Things to do · Ottawa · Canada
18 best things to do in Ottawa
18 sights and experiences ranked for a first visit, with honest notes on time, cost and crowds.
Updated By the AMZBooking editorial team
Photo: Bobak Ha'Eri, CC BY-SA 2.5
Quick answer
The essential sights in Ottawa are Parliament Hill, Rideau Canal and the Ottawa Locks and Rideau Canal Skateway. Of the 18 picks below, 9 are free, 8 work on a rainy day and 6 suit children. Allow about 3 days to see the highlights without rushing.
Key facts
- Top sight
- Parliament Hill
- Free sights
- 9
- Good on a rainy day
- National Gallery of Canada
- Time to see the highlights
- 3 days
At a glance
| Sight | Area | Time needed | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parliament Hill | Downtown and Parliament Hill | 1.5–2 hours with a tour | Free |
| Rideau Canal and the Ottawa Locks | Downtown and Parliament Hill | 1–2 hours | Free |
| Rideau Canal Skateway | Rideau Canal | 1–3 hours | Free |
| National Gallery of Canada | ByWard Market and Lowertown | 2–3 hours | Mid-priced |
| Canadian Museum of History | Old Hull, Gatineau | 3 hours | Mid-priced |
| National War Memorial and Confederation Square | Downtown and Parliament Hill | 20–30 minutes | Free |
| ByWard Market | ByWard Market and Lowertown | 1–3 hours | Free |
| Canadian War Museum | LeBreton Flats | 2–3 hours | Mid-priced |
| Canadian Museum of Nature | Centretown | 2–3 hours | Mid-priced |
| Canada Aviation and Space Museum | Rockcliffe | 2 hours | Mid-priced |
| Ingenium – Canada Science and Technology Museum | Alta Vista | 2–3 hours | Mid-priced |
| Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica | ByWard Market and Lowertown | 30 minutes | Free |
| Major's Hill Park | ByWard Market and Lowertown | 30–60 minutes | Free |
| Rideau Hall | New Edinburgh | 1–1.5 hours | Free |
| Rideau Falls | New Edinburgh | 30 minutes | Free |
| Royal Canadian Mint | ByWard Market and Lowertown | 45 minutes | Low cost |
| Gatineau Park | Gatineau | Half a day | Low cost |
| Diefenbunker | Carp | 2 hours | Mid-priced |
The 18 best things to do
Landmark · Downtown and Parliament Hill
1.Parliament Hill
The Gothic Revival parliament buildings stand on a bluff above the Ottawa River. The Centre Block and its Peace Tower are closed for a renovation expected to last well into the 2030s, so the House of Commons sits in the restored West Block and the Senate in the former railway station nearby, both open for free guided tours. The lawn hosts the Changing of the Guard in summer.
Choose the West Block tour to see the temporary House of Commons chamber built inside the building's glass-roofed former courtyard.
- Time needed
- 1.5–2 hours with a tour
- Cost
- Free
- Book ahead
- Free tour tickets are limited; reserve online or collect them early in the day in summer.
- Iconic
- History
- Architecture
- Free
Waterfront · Downtown and Parliament Hill
2.Rideau Canal and the Ottawa Locks
Opened in 1832 and listed by UNESCO, the 202 km canal still runs from Ottawa to Kingston. Its downtown end is a flight of eight hand-operated locks between Parliament Hill and the Château Laurier. In summer, paths along both banks suit walking and cycling, and boat tours run from the locks.
Watch boats being lifted through the eight locks by hand on a summer afternoon; Parks Canada staff operate them.
- Time needed
- 1–2 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Iconic
- History
- Free
- Outdoors
- Photo spot
Experience · Rideau Canal
3.Rideau Canal Skateway
In a cold enough winter the canal freezes into a skating rink of about 7.8 km from downtown to Dow's Lake, with skate rentals, heated huts and food stands selling BeaverTails along the way. Locals use it to skate to work. Mild winters have shortened or prevented the season in recent years.
Check the National Capital Commission's ice status before you plan around it; the best conditions are usually from mid-January to mid-February.
- Time needed
- 1–3 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Iconic
- Free
- Active
- Kids
- Couples
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Gallery · ByWard Market and Lowertown
4.National Gallery of Canada
Moshe Safdie's glass-and-granite gallery, with a tower echoing the Library of Parliament, holds Canada's national collection: Group of Seven landscapes, Emily Carr, extensive Indigenous art and European masters. Inside is the reconstructed 19th-century Rideau Street Chapel, and Louise Bourgeois's giant spider Maman stands outside.
