A guided tour is the ultimate way to experience the best of Canada’s capital, including its many outdoor activities, tasty food and drink, cute animals and unexpected history. Currently, some tours are available for individual guests, while other tours are only available for private groups of households, family and friends. Whether you’re solo or with your bubble, you’ll love these safe, fun and unique guided tour options in Ottawa.
Tube, raft or cruise
Guided water experiences—both on or in the water—are plentiful during the warm seasons in Ottawa. You can go tubing or rafting (bubbles only) down the Ottawa River with Ottawa City Rafting (trips depart just west of the city centre; more adventurous whitewater experiences are an hour away). You can also relax on a narrated cruise on the Ottawa River with World Famous Paul’s Boat Line, or on Ontario’s first UNESCO World Heritage Site with Rideau Canal Cruises (bubbles and individuals).
Cycle salvation
The ultimate way to explore the region’s more than 800 kilometres (354 miles) of pathways is by taking a cycling tour. Rent a bicycle or use your own and join one of several routes offered by local companies Escape Bicycle Tours and Rentals and RentABike. Easy physical distancing outdoors make cycling tours a safe and fun way to visit Canada’s capital.
Bubbles and individuals
Urban flavours
Guided food and drink tours provide special access to the city’s best foodie hotspots. Knowledgeable guides take you to several locations in different neighbourhoods and communities, and introduce you to chefs and owners. Depending on the experience, tasty samples or full courses are served along the way! A few options that are all available for bubbles and individuals:
- C’est Bon Ottawa: Gourmet walking tours
- Escape Bicycle Tours & Rentals: Bike & Bites Tour
- Experience Food or Ottawa Tasting Tours: Curated restaurant tours
- Brew Donkey: Brewery bus tours
Countryside gourmet
Book a tour with La Vida Local to discover foodie treasures in Ottawa’s vast rural areas. Board the comfortable mini-coach bus and enjoy a relaxing ride between vineyards, breweries, cheesemakers, farms, cideries, distilleries and more. As you nibble and sip at the different locations, your knowledgeable tour guide tells you all about the region’s specialties.
Bubbles only
Beekeeper fun
Gees Bees Honey Company, located south of the city centre, is just one of more than a thousand farms in the Ottawa area. Walk through the apiary’s lovely pollinator gardens and learn how bees make honey on a private beehive tour. You can safely examine a beehive up close while standing behind the outdoor screened viewing area, or by wearing a steam cleaned bee suit.
Bubbles only
Animal encounters
Animal-loving bubbles can treat themselves to wild opportunities at Little Ray’s Nature Centre. While closed for drop-in visits, the exotic animal and reptile zoo in Ottawa’s east-end is offering private tours as well as unforgettable encounters with a live sloth!
Bubbles only
Fascinating history (spooky and otherwise)
Join a cloaked guide on a journey through Ottawa’s dark past on a Haunted Walk Bubble Tour. Hear ghost stories and fascinating historical facts as you walk through downtown Ottawa on the Original tour, or go inside the historic Carleton County Jail on the Haunted Ottawa Jail Tour. Tours take place after dark, plus a new (less spooky) afternoon option to visit the jail in the daytime. For more conventional experiences, check out Ottawa Walking Tours and Ottawa Free Tours. They both offer a variety of routes and topics, including some free tours (pay what you want/tips encouraged).
Bubbles and individuals
