Parliament Hill, Rideau Canal & ByWard Market
Parliament Hill on a summer morning, when the buildings are open for free tours, is the most accessible seat of government in the Western world. Walk south to the Rideau Canal (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) — in winter the 7.8 km canal rink is the largest naturally frozen skating surface on Earth. ByWard Market, two blocks east of Parliament, is a working covered market operating since 1826 with outstanding produce, the city's best BeaverTails pastry stands, and the densest cluster of restaurants in the capital.
National Gallery & Canadian War Museum
The National Gallery of Canada (free on Thursday evenings, $20 otherwise) holds the world's largest collection of Canadian art — the Rideau Chapel, transplanted stone by stone from a demolished convent, is a jaw-dropping centrepiece. The Jack Bush, Emily Carr, and Group of Seven collections are definitive. The Canadian War Museum ($20, across the river in LeBreton Flats) is housed in a building designed to evoke a battlefield trench — Canadian military history from the Seven Years' War through Afghanistan is presented with nuance and clarity.
Gatineau Park & Hull (Québec)
Cross the Ottawa River into Gatineau, Quebec for the Museum of History (Musée canadien de l'histoire, $20), with the finest permanent exhibition on Canadian Indigenous history in the country, and a Grand Hall of totem poles facing Parliament Hill across the river. Gatineau Park (15 minutes northwest of Parliament Hill) is 361 km² of Precambrian Shield forest with 165 km of trails. Champlain Lookout provides the finest panoramic view of the Ottawa River Valley.
Glebe, Lansdowne & Canal Walk
The Glebe is Ottawa's most desirable neighbourhood — Bank Street between the canal and Holmwood Avenue has an excellent independent restaurant and café culture. Lansdowne Park has been redeveloped into a mixed-use sports and entertainment district. Walk the length of the Rideau Canal from Dow's Lake to the Ottawa River locks — in summer the canal is kayaked and paddleboarded; in winter, skated. The Aviation Museum at Rockcliffe ($20) holds one of the most comprehensive collections of vintage aircraft in the world.
Bytown Museum, Locks & Departure
The Bytown Museum at the base of the Parliament Hill locks ($8) traces Ottawa from its origins as a military canal-building settlement in 1826 through its elevation to capital. The lockstation itself — eight locks dropping 24 metres from the canal level to the Ottawa River — is a working National Historic Site. Breakfast along Elgin Street in the Centro neighbourhood before heading out. The Ottawa International Airport is 15 km south of downtown — the 97 bus from downtown takes 35-40 minutes, or a taxi runs around $30.