Ottawa is known to many as of the most beautiful cities in North America. As a major metropolitan area and a home to over 1.2 million people, Ottawa features the attributes of a major business and cultural center, yet it still maintains the accessibility and charm of a smaller city.

Food to suit just about any taste can be found : from German to Greek, Spanish to Sri Lankan, Thai to Turkish. The wide variety of Ottawa hotels make it a popular vacation destination.

June
During the third week of June the Ottawa Dragon Boat Race Festival celebrates a Chinese cultural tradition that goes back 2,400 years. Nearly 200 teams compete in this 2 day event.

July
The city is filled with the sounds of the Ottawa International Jazz Festival. Local, national, and international musicians artists giving more than 125 performances at more than 20 venues.

September
The Gastineau Hot Air Balloon Festival on Labor Day weekend brings dozens of brilliantly colored hot-air balloons to the Ottawa skies, and music and amusements to the downtown area.

December & January
Confederation Boulevard, Parliament Hill and the entire downtown district are ablaze with Christmas lights in a dazzling display that matches similar displays in the provincial capitals as part of the National Capital Commission's Christmas Lights Across Canada.

May
Ottawa's biggest event is the Canadian Tulip Festival. Over a 2 week period in May, the City is adorned with 200 varieties of tulips enlivening monuments, public buildings, Ottawa hotels, landmarks and homes.

The festival began in 1945, when the Netherlands sent 100,000 tulip bulbs to Canada in appreciation of the role Canadian troops played in liberating Holland.