As the attractive capital of Canada, Ottawa manages to impress visitors year-round with its pulsing districts, diverse culture, vibrant autumn and winter events and a whole host of outdoor retreats. HAPPYCAR is here to help you find the best car hire Ottawa has to offer so you can take full advantage of this proud city, with a direct car hire Ottawa Airport also available. We check the prices of international and local providers so that you don’t have to check each website to provide you with the best deals to make your money go further on a rental car that fits your specific rental needs.
General Information
Straddling the border between Québec and Ontario, Ottawa was originally seen as an odd site for the capital, but has since justified its status by pioneering electric-powered technology in the country. Today it is an incredibly clean, green city with an incredible amount of diversity, cultural variety and gastronomic choice. With so many things to see, visitors will quickly understand why it’s over one million residents are so fond of their bilingual city, and there is plenty to keep you occupied for days on end. Ottawa covers a vast area, with thoroughfares, parkways, rural roads and quiet streets so a car hire in Ottawa is an excellent way to explore the city.
To Do
Ottawa has an abundance of things to see and do, from the city’s wealth of historic landmarks and capital sites, to architecturally stunning museums and galleries and breathtaking natural beauty. State of the art museums are de rigeur here, from the ultramodern Museum of Civilization and the Canada Science and Technology Museum to the Gothic arches of the Museum of Nature. For families there are also many things to enjoy, from the largest theme Water Park in Canada, the Calypso Water Park, to a visit to the city’s NHL stadium or Ottawa Little Theater, Canada’s oldest community theater that shows a number of quaint performances. In winter the Winterlude festival gets everybody outdoors to enjoy a myriad of dramatic ice sculptures.
Attractions
There are an incredible number of beautiful sights, both historic and modern, that speak of Ottawa’s past, present and future. The Parliament of Canada is a breathtaking Gothic centerpiece to the city that looks out to the Ottawa River, and, combined with Parliament hill, makes it the most visited attraction in Ottawa. Built by hand in the early days of Ottawa’s founding in anticipation of a US attack, the Rideau Canal, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, becomes the world’s longest skating rink in winter and remains a popular place to visit any time of the year. Along with many architectural delights in the city’s museums and rural heritage buildings, a good number of days is required to take it all in.
Eating
Ethnic food abounds in the city, with the largest amount of shawarma restaurants than any other place in the world. The tasty Beaver Tail is a local pastry that can be found everywhere, and consists of deep-fried dough with cinnamon and sugar. Ottawa’s gastronomic diversity is evident on almost every street, with a mix of local and international cuisine. Chinese and Italian food have been veterans of the Ottawa scene for a long time, but now visitors can look forward to African, French, Caribbean, European and Asian food are in abundance.
Excursions
Just over the river lies Gatineau, a quaint trip with an Ottawa car hire, enables visitors to enjoy a great range of outdoor activities like mountain biking and cross-country skiing. There are also some attractive rural towns, agricultural villages and woodland that stretches all the way to Montreal and the US border. Travelling southwest for 4 and a half hours, and you arrive in Toronto, sprawling and pulsating with activity.