Family activities in Ottawa this December
- Francie Healy
- Nov 24
- 5 min read
It’s cold, yes, but December is beautiful in Ottawa when the city and surrounding areas come alive with lights, music, markets, and family-friendly traditions.
If you haven’t already experienced twinkling light pathways downtown, indoor and outdoor skating, winter concerts or a recent trip to any of Ottawa’s fabulous museums, this might be the year, especially if you have out-of-town visitors and perhaps even more especially if you have children.
Our Lagois team has some suggestions of ways you might enjoy it all.
Ottawa Christmas Market
Weekends in December
Lansdowne Park, Ottawa
A festive European-style outdoor market with lights, food, live music and local vendors. Santa’s Workshop and Village.
More information here.
Go skating!
Rideau Canal Skateway
Opens Late December or early January, weather permitting
Downtown Ottawa
Free
The classic Ottawa winter experience: the Rideau Canal is a UNESCO World Heritage site that becomes the world’s largest skating rink in winter, winding its way through the heart of the National Capital over a total length of 7.8 km.
More information here, or sign up for the NCC newsletter for updates.
Rink of Dreams
Marion Dewar Plaza in front of Ottawa City Hall
Free
Go skating on the Rink of Dreams. This rink offers a longer skating season than the Rideau Canal (roughly December to mid-March) because of its refrigerated surface. There’s a heated change hut, picnic tables and benches, and it’s lit up at night.
Check the City of Ottawa website for information about when the rink is open.
Lansdowne Park Skating Court
Glebe neighbourhood just south of downtown Ottawa
(A commercial parking lot is accessible from Bank Street and Queen Elizabeth Drive.)
Open daily 7 am to 11 pm (weather permitting)
This is another refrigerated ice rink. Free open skating sessions and other skating programs.
General inquiry: parc.lansdowne.park@ottawa.ca or 613-580-2429.
Winter Lights Across Canada
Every evening, December 8, 2025 – January 9, 2026
Sites across Ottawa and Gatineau
Thousands of lights illuminate our national capital along a route of national sites and landmarks including the National War Memorial, Rideau Canal Park, Confederation Park, Mackenzie Triangle, Reconciliation: The Peacekeeping Monument; Jacques-Cartier Park, Garden of Provinces and Territories, Portage Park and the Supreme Court of Canada.
See the Pathway of Lights map, here.
Winter Wander on Sparks Street
Until January 5, 2026
Sparks Street
Sparks Street transforms into a picture-perfect winter wonderland with festive lights, bringing the magic of the season to downtown Ottawa.
More information here.
National Gallery of Canada Open Studio
380 Sussex Drive
10 am to 4 pm. Drop in. No registration required.
Open-ended creating on weekends and holidays.
For adults and children accompanied by an adult.
Free for children under 11 or with National Gallery membership; or included in Gallery admission. English and French.
Studio events calendar here.
Ottawa Art Gallery – Creative Sundays
Sundays, 10 am – 2 pm
50 Mackenzie King Bridge, Ottawa
Free
A drop-in art activity suitable for all ages. No registration required, but children must be accompanied by an adult.
For more information, email studio@oaggao.ca or call 613-233-8699 + 242.
Cumberland Heritage Village – Vintage Village of Lights
Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays from 4 pm to 9 pm (last admission by 8 pm)
November 28 through December 21
2940 Old Montreal Road, Cumberland
A postcard-perfect 1920s and 30s heritage village charmingly decorated for the holidays. Explore festive vignettes and light displays, visit with Santa, decorate gingerbread cookies, complete a craft, take in a seasonal heritage skill demonstration, and relax around the bonfire.
More information including cost, here.
Magic of Lights
Wesley Clover Parks, west end Ottawa
Now to January 4, 2026
A dazzling drive-through light show benefitting children, youth and families at CHEO. The 2km route is illuminated by over 2 million lights.
More information here.
Snowshoe under the Stars
Gatineau Park, Chelsea, Quebec
Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday from 5:30 p.m. until 9:30 p.m.
$80
Starlight-guided snowshoeing adventure in the Gatineau Park on a trail that takes you to a warm dinner prepared on a wood stove in the Lake Brown shelter.
More information here.
Patinage en forêt
Lac des Loups, Quebec
Monday to Sunday, 9 a.m. to sunset
The longest skating trail through the forest in Outaouais: the heart of Lac des Loups.
More information here.
Alight at Night
Upper Canada Village, 13740 County Road 2, Morrisburg
Open select nights from Nov 29 – Jan 4 from 5pm-9pm.
More than one million lights illuminate Upper Canada Village. There are a number of beautiful packages. Free parking.
Tickets are available online only, here.
Thomas Tree Farm
North Gower, Ont. (very close to the Lagois office)
Thursdays to Sundays, 9 am to 5 pm. Evenings: Thursday to Saturday, 5 pm to 8:30 pm.
Cut or choose your own Christmas tree. Trees are shaken and baled for you. Bring a hand saw or use one provided. (No axes or chainsaws.) Children of all ages welcome, but no dogs, please. Don’t forget to dress warmly!
Complimentary hot chocolate and cookies, multiple firepit areas, wagon rides available to cut-your-own fields from 9 am to 5 pm. In the evenings, there are magical lights.
More information here.
Saunders Farm
7893 Bleeks Rd A, Ottawa
Starting Dec. 6. (closed Dec. 24, 25, 26).
A Country Christmas and whimsical winter wonderland; visits with Santa; finding your inner elf; decorating ornaments and cookies; holiday lights; food booths; snowy hedge mazes; cozy campfires; bear factory and more.
More information here.
Light Up the Night
Almonte, Ont.
Friday, Dec. 5. Vendors open at 6:30. Stage show begins at 7 pm sharp.
An open-air concert and a fireworks display. Shopping and dining in this quaint downtown village.
More information here.
Mer Bleue Bog
Ridge Road, Gloucester
One of the most outstanding natural features of the National Capital Commission’s Greenbelt is The Mer Bleue Bog. The Mer Bleue Bog Trail is mostly flat with a universally accessible boardwalk, so you can take young children for a walk even with a stroller. The bog is approximately 7,700 years old and is a habitat for many species of regionally and significantly rare plants, birds and other wildlife. It’s an ideal place for hiking, cross-country skiing and snowshoeing.
Note: dogs are not allowed on any Greenbelt trails during winter.
More information here.
Ferguson Forest Centre and Kemptville Winter Trail
1100 acres of green space. Close to downtown Kemptville
Ferguson Forest Centre operates a 300-acre not-for-profit forest tree nursery. It has an arboretum, a park with waterfront trail, a dog park, and the Veterans Way Memorial Park. One of the trails, the Kemptville Winter Trail, is designed and groomed for skate-skiing, walking and fat-biking.
More information here.
Happy December to you from your Lagois team!
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