Relaxing boat cruise & tour, beautiful view of the Rideau canal, locks & some history of Ottawa…read morefrom a wonderful guide! Overall great experience!

Staff were great, however not really worth the $60 price tag. Only minimal views from the canal and…read morelimited visibility. Tour information was nice, but would be better to save the money and take a bike ride or kayak instead

We took the River Boat cruise on May 16, 2026 and were quite dissappointed. There were 6 adults and…read moretwo children in our group. We were overcharged by $40 which is now being reviewed and hopefully we will get a refund. The cruise itself was just above an hour, and it was supposed to be 1.5 hours. The PA system had issues so we couldn't hear the guide well. To top it off there was a crowd of people dancing and singing, which didn't help at all. My husband and I have taken this cruise a couple of times before and we had the best experience then. Too bad that we recommended this to the rest of our group.

I went on both the canal and river cruise, and I would say this one isn't worth it. From the time…read morewe left the dock and returned, it was only about an hour ride. The scenery wasn't anything special and I felt like our guide, Paulina, kind of ran out of things to talk about, which really wasn't her fault.

It's difficult planning out the day. You research, make reservations, buy tickets, and do…read moreeverything you can. Then the traffic takes longer than anticipated, you got lost on the way, the card was declined because you forgot to call your credit card company. For some people, these little disasters ruin trips. Me? Just roll with it. For our schedule we wanted to do a canal tour, but it wasn't going to work for itinerary, so we opted for the river cruise instead. I am very glad we had done so. Rolling down the Ottawa river was a welcome break from all the walking, and you get to see these beautiful views of the city from the water that you otherwise would be completely unknown to you, like who really shot JFK. Our guide was a sweet and cheery girl, she enjoyed talking with guests and answering questions. The other staff were quite friendly, the boat was clean, and even had a bar (thank you sweet baby Jesus!) which allowed for my wife and I to enjoy a glass of wine on the river. Definitely recommend.

If you are in Ottawa and don't have much time this is the way to see the city, the boat is not the…read moremost beautiful but is big and they have food and drink on board, I really enjoy the tour on this boat, they guy explaining everything was awesome he was funny and he new a lot of stuff so I learn a lot about Ottawa and we know that a lot of Canadian history is in Ottawa, take the tour of u wanna see the city from another perspective, this was my favourite boat ride tour ever!!!!

Great cruise ' from the moment i was solliciated on the road to buy cruise tickets i had a feeling…read morethe experience would be great ' we took a cruise on the Ottawa river - dont get fooled some sell tours on the canal ! We were able to see all 3 parlement buildings from behind, the different museums, the different embassadors house and the house of the Prime Minister Justin Trudeau , our tour guide Katherine was very eloquent and smart she knew exactly how to explain the history of Canada and did it in a very Dynamic way, i understand both french and english and she didnt neglect any of the language ! This boat goes very close to the Rideau falls its too nice ! Brian gave us a great deal! On the tickets The boat is in a good condition for a one hour tour There is 3 floors, and third floor is all open, we got some rain during the tour but all went well ! It reminded of my canadian history classes in high school

We took the sunset cruise…read more Thought it would be a fun and relaxing activity on a family vacation. The sunset and scenery sure was beautiful. The boat boarded on time and passed some scenic sights of Gatineau and Ottawa, including the Parliament building, Rideau falls, Rideau canal, and the residence of the Prime Minister. It was lovely to see all of the Ottawa sights from the different vantage point of being on the boat. Unfortunately, I didn't find it as relaxing as I expected it to be (given that it was a sunset cruise). About 5-10 minutes after departing from Gatineau, music from singer and guitarist Danny Richard blared the whole rest of the ride. The music was loud on both the top and middle levels of the boat, and it was so loud on the middle level that it was difficult to have any conversation. When I questioned the workers at the concession stand about the volume of the music and about the excursion being a "sunset cruise," I was told that this is the way the sunset cruises are on Saturday/Sunday always are. To be clear, the description on their website for the sunset cruise tour said "The Sunday Sunset Cocktail Cruise is perfect for any occasion. Come relax and watch the sunset while you cruise the Ottawa River aboard the spacious Empress of Ottawa. Light live music provides the soundtrack to your evening as the sunset transforms the water into a brilliant, shimmering gold." Wish the music hadn't been so loud. (It certainly wasn't what I would describe as "light.") It seemed to be more of a party boat atmosphere than that of a relaxing sunset cruise. . .

