Uh sounds like you're the one that feels very insecure right now if you cannot take the fair criticisms of the Métro. A/C and elevators are things many people from Toronto take for granted. The Metro has beautiful stations and pretty good coverage. But Gare Centrale to the Métro vs. Union Station to the subway, hot MR-63s and MR-73s vs. cool T1s and TRs, and 13 accessible stations vs. 30+ accessible stations are unpleasant by comparison.
I think your post just proved my point further. The question was whether the forum had any tips on getting around Montréal's métro. They didn't ask about its deficiencies (of which there are certainly some) in the context of the TTC Subway.
But I'll join in: I have no idea whether the asker has difficulties with stairs/escalators, but the majority of passengers don't take the elevator in the TTC Subway, so I would imagine a similar proportion would ride the elevator, theoretical or otherwise, in the métro. Those people are sadly out of luck at the 80% of stations that don't have elevators, compared to the 43% of TTC stations without elevators. Both systems pale in comparison to Vancouver's fully accessible transit network.
Metro passengers can also expect hotter trains in the summer, and warmer stations in the winter, though the AZUR is certainly an improvement, temperature-wise. It also has a cleaner design and some modern touches that the TRs are just slightly too old to have, like a dynamic map on the LCD screens with a moving dot that shows how close you are to the next two stations, clearer audio and full-spectrum LED lighting, which helps a bit in the metro's all-underground network. What they
can enjoy is better downtown coverage, much faster trains, better reliability and to be able to ride the entire network every weekend without needing to determine which stations will be closed for trackwork. Riding on the Spadina section of Line 1 every day, I can't understand why half the trains I catch travel at 15 km/h in the Allen expressway median.
That aside, to answer the original question: My tips for getting around the metro and bus network would be to purchase a paper version of the OPUS card. It still works like the plastic version in that you can tap on subway/bus/train, but it's free, unlike the reloadable plastic cards. They are sold at all metro stations and you can also purchase tapcards (paper and plastic) at most dépanneurs (corner stores). You can purchase an unlimited weekend pass (Friday Evening until Monday early morning) for $13.65, a 3 day pass for $18, or a full week pass for ~$27. The entire network has been equipped for OPUS for many years now, so you can use it anywhere in the region.
The bus system is fairly straightforward, and like the TTC's, often acts as a feeder for the métro stations. There are next bus info boards at most of the metro stations and at a few of the bus stops, but usually you will have to exit the métro station and tap on on the bus.
A fun trip I would recommend would be to take the metro to station mont-royal, and transfer to the #11 bus (west/ouest). It travels over Mount Royal/mont-royal. Get off the bus at beaver lake/lac aux castors and follow the signs through to the chalet. The view is amazing
Then walk way down all the wooden steps until you're downtown. You'll be on Peel St, and you can catch the metro at Peel Station (corner of de Maisonneuve), or just explore from there. Profitez-en!
