This post contains affiliate links. Also, I have visited some of the sites below as a guest of the site or a tourism board.
Wondering when your favourite museum, hotel, park, campground or other tourist site is planning to re-open, as Ontario and Quebec continue to move out of the COVID-19 lockdown? Here are just a few leads to inspire your next road trip in Ottawa, Eastern Ontario, Gatineau and the Outaouais.
I’ll be constantly updating this list with new information as I get it (and if you have information to add, please email me). However (I can’t emphasize this enough!), please check the website of any place you’re hoping to visit before hitting the road. I’ve done my best to include the latest details, but if 2020 has taught us anything, it’s that plans can change in a second.
Also, just because things have re-opened doesn’t mean you can put away those masks and hand sanitizer bottles. Keep following the social-distancing rules, OK? ????
All right—here we go!
Hotels, inns and B&Bs
Fairmont Château Laurier Hotel, Ottawa:The hotel and the large outdoor La Terrasse restaurant overlooking Parliament Hill are open now; the pool is slated to re-open on the August long weekend.
Brookstreet Hotel, Kanata: It opened again on June 1; the golf club is open; hotel restaurants are open for patio service and takeout; the spa is open, with limited services; the pools are open for hotel guests, with limitations on the number of people using them at any one time.
Wakefield Mill Hotel and Spa, Wakefield: The hotel plans to re-open on July 3; the Muse and Heron restaurants will re-open, as will the pool; the spa will offer massages only until further notice.
Grand Hotel, Carleton Place: The hotel is open, as is the patio of the Smith and Barrel pub (the interior of the pub is closed).
Rosemount Inn, Kingston: The inn re-opened on June 15 with no-contact check-in and check-out. Breakfast is now served via room service. Indoor common spaces are closed but outdoor ones are open.
A wee favour: If you decide to book a room at one of these properties, I would be really grateful if you’d do so at Booking.com. If you make any booking at any hotel (not necessarily one of the properties above) after following that link, I’ll earn a small commission. Thanks!
Museums, galleries and similar places
National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa: Starting July 18, the museum is open from Thursday through Sunday; physical distancing measures are in place; the Indigenous art exhibition Àbadakone / Continuous Fire / Feu continuel re-opened on July 23 and will run until October 4; the Beautiful Monsters exhibition has been extended into the fall.
Ottawa Art Gallery, Ottawa: The gallery re-opened on July 8. As always, admission is free, but there’s a new twist at the minute: you need to go online to book your visiting time. Walk-ins aren’t permitted at the moment.
Canadian Museum of History, Gatineau: The museum is now open from Thursday through Sunday, from 10am to 4pm. Timed tickets go on sale each Monday for the following week. Lots of outdoor activities are planned, such as performances by Indigenous artists.
Canadian War Museum, Ottawa: Like its sister institution, the Canadian Museum of History, the war museum is open from Thursday through Sunday, from 10am to 4pm, and required timed tickets go on sale each Monday for the following week. Outdoor activities include the chance to see tanks in action.
Canadian Museum of Nature, Ottawa: The museum re-opened on September 5. Advanced ticket purchase required.
Canada Agriculture and Food Museum, Ottawa: The museum is re-opening for members on July 30 and 31, and then to the general public from August 1 onward.
Canada Aviation and Space Museum, Ottawa: The museum is re-opening for members on August 6 and 7, and then to the general public from August 8 onward.
Canada Science and Technology Museum, Ottawa: The museum is re-opening for members on August 12 and 13, and then to the general public from August 14 onward.
The Diefenbunker, Carp: The underground Cold War museum re-opened on July 8.
Billings Estate National Historic Site, Ottawa: The site is now usually open from Wednesday through Sunday, 10am to 5pm. Book your ticket online by 4pm the previous day, if possible.
Cumberland Heritage Village Museum, Ottawa: The museum is now usually open from Wednesday through Sunday, 10am to 5pm. Book your ticket online by 4pm the previous day, if possible.
Fairfields Heritage House, Ottawa: The house is now usually open from Wednesday through Sunday, 10am to 5pm. Book your ticket online by 4pm the previous day, if possible.
Nepean Museum, Ottawa: The museum is now usually open from Wednesday through Sunday, 10am to 5pm. Book your ticket online by 4pm the previous day, if possible.
Pinhey’s Point Historic Site, Ottawa: The site is now usually open from Wednesday through Sunday, 10am to 5pm. Book your ticket online by 4pm the previous day, if possible.
Mississippi Valley Textile Museum, Almonte: The plan is to re-open in September 2020, at the earliest. The museum’s popular Soup for Thought festival has been postponed until October 3.
Aquatarium, Brockville: The museum of St. Lawrence River ecology re-opened on Saturday, July 11; it is open by appointment, Thursday through Monday.
