One day in Ottawa with Teens

Are you wondering what to do in Ottawa in one day with teens? There is so much to see and do in Ottawa, it’s hard to narrow it down when you only have a day.

Ottawa was our first stop on our three-week East Coast Canada road trip. I would have loved a full week there. You really do need that long if you want to see everything. We only had three nights, with one day at Calypso Waterpark (follow me on Facebook to see when I post our review), which left us one day in Ottawa to explore.

If you’re still debating when to take your Ottawa trip, keep in mind that the Canada Strong Pass will return from in for the summer in 2026. It offers reduced or free admission to many museums.

If you want a full list of attractions, tours, restaurants, and day trips, see my full Ottawa for Families Guide. If you prefer a done-for-you plan, here is my one day in Ottawa itinerary.

Where to Stay in Ottawa with Teens

My top five picks for hotels in Ottawa with teens:

Château Cartier Hotel ($):read my review here
A 15-minute drive to Parliament Hill. Great for families. The onsite thermal spa is the standout (read my spa review here).
The Business Inn($):
A 15-minute walk to Parliament Hill. Free continental breakfast and full kitchens in every room. Rooms for families of five or six.9-minute walk
Delta Hotels by Marriott Ottawa City Centre($$):
A 10-minute walk to Parliament Hill. Pet-friendly. Indoor pool and a kids’ playroom.
Brookstreet ($$$):
About a 23-minute drive to Parliament Hill. Very family-friendly. Indoor pool, kids’ wading pool, hot tub, free bicycle rentals, pickleball court, mini golf, and outdoor games.
Fairmont Chateau Laurier ($$$$):
The most well-known hotel in Ottawa. Five minutes to Parliament Hill. Indoor pool, three restaurants, and beautiful public spaces.

My One-Day Ottawa Itinerary

Our plan for seeing Ottawa in one day was this:

8:30 — Parliament Hill area
11:00 — Museum of Nature
Lunch — Museum of Nature cafeteria
1:00 — National Gallery of Canada
3:00 — Canadian Museum of History
Dinner — Fast food
7:00 — Jacques-Cartier Park
8:00 — Koena Spa

Here is what we ended up doing:

@mamasonvacation
Here’s how we spent our day in Ottawa. Link in bio or visit www.mamasonvacation.com for the full itinerary! #Ottawa #travelguide #ottawatourism #OttawaWithKids #ThingsToDoInOttawa
♬ This Is Canada – Viral Sound Empire & Canadian Bacon

Morning in Ottawa with Teens

We started at our hotel, the Chateau Cartier Hotel & Resort, with a quick breakfast before taking an Uber downtown at 8:00.

While we had a car, I decided we would take an Uber downtown so I wouldn’t have to navigate a busy and unfamiliar area or deal with parking. The Uber was about $25 each way, and it likely would have cost close to $50 for the day if I had driven us to each stop and paid for parking.

Coffee or Breakfast

The first stop in my one-day Ottawa itinerary is breakfast or coffee near Parliament Hill.

There are several cute coffee shops in the area, but the one that stood out to me was Little Victories Coffee Roasters on Mackenzie Drive. It’s locally owned, with a relaxed vibe. There is some seating inside, but on a nice day, the outdoor seating is the better option. I grabbed a coffee and hot chocolate for the kids and we sat outside before heading to our first stop.

If Little Victories isn’t your vibe, here are other nearby options:
• Ottawa Bike Cafe
• Starbucks (inside the Mall Ottawa at Rideau Street and Colonel By Drive)
• Café Laurier (inside Chateau Laurier)

If you want a full breakfast, here are good options that aren’t too far from the next stop:
• Egg Club Ottawa
• Zak’s Diner
• The SconeWitch

Confederation Square

After our coffee stop, we made our way towards Parliament Hill, stopping in at Confederation Square on the way.

Designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1984, this is where you will see the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and the National War Memorial. It is the second most important ceremonial centre in Ottawa (after Parliament Hill) and is where the National Remembrance Day Ceremony takes place every year. This is a meaningful stop to include when exploring Ottawa with teens if you want to add some Canadian history to your day.

Explore Chateau Laurier

If you’re staying overnight in Ottawa and have the budget for it, the historical and luxurious Fairmont Chateau Laurier has amazing views of Parliament Hill and the Rideau Canal. If you’re just doing an Ottawa day trip, you can still go inside to look around.

This French Gothic Revival Châteauesque-style hotel opened in 1912 and was designated a National Historic Site in 1980. There is a guided tour available if you want to learn more about the history and see the grand ballrooms. If you visit between 11:00 and 3:00, you can also go to Zoe’s Lounge for an afternoon tea experience.