Not recommended to french speakers. It was not a good experience for us. We are a mixed language…read moregroup and specifically wanted a double language tour (it is advertised as such). The guide wants to speak english only and will ask to do so 2 minutes into the tour. The tour is short and very uninformative, mostly jokes about how bad the streets in Quebec are or how lazy the canadian politicians are. The bus is very loud which makes understanding the few informations given a challenge. I can guarantee you any ferry or bus tour i had in my life was better than this.

This is a fun way to see Ottawa. You get a nice overview of sites on land then you head into the…read moreriver which gives you a great view of the city. We had an informative host. It was a fun way to start our visit in Ottawa. Thanks!

It is a unique experience to take a half-day round-trip on one of Canada's last operational steam…read morelocomotives. My fiancé and I were able to do the Fall Colours tour, which made for beautiful scenery. Being on a 103 year old train was interesting and enjoyable to say the least, but the slow speed and pronounced swaying motion could be problematic for those prone to motion sickness. If possible, book early to get a spot on the high class Club Riviera car, or book in groups of 4 to avoid awkward old couples. The 90-minute stop in Wakefield is enjoyable, with lots of shops and restaurants, too many to see at any sort of leisurely pace in fact. The man-powered turn-table used to turn around the locomotive is the highlight of the stop, so be sure to stick around for that before you go exploring.

Best adventure of our vacation. 20 minutes from ottawa. We saw lots of wild animals and unusual…read moreplants. Air boat goes very fast and turns on a dime. Marco did a great job explaining everything.

From the owner: Airboat tours in Gatineau-Ottawa. Come discover the wonderful wild Life of Québec from our private…read moreguided Airboat tours. Adventure awaits !

Dow's Lake is a man-made lake on the Rideau Canal. It's the site of many fun activities and there…read moreare several restaurants there with beautiful views of the water. You can rent canoes, kayaks, and pedal boats/paddle boats in the summer. In May there's the Tulip Festival which is technically in Commissioner's Park, but this park surrounds Dow's Lake. In the winter when the lake freezes over, you can skate on it, and it's connected to the Rideau Canal, so you can skate for a pretty good distance. There are 3 restaurants at Dow's Lake. Over the years they have changed, but currently the restaurants are Lago, Umbrella Bar, and Mexi's (aka Mexicali Rosa's). There's a paid parking lot nearby ($3.50 per 30 minutes up to a maximum of $14), or street parking ($0.25 per 6 minutes) a bit further away, or free parking on residential streets in neighbouring Little Italy (3 hour limit as per by-laws).

Dow's Lake Pavilion is a short distance away from the airport and Ottawa's downtown core. I like…read morethat you can escape from your daily routine to this picturesque area without doing a road trip. There are canoes and pedal boats that you can rent. You are required to sign a waiver, wear a life jacket, and put down a $20 deposit. You can use cash, and debit and credit cards, except for American Express. Sadly, Amex doesn't seem to be as widely accepted as it used to be. There are lockers where you can store your belongings when you are on the water. I recommend coming with what you truly need. I parked in the lot across from the Pavilion. Parking is $3.50 for 30 minutes, to a maximum of $14. I paid by credit card, which was great. I didn't risk parking on the street, but I know that I can now. It's cheaper that way, but you do have to be cognizant of the time. You can also dine here after a fun time out on the water. We ate at Mexi's. You have the option of dining in the restaurant or sitting out on the patio. I missed the tulip festival. Perhaps I'll plan my vacation and take them in next time. (254)

We tried a new tour called Hidden Ottawa. It's Not a haunted tour. It's a history based tour that…read morehighlights things even most locals don't know or have never noticed about the town. Our group were all locals and we all enjoyed the tour and didn't know the majority of what was talked about. Get ready to learn some real colourful stories of Ottawa! I also appreciated the path the tour takes. It's very scenic and uses areas none of us had been before which was also super cool to learn about and made for some amazing photo locations too!

Walking through downtown Ottawa and came across the sign for a ghost tour. They tend to be fun. So…read morewe inquired and wound up taking the 8pm haunted prison tour. Cost me for 2 adults, 2 kids just under 100 cad. Our guide was Hanna and she was excellent. Overall she seemed extremely knowledgeable about the area and added a little theatrical approach to her story telling. It's a short walk to the prison but once inside it's a throw back to 100+ years in the past. Spooky and fun. Not overly scary for my 10 and 7 yo. If I'm ever back in the area I'll definitely be checking out one of their other tours. My kids loved it.