the rest of the sign is in black.
As you follow the directional signs, it’ll eventually take you to the ticket counter where staff can help you purchase your ticket, or you can purchase it at the kiosk. I purchased mine at the ticket counter because there was line. The day pass, which is 24hrs, cost $11CAD as of 2024.
After you purchase the pass, you’ll exit the door marked 28, next to the ticket counter. The agents working the counter will also tell you where to go as well.
Once outside the airport, there are blue 747 bus direction signs on the pillars that guide you to the bus shelter where you queue up for the next bus to arrive.
There are two lines at the bus stop. It is for Depot 1 and Depot 2. Take the line for Depot 1 unless you do not plan on going directly near the city center. However, even the bus for Depot 1 does not go into downtown. The last stop is next to Berri-UQAM station.
The bus has luggage racks and the bus driver will tell you, in French, you must put your carry-on luggage on the racks. The buses can get rather crowded so be prepared to stand either the entire time or at least for a portion of the ride. The bus is rather quick, unless there’s traffic on the freeway. However, once in the city, it makes several stops which can feel long. Several stops plus sitting in traffic can get annoying. It turns out my stop was at the end of the line at Berri-UQAM.
It can be disorienting when you first arrive to a new city and I did not feel the signage on the bus help me figure out what the next stop was. In addition, the stops were only in French.
The sign in this photo is illegible, but when I read it, I thought I was arriving at Berri-UQAM. So, of course, I got off and it was the wrong stop. But thank goodness I wasn’t too far away from where I was supposed to be. And thank goodness Montreal is very walkable. I also only had a backpack with me, so if you have a lot of luggage and you get off at the wrong stop, bring lots of patience. Or spend the money and order an Uber.
One thing I like to do is also figure out how to take the bus back to the airport ahead of time so I’m not rushing at the end of my trip. So, I walked to where I was supposed to originally get off at Berri-UQAM and looked for signs pointing me to where I should be getting on the bus. It was a good thing I did. The bus is inside the Gare d'autocar de Montreal building is chaotic. There was always a long line if not two long lines outside the building with STM staff. I never asked what that line was for. But take time to look for the 747 sign above head. It’ll guide you inside the building where you’ll need to look for which Bay the 747 will stop.
When I left, it was Bay 15. I don’t know if it always stops there though. Once I figured out where I needed to be to catch the bus on the way back to the airport, I was able to begin my vacation.
The pass that you purchased for the 747 allows you to also take the Metro, bus and REM within the 24hrs in Zone A. So, regardless of whether you arrive early or late, you can reuse that pass to travel around Montreal within 24hrs.
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