Especially for Kids

Kids love the bands, rifles, and uniforms of the Changing of the Guard on Parliament Hill. The Canada Aviation Museum is a fantasyland for many, especially the mock-ups of cockpits where they can pretend to be pilots. Perennial favorites at the Canadian Museum of Nature include the dinosaurs, animals, and the Discovery Den, especially created for children. Kid-popular attractions at the Canadian Museum of Civilization include the Children's Museum, obviously, but also the CINEPLUS theater's IMAX movies.

Kids enjoy picnicking and getting close to the animals at the Central Experimental Farm. At the Canada Science and Technology Museum, the hands-on exhibits entertain while also teaching. Then there's the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Musical Ride, which practices at the Canadian Police College.

When it's time to let off some steam, there's canoeing or boating at Dow's Lake, biking along the canal or ice skating on it, plus activities outside the city in Gatineau Park.