Ottawa is a walker's paradise. Its compact size, relatively flat setting, and numerous parks make it easy to get around, and with most of the major national sites in the downtown core, you can leave the car in the hotel parking lot for most of your visit. You can readily find your way around the city without a car, using one only if you have time for a few day trips to outlying attractions.
Public transit in Ottawa is provided by OC Transpo. This is an economical and efficient way to get around, since buses can bypass rush-hour traffic through the Transitway, a rapid-transit system of roadways reserved exclusively for buses. Routes 94, 95, 96, 97, 101, and 102 are the main Transitway routes, operating 22 hours a day. For transit information, call tel. 613/741-4390 or visit www.octranspo.com. The regular exact-cash fare is C$3.25 for an adult and C$1.60 for a child. It's cheaper to use tickets, at C$1.25 each, since the adult fare is two tickets and the child fare (ages 6-11) is one ticket. The exception is during weekday rush hours, when some express routes charge C$4.25 or a three-ticket fare. DayPasses are available at C$7.50 on the bus for unlimited rides. And on Sunday and statutory holidays, a single DayPass entitles families, comprising up to two adults and four children ages 11 and under, to unlimited same-day travel -- a great bargain. You can buy bus passes and tickets at more than 300 vendor locations across the city.
Public transit throughout the city of Gatineau and the Outaouais region on the Québec side of the Ottawa River is provided by Société de transport de l'Outaouais (STO; tel. 819/770-3242; www.sto.ca).
You can hail a taxi on the street, but you'll find one more readily at taxi stands in front of most hotels, many government buildings, and some museums. You can also summon a taxi by phone. The drop charge for Ottawa taxis is C$3.30, and the mileage charge is C16¢ for every 93m (305 ft.). In the Ottawa area, 24-hour cab companies include Blue Line (tel. 613/238-1111), with a fleet of more than 500 cabs, and Capital Taxi (tel. 613/744-3333). West-Way Taxi (tel. 613/727-0101) has drivers who have been trained to transport people with disabilities.
The scale of Ottawa makes driving your vehicle unnecessary for most sightseeing, although it will come in handy if you want to visit outlying attractions, such as the Canada Aviation Museum, the Diefenbunker, or Gatineau Park.
Generally, short-term parking rates downtown are C50¢ for 12 minutes. Your best bet is to use a municipal parking lot, marked with a large white "P" in a green circle. On weekends, parking is free in city lots and at meters in the area bounded by the Rideau Canal and Bronson Avenue, and by Wellington and Catherine streets.
In Ontario, a right turn on a red light is permitted after coming to a complete stop unless the intersection is posted otherwise, provided you yield to oncoming traffic and pedestrians. Be aware that once you cross the Ottawa River, you enter the province of Québec, where the rules are different, and vary from municipality to municipality. In Gatineau, you can turn right on a red light when it is safe to do so and only if there is no signage indicating that right-hand turns on a red light are not allowed. Throughout Québec, some street signs prohibit right turns on a red during specific periods. Wearing your seat belt is compulsory; fines for riding without a seat belt are substantial.
City Layout
The Ottawa River -- Canada's second longest, at more than 1,125km (700 miles) in length -- curves around the northern edge of city. The compact downtown, where most of the major attractions are clustered, lies just south of the river.
The Rideau Canal sweeps past the National Arts Centre, cleaving downtown into two parts: Centretown and Lowertown. In Centretown are Parliament Hill, the Supreme Court, and the National Museum of Natural Sciences. In Lowertown, on the east side of the canal, are the National Gallery of Canada, ByWard Market, and (along Sussex Drive) the prime minister's residence, diplomats' row, and Rockcliffe Park. The area lying south of the Queensway, stretching west to Bronson and east to the canal, is known as the Glebe, and it harbors a number of popular restaurants and clubs, especially along Bank Street. North across the river, in the province of Québec, lies the city of Gatineau, the result of a recent merger that consolidated the city of Hull (where many national government offices are located) and four other suburban communities. It's reached via the Macdonald-Cartier and Alexandra bridges from the eastern end of town, or the Portage and Chaudière bridges from the western end of the city. At the end of the Alexandra Bridge stands the curvaceous Museum of Civilization, and nearby are some of the city's best French restaurants and liveliest nightlife action. North and east of Hull stretch the Gatineau Hills, with acres of parklands and ski country.
Note: This information was accurate when it was published, but can change without notice. Please be sure to confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in question before planning your trip.