Perth Museum, Perth: The museum is now open from Thursday through Saturday, from 10am to 3pm.
Upper Canada Village, Morrisburg: The village partially re-opened on July 1 for guided tours; timed tickets are required.
Pump House, Kingston: This museum of Kingston’s history, housed in the city’s first waterworks building, re-opened on July 2 for small-group tours of the museum and small walking tours of Ontario Street. Currently open Wednesdays through Saturdays.
Mill of Kintail Museum, Almonte: The museum, including exhibits on artist R. Tait McKenzie and basketball inventor James Naismith, re-opened on June 20. Summer hours are Friday to Monday, 10am to 3pm.
Brockville Museum: The museum reopened on July 21 for private visits, which must be booked at least 24 hours in advance. This summer’s temporary exhibit, “Painting Picnic with Prudence Howard,” showcases the work of a local artist who painted with the Beaver Hall Group of Montreal artists in the 1920s.
Tours and sightseeing flights
Escape Bicycle Tours, Ottawa: You can rent a bike (including an electric bike), and head out on your own or take a guided tour.
Sundance Balloons, Ottawa: The company is taking bookings but—like all other hot-air balloon companies in Ontario and Quebec—is not flying yet.
Rockcliffe Flying Club, Ottawa: In association with the Canada Aviation and Space Museum (which is currently closed), the club is the base for vintage biplane rides and family sightseeing flights. Flights are available daily, from May through October (and on weekends at other times of year).
The Haunted Walk: This popular ghost-tour company is now running small, socially distanced walks for “bubbles” of up to eight people in Ottawa and Kingston.
Brew Donkey: The Ottawa company’s bus tours to local craft breweries are set to resume on July 24.
La Vida Local: Bus tours of nearby wineries, cideries and distilleries are expected to be up and running sometime in July.
Rideau Canal: Most of the canal opened to boating traffic on June 1. Picnic areas, parking lots and washrooms are open. Camping at lockstations will be available for boaters and paddlers only as of June 22. No oTENTiks (floored Parks Canada tents) will be available in 2020. The locks at Jones Falls and Kingston Mills are closed for infrastructure work and are expected to re-open by the end of June. Some facilities along the canal, including the visitor centre in Smiths Falls, remain closed.
OWL Rafting, Foresters Falls: Easy and moderately challenging whitewater rafting trips, and overnight camping packages, will be available for families and social bubble groups as of July 1.
Wilderness Tours, Foresters Falls: Whitewater rafting, accommodations, camping and the restaurant are scheduled to re-open on June 26.
Casinos and other indoor amusements
Casino du Lac-Leamy, Gatineau: The casino has re-opened, with social distancing protocols in place. Hours are now 9am to 4am daily. No new visitors will be allowed in after midnight. Online reservations recommended.
City of Ottawa parks, beaches and pools
Petrie Island beach
More and more amenities are opening in Ottawa’s city parks; check the City of Ottawa’s parks page for the latest news. Here is some of the latest information:
Outdoor sports fields, ball diamonds and courts are now open for bookings by groups of 10 people or fewer.
Benches, picnic tables and gazebos are open, but note that they are not cleaned frequently.
Off-leash dog parks are open.
Big news (judging by the volume of questions I’ve received from readers on this topic!): public washrooms are now open at five city parks—Andrew Haydon Park, Britannia Park, Westboro Beach, Petrie Island and Mooney’s Bay Beach.
All City of Ottawa beachesexcept Britannia are open for swimming, if water quality permits. (Britannia is being rehabilitated and won’t be open for swimming again until next year.)
Boat launches re-opened on May 16.
Barbecue gatherings are limited to 10 people or fewer, and have other restrictions that are listed on the website above.
NEW: As of July 6, a number of indoor and outdoor pools, as well as many splash pads, are now open. New COVID-19 protocols apply, including the requirement to book a one-hour time slot for lane swims and public swims. Detailed information is available on the City’s website.
Gatineau Park: The Gatineau Parkway, Fortune Lake Parkway and Champlain Parkway are open for pedestrians and cyclists only until September 7 (except on Sundays from 1pm to sunset, when they are open to cars). That means a number of the adjacent parking lots are closed most of the week; see the link to the park’s website for the full list. Campgrounds re-opened on June 17. Picnic areas, outhouses and washrooms are open. Beaches, including change rooms and washrooms, re-opened on June 22; Smith and Parent beaches are accessible only to people camping at Philippe Lake. Parking fees come into effect on July 2. The visitor centre in Chelsea remains closed.
Greenbelt: Trails, parking lots, benches, picnic areas, outhouses and the off-leash dog park at Bruce Pit are open.
