Museums worth the trip
Canadian Museum of History (Gatineau)
Canada's most-visited museum and an easy half day. The Grand Hall of totem poles and the view of Parliament across the river are the highlights, and the Children's Museum inside keeps kids busy.
National Gallery of Canada
Big rooms, great Canadian and Indigenous collections, and the giant spider sculpture out front. It's free on Thursday evenings from 5 to 8 pm (book a free ticket online or grab one at the door), which makes it a cheap winter date.
Several other national museums have free Thursday evening windows too, and the Bank of Canada Museum and the Ottawa Art Gallery are always free. See free things to do in Ottawa for the full list.
Canadian War Museum
The LeBreton Gallery is a huge open hall of tanks, artillery and vehicles, and the main galleries are some of the best-made exhibits in the city.
Canada Aviation and Space Museum
Hangars full of aircraft, from bush planes to jets, out in Rockcliffe. An easy pick for anyone who likes machines.
The offbeat ones
The Diefenbunker (Carp)
A four-storey Cold War bunker built into a hillside about 35 minutes west of downtown. You walk in through the blast tunnel and tour the war cabinet room, the bank vault and the prime minister's suite. Genuinely unlike anything else in the region.
The Ottawa Jail Hostel ghost tour
The old Carleton County Gaol is now a hostel, and the Haunted Walk runs evening tours through it, including the cells and death row. Ottawa's best indoor scare.
Bytown Museum
A small museum in the old stone commissariat at the Ottawa Locks, telling the story of the canal and early Bytown. Quick and inexpensive.
Get moving indoors
- Escape rooms: several operators around the city, from classic lock-and-key rooms to theatrical ones. Good for groups of four to six.
- Axe throwing: Bad Axe Throwing runs drop-in and group sessions. Easier than it looks, louder than you'd expect.
- Climbing and bouldering gyms: Ottawa and Gatineau have several. Day passes and intro lessons are common.
- Board game cafés: pay for a table, pick from hundreds of games and settle in for the afternoon.
Warm up properly
Nordik Spa-Nature in Chelsea is the answer to an Ottawa winter: steaming outdoor pools with snow on the trees. It's mostly outdoors but you'll never be cold. Book ahead on weekends.
Winter nights out
- Senators games at the Canadian Tire Centre in Kanata.
- The National Arts Centre for theatre, orchestra and touring shows.
- Comedy: Absolute Comedy runs shows through the week.
- Winterlude in February is mostly outdoors, but the heated tents and nearby pubs make it easy to pace yourself.
Want to get outside after all? See the Ottawa winter guide for skating, sledding and skiing.
FAQ
What is there to do indoors in Ottawa in winter?
The national museums (History, Nature, War, Aviation and Space, Science and Technology), the Diefenbunker, ghost tours of the old jail, escape rooms, axe throwing, climbing gyms, live shows at the NAC and Senators games.
What's free to do indoors in Ottawa?
The Ottawa Art Gallery and the Bank of Canada Museum are always free, and the National Gallery is free on Thursday evenings from 5 to 8 pm. Several other national museums have free Thursday evening windows; check each museum's site for times.
What can adults do in Ottawa on a rainy day?
Museums, a ghost tour of the old jail, escape rooms, axe throwing, bouldering gyms, an afternoon at Nordik Spa, or a show at the NAC.
Is the Diefenbunker worth it?
Yes, especially for adults and older kids. Allow two hours and about 35 minutes of driving from downtown each way.
The weekend, sorted
One short email on Thursdays: what's worth doing in Ottawa and the Gatineau Hills this weekend, and nothing you'll skip.
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