Montreal a top stag-party hot spot

Boston resident Nick Skrine remembers stumbling with several of his pals from bar to bar through downtown Montreal.

They were trotting one of their good friends in and out of nightclubs during a weekend of debauchery as part of a stag party.

Montreal's gaudy strip-joint lights and overflowing nightclubs beckon best men who aim to help buddies lay bachelorhood to a memorable rest.

"It was a fantastic time," Skrine, a childhood friend of the bachelor, said of last winter's stag. "Obviously, we just got absolutely stinking drunk."

Montreal is legendary when it comes to nightlife, said Skrine, who works as a currency analyst.

"Within Boston, it certainly has a reputation for being a party place," said Skrine, who learned about the city's 3 a.m. last call and its wealth of strip clubs when he was at Boston College.

"In the bachelor-party department, Montreal has a reputation of being able to fill the requirements."

Weekend bashes

Cheaper than South Beach and as sinful as Las Vegas, Montreal is luring future grooms from abroad, a local bachelor-party planner said.

Jay Martin of Montreal VIP said stags have evolved from one night of partying the eve of the wedding to all-out, out-of-town weekend bashes.

"We're almost like the Amsterdam of North America," he said.

"The first attraction is definitely the strip club. I can tell you a lot of foreigners are always looking forward to the contact strip clubs in Montreal.

"Our rules in Montreal are very liberal."

Martin's nine-year-old company provides essential party logistics, including accommodation, restaurant reservations and passes to avoid the long nightclub queues.

"It's a service that's always in demand," said Martin, who estimates Montreal VIP has planned more than 1,000 bashes for about-to-be grooms in the last two to three years.

Martin said 95 per cent of his customers travel from the United States – most come from New York City, Boston, New Jersey and, increasingly, California – for the luxury service.

Despite a low U.S. dollar that has kept some Americans at home, Martin said men are still coming to eat and drink and to mingle with the city's beautiful women.

He said they also appreciate downtown streets that are considered safer than just about anywhere in North America.

"It's a growing trend that people go to different destinations" for bachelor parties, he said.

Martin said stag partygoers travel as an excuse to take a short vacation with friends, to find a central rendezvous point for buddies spread out across the continent and to escape their hometowns.

"It probably gives them a feeling where 'I'm not home, there's nobody to watch me,' " he said.

Sex workers weigh in

A Montreal escort who calls herself Kristy Temptation said a big part of her clientele is made up of U.S. tourists.

Americans "definitely come here for that because we've got some pretty sexy girls and we're pretty reliable and everything," said Temptation, 20, who charges $250 an hour for outcalls.

"We've been known for that for a long time. People come here to party."

She maintains a website and keeps a U.S.-based cellphone number for her U.S. client base, many of whom book a date with her weeks in advance.

Still, Temptation, who got into "adult companionship" for the "fast cash," said the sagging U.S. dollar has hurt business.

"I don't know, this year it's pretty dead for the Americans," she said. "This year, like, it's not much. It's more of the Montrealers."

The city is renowned for its adult attractions, Montreal's tourism association said, but official statistics on how many people the industry lures are not available.

Tourism Montreal, a private non-profit promotional group, refuses to accept members directly linked to sexual activity, such as strip clubs.

"Montreal, since a long time, it's a fun, party destination," spokesman Pierre Bellerose said.

"But we don't use the sexual and adult entertainment in our brand. I think we have a lot of other things that can attract people in Montreal."

Strip clubs not essential

Angelo D'Ambra, the owner of a licensed travel agency geared for the city's partying scene, also organizes his share of bachelor parties.

Montreal Nitelife Tours' stag-party options include erotic massage and performances by strippers in the comfort of a hotel room.

D'Ambra said strip clubs are "very popular" but not necessarily a critical bachelor-party component.

"Most people actually come here for the great restaurants and the reputations of the nightclubs and the reputation of the cute girls of Quebec," D'Ambra said.

"Believe it or not, the adult entertainment, out of all the bachelor parties that we organize, may make up only 20 per cent of their entire weekend itinerary.

"I think [that stat] should also be known, because a lot of wives out there really are worried."