What's open and closed in Quebec this weekend
CBC
With Christmas and Boxing Day falling on a weekend this year, the list of what's open or closed is a little different than usual.
Most businesses, stores and shopping malls will close at 5 p.m. Friday and remain closed Saturday. They are allowed to reopen Sunday as of 10 a.m. for Boxing Day sales.
Large grocery stores are legally required to be closed Saturday while corner grocery stores and pharmacies are allowed to stay open Saturday and Sunday.
Quebec liquor stores, run by the Société des alcools du Québec (SAQ),will be closed Saturday and will reopen Sunday at 1 p.m. The same hours apply to cannabis stores run by the Société québécoise du cannabis (SQDC).
New rules for retailers that the government brought in to slow the spread of the Omicron COVID variant mean that even when stores are open, they are allowed only 50 per cent of their capacity, or one client per 20 square metres.
Banks and credit unions are closed this weekend and many will also be closed Monday and Tuesday because the statutory holidays have been deferred. However, ATMs will be available.
Many public transit corporations will be running on reduced schedules during the holidays. Montreal's STM suggests checking the schedule online before heading out.
The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts will be closed Saturday and will reopen Sunday at noon.
All the Espaces pour la vie installations — such as the Biodome, Biosphere and the planetarium — have shut down for public health reasons. However the grounds of the Botanical Garden are open.
Accès Montréal offices and the permit offices for the city will be closed from Dec. 24 to Jan. 4 inclusively. Eco-centres in Montreal are closed from Dec. 24 to Jan. 3 inclusively. Montreal's Maisons de la culture are closed until further notice.
Montreal municipal court will be closed from Dec. 24 to Jan. 4.
Montreal's libraries remain open over the holidays but many sports and cultural venues will be operating on a reduced schedule.
Garbage, compost and recycling pickups are not changing over the holiday period in Montreal.