Are you visiting this lovely city sometime soon and would like to know the top things to do in Ottawa? You’ve come to the right place.

 

 

Ottawa is a small, but gorgeous city. I thought it was very charming, it gave me a European feel. Somewhere between Washington D.C. and Paris. Yes, I know. The street lights and walking by the river did feel a lot like the Seine in Paris. D.C.? You might ask… Well because it’s the capital and all government offices and buildings are here, it is also full of museums giving me the Smithsonian vibe. I visited Ottawa in January for 72 hours! While I am sure that in Spring and Summer it comes alive and there are much more fun things to do, but nevertheless, I had a great time.

 

 

This post is all about top things to do in Ottawa. How I spent 72 hours in DT Ottawa. If you’re interested, stick around.

 

 

SOME IMPORTANT THINGS ABOUT OTTAWA

Hotel Options

My standards for hotels have not changed. Safe, clear, central location and decent pricing. There are many options like The Westin Ottawa, Le Germain Hotel Ottawa and many more in DT Ottawa.

But I had an opportunity to stay at Fairmont Chateau Laurier – a little dream turn into reality. If you’re into old and elegant décor, this should be fun for you. If you like modern looking hotels, you may not like this. The Fairmont Chateau Laurier is a massive hotel with a huge, well decorated lobby, several restaurants and bars, an indoor gym and heated pool in the lower level. Each floor has many rooms with large hallways. Ours was at the end of the hallway, so lots of walking but the upside was we had zero noise and a view of the parliament. The bathroom was gorgeous, Lelabo soaps and shampoos everywhere. The rooms are equipped with Nespresso coffee machines, tea kettles, snack bar and a fridge filled with drinks (the last two are not complimentary of course). It is a smaller chateau compared to the other ones. My only observation was that the beds were super plush and perhaps old, they could use an upgrade.

If you are visiting in the winter, you are probably going to spend a little more time indoors than usual, so I would advise you to stay somewhere with good amenities and The Fairmont Chateau Laurier was perfect for that. We thoroughly enjoyed the gym and heated pool. This review is not sponsored, I really enjoyed staying here.

 

 

Location, Safety, Activity

I hope you are in DT Ottawa during your stay as it will make going around much easier. The city is very walkable, so it is nice to be in a central location. It is also very safe. I never felt uncomfortable walking around late at night when there weren’t many people around. The city seems far busy during the day and does die rather early, at the end of the work day around 5-6 pm. This is expected as the workforce is primarily in government offices.

 

 

Food

Ottawa has some great options for food. I wasn’t disappointed at all. We tried Joey Rideau and really enjoyed the ambience and food. We wanted to try Diners in Canada and went to Zak’s Diner; we enjoyed our breakfast there. Who knew that Ottawa is known for their Shawarma thanks to the influx of Lebanese Immigrants? We tried the Shawarma Express Restaurant, and it hit the spot. We visited Sushi Fresh, and we were pleasantly surprised, their sushi and poke bowls were so fresh, even this New Yorker was blown away. We tried Little Victories for coffee & breakfast, we loved the coffee but the croissant could use a more traditional French approach.

Top three photos are our dishes at Joey Rideau. Bottom Left and middle at Sushi Fresh and Bottom Right is the croissant at Little Victories (excuse the bite!).

 

 

Credit Cards

Bring your Credit Card with no foreign transaction fees, of course. Just be mindful that more often than not you won’t be able to pay with your American Express Card in Ottawa. If you have another card, bring that with you.

 

 

NOW BACK TO TOP THINGS TO DO IN OTTAWA

#1 Parliament Hill

Take a walk in Parliament Hill and see all the different parliament buildings. There are many opportunities to learn about the different buildings, walking tours, etc. There are free guided tours, if this is something you are really interested in.

The East Block where some of the parliament members’ offices are.

 

 

#2 National Gallery of Canada

As its name implies, it is the national art museum of Canada. The museum’s permanent collection includes over 90,000 works from European, Canadian, Indigenous, American, and Asian artists. They also have temporary exhibits. The building’s architecture is super modern and gorgeous with granite walls, floor to ceiling windows overlooking the city from all directions, and several courtyards. Entrance is free on Thursdays to everyone between 5-8 pm. Otherwise, it is 20 CAD.

There are many museums to visit in Ottawa, if I had to pick another one it would be the Canadian Museum of Nature.

 

 

#3 Notre Dame Basilica

Right across from the National Gallery of Canada is the Notre Dame Basilica. It is gorgeous, and worth the visit. It really reminded me of the Notre-Dame Basilica of Montréal. I guess you could say it’s a French-Canadian architecture and design, especially from within. It is open every day, the hours depend on on events like weddings and funerals. Entrance is free of course, but you can make a donation.

 

 

#4 The National War Memorial

You absolutely cannot miss this tall granite arch with sculptures. It is said to be initially dedicated by King George VI to all those who served in WWI, and then rededicated in 1982 to eventually include all the wars that followed WWI. It is absolutely beautiful.

 

 

#5 Rideau Canal

The canal that flows in the middle of the city, reminds me of the Seine in Paris. People walk by it all year long; they also bike during the Spring and Summer. And more interestingly they ice skate on the frozen canal in the winter as it turns into a skating rink! Unfortunately, because of warm temperatures, it was closed during my short stay in Ottawa. It requires a significant temperature drop sustaining for several weeks before a thick ice forms and only then are people allowed to ice skate so no one in harmed. The Canal is assessed daily and it is closed when the temperature goes up. I have seen photos of the canal while people are skating and it is so beautiful. I hope you get the experience when you visit.

 

 

#6 ByWard Market

Beautiful streets filled with many different restaurants and bars. Not the typical open market in the winter, but you will find stores that sell maple syrup and things you can bring home with you. It truly comes alive in the Spring and Summer, with an open market. A great selection of restaurants and bars, you can’t go wrong.

 

 

#7 The OTTAWA Sign

You will find in downtown Ottawa, at the ByWard Market on York Street, the letters O-T-T-A-W-A spelled. It is a nice place to take photos of, or in front of with your friends and family. If you’re taking a selfie, you can stand to side and angle your camera so you capture all the letters. But more often than not there are a few people around who will take a photo for you. The picture is the main photo of this post (in case you missed it).

 

 

#8 CF Rideau Centre

Who doesn’t like to spend hours shopping, discovering some Canadian brands, but this is especially important when it’s is freezing outside and you want to do an indoor activity. Yes, I said activity. Highly recommend trying David’s Tea, a Canadian loose leaf tea brand with amazing flavors so diverse, you will spend a long time in the store and bring some (or plenty) home with you. Don’t leave without their single use tea filters, they come in so handy.

 

 

This post is all about top things to do in Ottawa! how I spent 72 hours. What to see, where to go and what to eat.

 

 

As always, thank you so much for stopping by and reading.

 

See you next week,

Girl on the Upper East Side

 

If you enjoyed reading this, you might enjoy reading My Paris and London Itineraries!