VELTRA tours & activities, fun things to do

disappointing

We did the half day Veltra Montreal tour - scheduled for 3 1/2 hours. Advertised high points were the Olympic Stadium, Notre Dame Basilica, Mount Royal Park Lookout, and Saint Joseph's Oratory. We mostly spent hours driving around narrow city streets, much of it through grungy neighborhoods. We only stopped three times. The first was for the Basilica. There was a cost, which wasn't covered in our tour cost, so most people didn't bother. Our tour guide, who I think was named Cecile, said she and the bus driver were going for coffee. People were lined up waiting to get back on the bus, before they were. The second stop was for a bathroom break. The third was at the Mount Royal lookout - with a gorgeous view of the city - but our guide said "There's not much parking here, so get out, take your pictures, and get back on the bus". We drove past the Olympic Stadium and Saint Josephs. It was a very long few hours of boredom driving through city streets. Our guide made anti-male sexist remarks during the tour. Oh, and the guide ASKED for tips. I know that tipping a guide is common, and I've even seen tipping boxes, but I've never been asked for a tip before. And considering there were about 200 people on the bus, each paying $45, the company made $9000 on this one tour. Seems like they could afford to pay their employees enough that they don't have to beg for more.