As early as the first half of the nineteenth century, Montreal was acquiring a reputation as a tourist attraction. The Donegana and Rasco hotels were the best known in the city. First opened in 1845, the Donegana was destroyed by fire four years later. Rasco's, on St. Paul Street, was built around 1834 and the building still stands today. Many famous people stayed there, including the novelist Charles Dickens.