Otherwise, you can wander around the public spaces and check out the statues and photos of famous visitors. That’s what we chose to do on our way to the Parliament Hill area. We briefly checked out the lobby, then wandered up the grand staircase to get an overhead view.

Rideau Canal

No Ottawa itinerary is complete without a visit to the Rideau Canal.

Right beside the Chateau Laurier are the Rideau Canal Locks 1 to 8, the largest set of locks on the canal, with a lift height of 24 metres. You can walk alongside the locks and down to the bottom at any time. However, if you want to watch boats passing through, get there for 9:00 am in the summer. It takes about an hour and a half for a boat to go through all eight locks.

If you have extra time in the morning, consider taking a one-and-a-half-hour cruise on the Rideau Canal. Or, if your one day in Ottawa trip is in the winter, consider skating. When the Rideau Canal freezes, it transforms into a 7.8 km skating path from downtown to the Hartwells Locks. Skate rentals are available in two locations. One is downtown under the Mackenzie Bridge, and the other is near Fifth Avenue.

We chose to walk around the locks and stay to watch one set of boats go through. We arrived around 8:50, and a staff member let us know they would be starting at 9:00. First, we walked down to the bottom to get a good look at all the locks, and just as we started to head back up, the same staff member saw me and let me know they had started loading the first set of boats. We got back up in time to watch the boats get lowered in the first lock. The kids were somewhat amused, but once the boats passed through the first lock, they were ready to move on.

Parliament Hill

The Parliament buildings are a must-do when sightseeing in Ottawa. Unfortunately, when we went, it wasn’t a great sight since the buildings are under construction. There are construction walls with images of the buildings on them around Centre Block, along with cranes. Don’t expect to get any good pictures until construction is completed, which isn’t expected until at least 2030.

You can still see the two other Gothic Revival–style buildings, known as West Block and East Block, and you can get pictures with the Centennial Flame. The flame never burns out, and the fountain water never freezes. The coat of arms for each province and territory is displayed around the base, so it’s still a nice stop on any Ottawa itinerary.

Parliament Hill offers a few activities for tourists, including guided tours of the Parliament buildings and an immersive experience with a 360° multimedia show. There is also a path behind Centre Block if you want to explore outside the buildings. From there, you can see the Library of Parliament, the circular building behind Centre Block, along with several monuments.

My kids weren’t interested in doing a tour or a walk. Zen was really interested in seeing the Changing of the Guard ceremony. Unfortunately, the full ceremony only occurs on Wednesdays to Sundays. Instead, we watched the Ceremonial Guard Band show, which takes place on Mondays and Tuesdays.

We arrived about 15 minutes before the show started, so we were able to get a front-and-centre spot where the kids could sit. The show lasted about 20 minutes, with the band playing several songs. Brie loved it, and Zen enjoyed it even though it wasn’t the ceremony she had hoped to see.

Elgin Street

When you’re looking for things to do in Ottawa with teens, museums end up at the top of the list. Our first stop was the Museum of Nature, about a 20-minute walk from Parliament Hill.

On the way, we checked out a few sights. We walked through Confederation Park, one of the city’s main event spaces. There were no events during our visit, so we took a quick look at the Lieutenant Colonel fountain and a few statues before moving on.

As we continued along Elgin Street, we passed Ottawa’s City Hall, a couple of old churches, and the Lord Elgin Hotel, a historic hotel built in 1941. The most interesting thing on the walk was a statue of a man sitting at a grand piano with music playing. It caught Brie’s attention, so we stopped. I learned it was Oscar Peterson, the Canadian jazz pianist.

Canadian Museum of Nature

The Canadian Museum of Nature is huge, with four floors, two exhibits on each floor, plus one in the basement. The permanent exhibits include Arctic, Birds, Earth, Mammals, Water, Bugs Alive, and Fossils, along with two rotating special exhibits. This museum is perfect for older kids and teens—you could easily spend half a day here if your teens like to take their time reading through the exhibits that interest them.

Zen really enjoyed exploring the museum, and while Brie seemed content, she moved through each exhibit pretty quickly (check out my autism-friendly review for more info). About halfway through our visit, we took a break for lunch in the museum cafeteria, which had a decent selection of food on the main floor.

What to do in Ottawa in the Afternoon

National Gallery of Canada

Trying to fit multiple museums into a one-day Ottawa itinerary can be tough. We planned to stop at the National Gallery of Canada next, at least for a quick walk around. However, since we spent three hours at the Canadian Museum of Nature instead of two, we had to skip it. If you don’t spend as long at the first two stops and finish at the Museum of Nature by 1:00 or 2:00, you should have time to visit.

