Sure, Canada’s capital city is rich with historical and political culture, but there’s much more to Ottawa than that. With the upcoming 150th anniversary of Canada’s Confederation, we look at the city’s unmissable and unique.
Guerrilla yoga
Active wear juggernaut Lululemon Athletica (one of Canada’s greatest exports), runs free ‘guerrilla yoga’ classes on Parliament Hill each Wednesday at noon, from May to the end of September (weather permitting).
Up to 1000 people participate on a weekly basis, so bring your yoga mat and join in the fun, or just enjoy the spectacle on the grassy lawns of Parliament Hill.
Shop like a local
The ByWard Market in Lower Town is as historic as Ottawa itself.
It was here back in 1826 that extra wide streets were incorporated into Ottawa’s initial town planning to accommodate the horse-drawn carriages that brought foodstuffs to the market each day.
Today it’s one of Canada’s oldest and largest public markets, home to over 500 businesses, a local farmers’ market and artisans with over 260 stands.
It’s also the best place in town for shopping, dining and entertainment, drawing some 50,000 visitors per each in the summer.
Skate the world’s largest ice rink
The Rideau Canal, which connects the city of Ottawa to the city of Kingston, has two main claims to fame. As well as being North America’s oldest operating waterway, during winter it transforms into the world’s largest naturally frozen ice rink.
During the colder months you can skate around this local icon, or when it’s warm, you can cruise down it, passing impressive landmarks like the Parliament buildings, National Gallery of Canada, the Prime Minister’s residence and Rideau Falls.
Play prisoner
For a stay with a difference, rest your bones at the HI-Ottawa Jail Hostel in the heart of downtown.
Formerly the Carleton County Gaol, you can stay in an authentic cell, now with added creature comforts like electricity and free wifi.
But be warned, this hostel is considered one of the most haunted buildings in Canada, as you’ll learn on your complimentary tour of the heritage jail, which also gives an insight into the daily lives of inmates.
Indulge in the blues
Renowned as one of the greatest music festivals on the planet, Bluesfest takes over Ottawa every July, showcasing the world’s best musicians across blues, indie, rock and pop genres.
Originally a one-stage, three-day event, it has grown in size (and popularity) to become a multi-staged, two-week music extravaganza.
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Sleep like an A-lister
Celebrating 100 years of history, Fairmont Chateau Laurier is one of Ottawa’s most iconic hotels, which has hosted heads of state, celebrities, dignitaries and guests from all around the world.
Matching its impressive guestlist is the regal décor, art-deco pool and central location.
From as little as $359 you can rest your weary head at this legendary chateau.
Canada celebrates 150 years!
The countdown is on for Canada’s sesquicentennial! On 1 July, 2017, Canada will celebrate 150 years since Confederation – when three colonies got together to form one united maple-syrup-hockey-and-poutine-loving country. And, as the nation’s capital, Ottawa is the focus of the birthday festivities, with 12 full months of events.
Visit www.ottawa2017.ca for the full lineup of events, including these highlights:
Ignite 150 will present a series of 17 epic stunts to turbo-charge every corner of the city. Savour a gourmet dinner 50 metres in the air, relax during a yoga session on a barge floating down a local waterway accompanied by a live orchestra, or watch a movie on a downtown terrace rooftop
Picnic on the Bridge on July 2, will see the majestic span above the Ottawa River transformed into a grassy green for one special day.
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Discover North America’s epic adventures — from Route 66 and Alaska cruises to Hawai‘i road trips, NYC culture, Mexico trails and more.
1. Route 66, the Main Street of America
Travelling with: Ricky French
Hit the open road and trace America’s legendary highway. (Image: Getty/Der_Thomasa)
Dubbed the Main Street of America, Route 66 radiates serious main character energy, cemented into popular culture through everything from John Steinbeck’s novel The Grapes of Wrath to the Disney Pixar film Cars. Spanning nearly 4000 kilometres from Chicago to Los Angeles, the historic highway celebrates its centenary next year, a timely invitation to take the mother of all road trips along the Mother Road. Allow two to three weeks to tackle the full length, or bite off a smaller chunk at either end, cruising the dramatic deserts of California or the more pastoral landscapes of Illinois, lined with neon-lit diners, retro gas stations and quirky roadside attractions.
2. Mexico’s Día de los Muertos
Travelling with: Carla Grossetti
Celebrate life and honour loved ones in vibrant style. (Image: Getty/Fabian Pacheco)
You might know Oaxaca as the birthplace of mole and mezcal. But the state in southern Mexico is also where the Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) began. Time your visit to coincide with the colourful holiday, on 1–2 November, which honours and celebrates loved ones who have passed away. Oaxaca is also Mexico’s Michelin-starred culinary capital, with 18 restaurants and a humble taco stand listed in the 2025 guide.
3. Museum-hop in New York City
Travelling with: Carla Grossetti
Step inside and marvel at bold, world-class art. (Image: Damiano Fiore)
Your map app will look like it’s been scattered with confetti after you’ve dropped pins on all the museums you want to visit in New York City. Must-sees are the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art aka the Met, and the Museum of Modern Art. The American Museum of Natural History is also a draw. It’s also worth venturing into the boroughs to browse institutions such as the Brooklyn Museum, which has a huge permanent collection categorised by culture.
4. The USA’s music scene
Travelling with: Elizabeth Whitehead
Soak up skyline views and dive into the city’s coffee culture. (Image: Abigail Boone)
If you’re a muso, chances are you’ve wanted to make a pilgrimage to the United States, the epicentre of so many beloved genres. Whether you’re head-banging your way around the Grunge Circuit in Seattle, chasing the twang of the pedal steel through Tennessee or bouncing between blues bars in the Mississippi Delta, the USA’s rich music culture has something that’ll strike a chord.