Look for the Rideau Street Chapel, a complete chapel interior rebuilt inside the gallery; it is easy to miss.
- Time needed
- 2–3 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Art
- Iconic
- Rainy day
- Architecture
Museum · Old Hull, Gatineau
5.Canadian Museum of History
Douglas Cardinal's curving, wave-like building on the Gatineau riverbank holds one of Canada's most-visited museums. Its Grand Hall has a row of Pacific Northwest totem poles in front of a wall of windows facing Parliament, and the Canadian History Hall covers 15,000 years. The Canadian Children's Museum is in the same building.
Walk across the Alexandra Bridge from the National Gallery; the view of Parliament from the bridge is one of the city's best.
- Time needed
- 3 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- History
- Kids
- Rainy day
- Architecture
- Iconic
Landmark · Downtown and Parliament Hill
6.National War Memorial and Confederation Square
The granite arch and bronze figures of The Response stand in Confederation Square, with the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at their base. Ceremonial sentries guard the memorial in summer, and it is the focus of national Remembrance Day ceremonies on 11 November.
Watch the sentry change on the hour in summer, a short walk from the Changing of the Guard on Parliament Hill.
- Time needed
- 20–30 minutes
- Cost
- Free
- History
- Free
- Iconic
Market · ByWard Market and Lowertown
7.ByWard Market
One of Canada's oldest public markets, laid out in the 1820s, the ByWard Market has a central building with food vendors and craft stalls and, from spring to autumn, outdoor produce, flower and maple-syrup stands. The surrounding streets are full of restaurants, cafés, pubs and a BeaverTails stand on George Street.
Come in the morning for the outdoor vendors, and return in the evening for patios and bars.
- Time needed
- 1–3 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Food
- Shopping
- Free
- After dark
Museum · LeBreton Flats
8.Canadian War Museum
The museum's angular building on LeBreton Flats traces Canada's military history from early conflicts through both world wars to peacekeeping, with tanks, artillery and personal stories. In Memorial Hall, a single window is aligned so that sunlight falls on the headstone of Canada's Unknown Soldier at 11am every 11 November.
Allow time for the First World War gallery, which is the most powerful section, and the LeBreton Gallery of large vehicles.
- Time needed
- 2–3 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- History
- Rainy day
- Architecture
Museum · Centretown
1.Canadian Museum of Nature
Housed in the turreted Victoria Memorial Museum Building — locals call it 'the castle' — the natural history museum has a full blue whale skeleton, a dinosaur gallery, a mineral hall and the Canada Goose Arctic Gallery. A glass lantern added in the 2000s renovation tops the entrance tower.
Children love the live-animal gallery and the dinosaur hall; go there first before the school groups.
- Time needed
- 2–3 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Kids
- Rainy day
- Nature
- Architecture
Museum · Rockcliffe
2.Canada Aviation and Space Museum
On the old Rockcliffe airfield east of downtown, a huge hangar displays one of the world's largest collections of civil and military aircraft, from bush planes to a Lancaster bomber and surviving pieces of the cancelled Avro Arrow jet.
Drive or take a rideshare; it is about 15 minutes from downtown and awkward by bus.
- Time needed
- 2 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- History
- Kids
- Rainy day
Museum · Alta Vista
3.Ingenium – Canada Science and Technology Museum
Rebuilt and reopened in 2017, the science museum has hands-on galleries on space, medicine and sound, a hall of steam locomotives and the Crazy Kitchen, a tilted room that plays tricks on your balance.
Do the Crazy Kitchen early before queues form; younger children enjoy the Wonder Lab most.
- Time needed
- 2–3 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Kids
- Rainy day
Religious site · ByWard Market and Lowertown
4.Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica
Ottawa's oldest surviving church, completed in the 19th century, has twin silver spires visible across Lowertown and a vaulted ceiling painted deep blue with gold stars above carved wooden galleries and stained glass.
Step in on a sunny morning, when the light makes the blue ceiling glow; entry is free outside services.
- Time needed
- 30 minutes
- Cost
- Free
- Architecture
- Free
- History
- Off the beaten path
Park · ByWard Market and Lowertown
5.Major's Hill Park
The capital's oldest park sits on a promontory between the Rideau Canal locks and the National Gallery, with lawns looking straight across to Parliament Hill and the Ottawa River. It is a main site for festivals, Canada Day crowds and tulip beds in May.