Even if you don’t go inside, the National Gallery is worth seeing. Outside this large glass building, which opened in 1988, is a giant spider statue called Maman. Inside, the gallery features an extensive collection of Indigenous and Canadian art, along with European and other international works.

We didn’t make it inside on this trip, but we had visited on a previous family trip when the kids were younger. Back then, an art gallery wasn’t very exciting for them, so we didn’t see everything or stay long. They did enjoy the area where they could create their own artwork. While young kids may not stay long, teen artists might spend more time exploring and drawing inspiration.

Canadian Museum of History

The next stop is one of the top attractions for visitors in Ottawa: the Canadian Museum of History, which opened in 1918. The museum is located across the bridge in Gatineau, Quebec, so it’s too far to walk from the Museum of Nature. A hop-on hop-off bus tour is a convenient way to get between museums, but we chose to take an Uber instead.

Inside the museum, you’ll find the Canadian Children’s Museum, one of the best Ottawa attractions for younger kids. Teens may be too old to fully enjoy this area, but it’s still worth walking through. While my kids did enjoy looking around, the museum was too busy for them to play the way they did at the London Children’s Museum.

Our favorite exhibit was Retro – Popular Music in Canada From the ’60s, ’70s, and ’80s, which runs until January 18th, 2026. Brie loved this section, with its bright colors and calmer atmosphere compared to the children’s museum. The exhibit includes memorabilia, giant games, a craft area, and photo backdrops.

After that, we explored the permanent exhibits, which tend to appeal more to teens. These include the Canadian Stamp Collection, the First Peoples Hall, Grand Hall, and the Canadian History Hall, with a focus on Indigenous history in Canada. While Brie wasn’t very interested, Zen enjoyed reading about the artifacts. This museum is another place where you could easily spend half a day if your teen is interested in history.

The museum also features a CINÉ+ theatre, showing documentaries on Canadian history and wilderness. Don’t miss walking around outside to see additional artifacts, appreciate the unique building design, and take in the great view of Ottawa from the back of the museum.

How to end a day in Ottawa

Jacques-Cartier Park

While Jacques-Cartier Park might not be at the top of most lists for things to do in Ottawa in one day, it was our planned final stop. I chose it because it’s only a 15-minute walk from the Canadian Museum of History, making it convenient to grab some fast food on the way and have a picnic dinner. By that time, though, the kids were ready to head back to the hotel.

My main interest in the park was seeing the giant garden sculptures I had seen on Google Maps. Unfortunately, those have been gone since around 2020. The park still offers a pleasant walk along the Capital Pathway, with nice views of the Ottawa River. There’s also a 1.5-hour sightseeing river cruise that departs from the park, with the last cruise leaving at 5:00 pm—another way to enjoy the area if you have the time.

Dinner

We ended up eating at ONŌ, the restaurant at our hotel, which was convenient after a long day exploring Ottawa with teens. If you decide to finish your night at Jacques-Cartier Park for the river cruise or are still near the museums at dinner time, there are several nearby options worth considering:

Maison Charron (located in the park)
PIZZA 9
St-Hubert

For a quicker, casual option, the food court at Place du Centre shopping centre has a variety of choices, including Burrito Bar, Manchu Wok, Papy’s Fries and Burgers, Subway, Thai Express, and Tim Hortons.

More Evening Plan Ideas for Ottawa

Most tourist attractions in Ottawa close by 5:00 or 6:00 pm. Luckily, there are a lot of activities you can add on to the end of your day in Ottawa that teens will enjoy.

Night tour with a river cruise
Ziplining over the Ottawa River
Rock climbing at Latitude Gym
Roller skating and arcade games at Skate & Play
Escape rooms, laser tag, roller coasters, bumper cars, and arcade games at Funhaven
Rope course and trampolines at Flying Squirrel
Playing vintage video games at House of TARG
Virtual reality experiences at VR Adventures Zone
Board games or video games at Level One
Archery battles with rubber arrows at Archery Games Ottawa
Axe throwing at LumberJaxe

We didn’t plan anything after the park because I knew my teens would be done for the day, and I wanted to check out Koena, the on-site Nordic thermal spa at our hotel. Since kids 16 and older are allowed in with an adult, both of mine joined me. They stayed for about an hour and a half, while I relaxed there for three hours. It was the perfect way to end a busy day in Ottawa.

Will you be trying this one day in Ottawa itinerary? Share how it goes on my Facebook post, and follow meto see the rest of my itineraries from our East Coast Canada road trip and other destinations we explore next.