Urban parks: Washrooms and outhouses are open. Picnic areas and benches in all NCC urban parks on the Ontario side, as well as in Leamy Lake Park in Gatineau, are open. The beach in Leamy Lake Park is open. Some NCC parking lots on both sides of the river are open; see the link above for details. The Blair Road boat launch and Maplelawn Garden are closed.
Parkways: Under a pilot project, the following parkways are closed to cars but open to pedestrians and cyclists during specific periods until June 7, as follows: Queen Elizabeth Driveway between Laurier and Fifth avenues (daily, 8am to 8pm); Sir John A. Macdonald Parkway westbound, between Booth Street and Carling Avenue (weekends, 8am to 4pm, except Canada Day); and Sir George-Étienne Cartier Parkway, between the Aviation Parkway and St. Joseph Boulevard (weekends, 8am to 4pm, except Canada Day). See the Gatineau Park paragraph above for details on parkways there.
Bistros: The bistro at Remic Rapids Park re-opened on June 20; the one in Confederation Park is expected to open in early August; plans for a bistro at Patterson Creek Park have been shelved until 2021.
National parks and historic sites
Bellevue House National Historic Site Kingston
Parks Canada has a detailed COVID-19 page with lots of links. Here’s some pertinent information related to Eastern Ontario and the Outaouais. (For information on the Rideau Canal, see the “Boating and marinas” section above.)
Laurier House National Historic Site, Ottawa: Everything is closed except for the grounds around the house, which are open from 9am to 5pm, Thursday to Monday.
Fort Wellington National Historic Site, Prescott: The parking lot and the grounds outside the fort are open from 9am to 5pm, Thursday to Monday; the visitor centre, fort and washrooms are closed.
Thousand Islands National Park: Some islands, facilities and campsites are open; see the park’s website for extensive details.
Bellevue House National Historic Site, Kingston: The grounds are open from 10am to 4pm, Thursday to Monday; the visitor centre, mansion and washrooms are closed.
Note that information for most sites in Quebec is currently being updated; I’ll post it when I have it!
Ontario provincial parks
A trail marker in Bonnechere Provincial Park in August 2019
Check the Ontario Parks COVID-19 site for detailed info; here are the main points. Make sure to check each park’s specific page for the latest info; not all beaches, campgrounds and so on are opening at the same time.
Backcountry campsites started opening on June 1.
Beaches began re-opening on June 12.
Campgrounds re-opening on June 22 include those at the following Eastern Ontario parks: Algonquin (mostly; several won’t open until June 26), Bon Echo, Bonnechere, Charleston Lake, Fitzroy, Murphys Point, Rideau River, Sandbanks, Sharbot Lake, Silver Lake and Voyageur.
Most parks are now open for day use, such as hiking.
Quebec provincial (national) parks
Sépaq (the provincial park authority) has a COVID-19 information page. Here are some of the salient details about Quebec parks in and near the Outaouais.
Parc nationale de Plaisance: As of June 12, hiking, biking, boating and camping (including cabin and yurt stays) are available.
Centre touristique du Lac-Simon: As of June 16, you can camp or rent a cabin. Boat rentals start on June 20; bikes and other equipment may be available to rent later in the summer. Most playgrounds are open (parental supervision is required), but the slides, jungle playground and trampoline will be closed all season. The beach is currently closed.
Réserve faunique de Papineau-Labelle: Day fishing is the only activity (besides camping) currently permitted; you have to buy an online permit in advance. Most campgrounds are open, except ready-to-camp sites, which will start opening gradually on June 26. Detailed info is available on the park’s website.
City of Gatineau facilities
All outdoor public pools and some outdoor wading pools re-opened on June 20. Details in this Radio-Canada story.
Outdoor adventures
Camp Fortune, Chelsea: Parking lots and mountain biking trails are now open from 8am to sunset (you need to buy a pass online); downhill mountain biking and the zipline/aerial park are expected to open in July.
Great Canadian Bungee, between Chelsea and Wakefield: Canada’s highest bungee jump re-opened on June 8.
Éco-Odyssée, Wakefield: The unique water maze is open.
Arbraska Laflèche, Val-des-Monts: The caves and the aerial park are open. Reservations required, and you must wear a mask in the caves.
Parc Oméga, Montebello: All park accommodations are open, the wildlife park itself is open June 20, and the illuminated nighttime trail is re-opening on July 29. Advance ticket purchase is required.
Shopping malls
Some shops in these malls may not be open and some services may not be available (although washrooms are open in all of the malls below); check the shopping centre’s website for detailed information.
As mentioned at the start, this will be an ever-evolving list. I’ll update it as often as I can, and if you know of a site I should add, please e-mail the information to me. Many thanks!