Bring a picnic from the ByWard Market and watch the sunset behind Parliament.
- Time needed
- 30–60 minutes
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Views
- Outdoors
- Couples
Palace · New Edinburgh
6.Rideau Hall
The official residence of the Governor General has 32 hectares of landscaped grounds open to the public, with trees planted by visiting dignitaries, a cricket pitch and greenhouses. Free guided tours of the state rooms run regularly, with art from the Crown Collection.
Combine it with Rideau Falls and a walk through New Edinburgh's streets, all within 15 minutes on foot.
- Time needed
- 1–1.5 hours
- Cost
- Free
- History
- Free
- Architecture
- Outdoors
Nature · New Edinburgh
7.Rideau Falls
The Rideau River drops in two curtain-like falls straight into the Ottawa River beside Sussex Drive, split by Green Island. A small park and viewing platforms let you stand at the top of the falls, which are at their most powerful during the spring melt.
Visit in April or May, when snowmelt makes the falls roar; in winter they freeze into icy curtains.
- Time needed
- 30 minutes
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Nature
- Photo spot
- Off the beaten path
Historic site · ByWard Market and Lowertown
8.Royal Canadian Mint
The Mint's castle-like 1908 building on Sussex Drive produces collector coins, medals and gold bullion. Guided tours look down on the production floor, and the boutique sells commemorative coins.
Book a tour on a weekday to see the production floor in operation.
- Time needed
- 45 minutes
- Cost
- Low cost
- Book ahead
- Tours are small and fill up in summer; reserve ahead online.
- History
- Rainy day
- Kids
Nature · Gatineau
9.Gatineau Park
A 361 km² wilderness park in the Gatineau Hills begins about 15 minutes from Parliament. Champlain Lookout looks over the Ottawa Valley, Pink Lake is a short loop around a deep green lake, and the Mackenzie King Estate preserves a prime minister's country retreat and garden ruins. Trails are used for hiking and biking in summer and cross-country skiing in winter.
Visit in late September or early October for autumn colour; parking at popular lots fills by mid-morning at weekends.
- Time needed
- Half a day
- Cost
- Low cost
- Nature
- Outdoors
- Views
- Active
- Photo spot
Historic site · Carp
10.Diefenbunker
About 35 km west of downtown, this four-storey underground Cold War bunker was built to shelter the Canadian government in a nuclear war. It is now a museum of preserved offices, the prime minister's suite, a bank vault and dormitories.
Take the guided tour if you can; the guides bring the Cold War emergency plans to life.
- Time needed
- 2 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- History
- Rainy day
- Off the beaten path
Pick by interest
| Interest | Best picks |
|---|---|
| Art and museums | National Gallery of Canada, Canadian Museum of History, Canadian War Museum and Canadian Museum of Nature |
| History | Parliament Hill, Rideau Canal and the Ottawa Locks, Canadian Museum of History and Canadian War Museum |
| Views | Major's Hill Park and Gatineau Park |
| Outdoors and nature | Rideau Canal and the Ottawa Locks, Canadian Museum of Nature, Major's Hill Park and Rideau Hall |
| Food and markets | ByWard Market |
| After dark | ByWard Market |
| With children | Rideau Canal Skateway, Canadian Museum of History, Canadian Museum of Nature and Canada Aviation and Space Museum |
| On a rainy day | National Gallery of Canada, Canadian Museum of History, Canadian War Museum and Canadian Museum of Nature |
What to book ahead
- Parliament Hill: Free tour tickets are limited; reserve online or collect them early in the day in summer.
- Royal Canadian Mint: Tours are small and fill up in summer; reserve ahead online.
Plan the rest of your trip
Questions travellers ask
+What is the number one thing to do in Ottawa?
Parliament Hill. The Gothic Revival parliament buildings stand on a bluff above the Ottawa River.
+What can you do for free in Ottawa?
Parliament Hill, Rideau Canal and the Ottawa Locks, Rideau Canal Skateway, National War Memorial and Confederation Square and ByWard Market. More free things to do.
+What is there to do in Ottawa when it rains?
Head indoors to National Gallery of Canada, Canadian Museum of History, Canadian War Museum and Canadian Museum of Nature.
+What is there to do in Ottawa at night?
ByWard Market are best after dark.