5. Road-tripping Hawai‘i
Travelling with: Carla Grossetti
Catch the waves and ride Hawaii’s iconic swells. (Image: Ben Ono)
Hawai‘i is one of the most diverse US states to road trip around. Of the six major islands to visit, the Island of Hawai‘i packs in everything from the snowy summits of Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa to black-sand beaches and lava fields frozen in the act of flowing forward. Change down a few gears on the island of O‘ahu, too, where you can find your own patch of sand on Waimanalo Beach. Visit poi and pineapple plantations. And hang ten on beginner-friendly waves on the North Shore.
6. Cruising Alaska
Travelling with: Carla Grossetti
Sail past glaciers and spot whales in pristine waters.
Seeing Alaska from the sea allows you to cover a lot of distance quickly. This immersive frontier now beckons more than ever before with Explora Journeys adding the American state to its global destination portfolio. Best of all are the pre-and post-journey immersions that connect the luxury of a cruise onboard Explora III with the rugged grandeur of the Alaskan interior. UnCruise Adventures also weaves in access to remote national parks, legendary wildlife corridors and authentic cultural experiences on its Alaskan itineraries.
7. The Wixárika Route in Mexico
Travelling with: Elizabeth Whitehead
Journey deep into sacred Huichol traditions and art.
For generations, the Indigenous Wixárika People of Mexico have walked a sacred path known as Tatehuarí Huajuyé, or ‘The Path of Our Grandfather Fire’. The annual pilgrimage route spans 500 kilometres, taking in significant sites in Wixárika spirituality and cosmology. The route passes through the deserts, mountains and forests of northern Mexico before reaching Wirikuta, believed to be the place the sun first emerged. The route is a living cultural landscape of Indigenous culture pre-Columbian influence and, in July this year, was formally inscribed into UNESCO’s World Heritage List.
8. Drive the Iceberg Coast in Canada
Travelling with: Carla Grossetti
Chase icebergs along Expedition 51 on Canada’s east coast. (Image: Canadian Tourism Commission/ Chris Hendrickson)
Download the icebergfinder.com map to better plan your road trip along Canada’s Iceberg Coast. The new highway, which has been nearly 25 years and CAD$1.1 billion in the making, threads through the country’s pleated coastlines around Quebec, Newfoundland, Labrador, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick before looping in the French islands of St Pierre and Miquelon. As well as chasing icebergs along Expedition 51, travellers will have the opportunity to engage with cultures that have thrived in the pristine provinces for thousands of years.
9. A foodie tour of Nova Scotia
Travelling with: Katie Carlin
Try lobster rolls in Lunenburg on the east coast of Canada in Nova Scotia. (Image: Natalia Kvitovska/ Unsplash)
World-famous for its lobster, Nova Scotia is a Canadian province best savoured through its culinary clout shaped by sea and terroir. Bite into lobster rolls at historic Lunenburg’s Salt Shaker Deli & Inn and sip maple rum at Ironworks Distillery. Winery-hop around Wolfville’s rising vineyards (don’t miss Lightfoot & Wolfville). Take a maple syrup tour at Sugar Moon Farm near Earltown. And pull up a seat at waterfront Bar Sofia in Halifax, where Nova Scotia oysters aguachile arrive bright with cucumber, lime and pickled onion.
10. Soak up the sun in the Caribbean
Travelling with: Carla Grossetti
Experience the white-sand beaches and cerulean seas of the Caribbean on board a cruise.
The Caribbean is on the radar for seasoned cruisers. And it’s easy to see why, with white-sand beaches, cerulean seas and swaying palms so picture-perfect they look AI-generated. Cruise with Windstar, Royal Caribbean, and Celebrity on its inaugural Xcel season to the Caribbean to enjoy action-packed excursions such as snorkelling coral reefs and shopping for local trinkets. And those sea days? Spectacular.
11. Red Chair Hikes of Canada
Travelling with: Kassia Byrnes
Take a seat at Lake Minnewanka, one of more than 400 red Adirondack chairs scattered across Canada’s hiking routes. (Image: Getty Images/ Autumn Sky Photography)
No one appreciates the great outdoors more than Canadians, emerging from snow-covered winters to tread glacial rivers and snowshoe through forests, or to hike mighty mountains and wildflower-strewn valleys come spring. Along popular hikes around the country, more than 400 red Adirondack chairs have been placed in peaceful, breathtaking locations. What started as a social media contest now sees hikers soaking in classic Canadian lake and mountain vistas, overlooking historic sites or gazing down on the mountainous path they just travelled.
12. Ride the Rocky Mountaineer from Denver to Moab, USA
Travelling with: Carla Grossetti
The Rocky Mountaineer will continue as the Canyon Spirit in 2026, seen here carving through Ruby Canyon.
Sighting wild animals is one of many incredible thrills along the two-day luxury Rockies to the Red Rocks route onboard the Rocky Mountaineer across America’s Southwest between mid-April and mid-October. In addition to the lone bear, we spot bighorn sheep, elk, beavers, pronghorn antelope, bald eagles and ospreys. Riding the rails onboard the luxury train, which was founded in Canada in 1990 and has been awarded the prestigious World’s Leading Travel Experience by Train several times, has never been about just getting from A to B. Ride the train from Denver to Moab and you will see the scenery change from snow-capped peaks to meadows, red-rock canyons and soaring cliffs that resemble ornate Gaudí-esque cathedrals. But it’s not until you get off the train that you can produce the ultimate Venn diagram, with nature and adventure in the intersecting spheres.
