Parc des Compagnons-de-Saint-Laurent

UPDATE summer 2022: This park is being redone. Stay tuned!

This post took a while to research and write because Holy Moly, is there ever a lot happening at this park. 
Named after a theatre troupe founded in 1937, the park is a social hub for the community of Le Plateau-Mont-Royal. 
While the playground itself it pretty good, it’s the activities that take place throughout the year that make this park special. 
During the winter there’s Le Festival Noël dans le parc where the park transforms into a beautiful Christmas Village with free shows, food and even animals.
When summer rolls around (finally!), there are community BBQs with a presentation by chef Antoine Sicotte, Cinéma en plein air, public pianos, various art installations, and the “Ludothèque ” (the colourfully painted shipping container) which is open from June 4th to August 23rd from Saturday to Tuesday 10am to 7pm. When the wide doors open up you’ll find books, toys, and activities inside. 
Brilliant!
(You can find another Ludotèque at Parc De Bullion)

Now, onto the playground!
We found easy (metered) street parking right on Rue Cartier, and stopped around the corner for a coffee and some snacks. There’s no shortage of places to eat and drink, so if you’ve run out of snacks (we always run out of snacks. I could have half of Costco in my bag and we’d still run out), you can pick something up easily. 
There is also the arena parking lot directly south of the playground and it seems like yes, you CAN park there. Just read the signs carefully. Of course I only saw it after I’d already paid for our street spot. Doh!
The park was redone in 2003-2004 (you can see the plans here!) and is currently undergoing some renovations again but it’s confined to the grass areas. 

The playground are near the edge of the park and are fenced along one side, but with a wide open section and stairs down to the adjoining parking lot. There was decent shade covering all the equipment and the leaves weren’t even fully opened yet when visited. 
All in a row you’ll find big-kid swings, some older metal seesaws, and a new metal and rope climber from Kompan. My 3-year old had me hoist him up onto the plastic “hammock” and tried climbing the ropes and rungs. But then, seeing one of his favourite park products, he ran over the path to the little Navigator boat. It’s such a simple design, but his imagination always goes wild when he’s on it. It’s been a garbage truck, a boat, a pirate ship, and a firetruck. 
He was able to climb the rope ladder up the toddler climber, and come back down the slides, but kids younger will need help up as there are no stairs. A spinner bowl and baby swings round out the equipment. 

Have your snacks on the GIANT concrete picnic table and do some people watching. This is a great park to visit if you want to chat with people and feel like you’re in the heart of the action. We had a fun time just because of the atmosphere and busyness all around us.