Ottawa Kids Guide

Ottawa is a great place to raise kids. We have lots of outdoor space, plenty of indoor attractions and recreation facilities, and a safe environment. Here are some ideas for entertaining your family.

Featured Links

Chick Pea Children's Boutique
Chick Pea is a European-style boutique full of things we love most for babies, toddlers and moms, located in the heart of Wellington Village. Everything is hand-selected for you, from the softest cashmere sweaters, to whimsical printed organic cottons, delightful storybooks, a charming iron crib, wonderful natural body products and the latest designer jeans and Ugg booties for infants and toddlers.
Kids in the Capital
Kids in the Capital is a blog written by parents who share some of the activities, attractions, events, tips and tricks they love to do with their kids in the National Capital Region.
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Activities & attractions

40 (mostly) free family fun ideas
A great blog post from DaniGirl with lots of indoor and outdoor activities for your kids. Make sure you read the comments for more ideas from readers, or add your own Ottawa kids activities to the list
Kids in the Capital
Activities, attractions, events, tips and tricks we love to do with our kids in this city.
Bearbrook Farm (Navan)
Elk, deer, buffalo, llama, peacocks and chickens
City of Ottawa Parks & Recreation
Includes a listing of programs and activities offered by the City of Ottawa.
Cosmic Adventures (Glouceseter)
Gracewood Stables (Kenmore)
KidSports Ottawa
Helps Ottawa children & youth from low-income families participate in organized sport by providing grants for sport registration fees & equipment.
Macoun Field Club
Mini golf: Please see our Ottawa Golf Guide...
Ottawa Parades Guide
Our listing of local parades, including the annual Santa Claus Parade.
Pinto Valley Farm (Fitzroy Harbour)
Renfrew Storyland
RCSCC Falkland (sea cadets)
Salamander Theatre
Related: Ottawa Theatre Guide
Saunders Farm
Sugar Bushes: Please see our Nature Guide
SuperEX
Yearly fair, every September
Strawberry Picking
A directory of pick-your-own berry farms in the Ottawa area.
Tubes & Jujubes (Gatineau)
Valleyview Little Animal Farm (Nepean)
Vertical Reality (indoor rock-climbing - Victoria Island near downtown)
See also: Ottawa Events Guide
See also: Ottawa Festivals Guide
See also: Ottawa Sports & Recreation Guide
See also: Ottawa pools, water parks, splashpads

Baby & Maternity

Please see our Ottawa Baby & Maternity Guide...

Birthday Party Ideas

A Perfect Party Online Supplies (by Cody Party)
Enchanted Entertainment
Funlight Laser Tag
In Favour Loot Bags and Party Supplies

Blogs

A growing list of Ottawa-based blogs by parents, about their families. Add your blog...

a peek inside the fish bowl
Written by Andrea Tomkins, chronicling the adventures of her family. One of the best blogs in Ottawa.
Postcards from the Mothership
Another one of our favorites, blogger DaniGirl shares pictures and stories about her life & family.
adventures of a mom, geek, gamer
Adventures of a Working Mom
Bread Crumbs in the Butter
Bytown Mom
Capital Mom
Chasing Blue Sky
Consuelo Bernardi: The B Sides
Written by Consuelo Bernardi, a 30-something mummy of two. This blog focuses on music.
Crazy Life, Makes me Tired
Dadly Off In All Directions
Gliding Through Motherhood...
Humpty Dumpty House
From Nat's Brain
Kidscanhavefun
Kitchissippi Kids
LD-Techno Kids
Life is Good ... at the Beach
Loulou's views
meanoldmommy
Muddy Boots
one and one + two
OttawaMom
Party of 3
Simoninigans
Some kind of Wondermom
Stay-at-Home-Mayhem
Tales of life with a girl on the go
Virtually There
What garlic is to food, insanity is to art
See also: Ottawa Blog Guide

Books

Ottawa with Kids by James Hale. The complete family travel guide to attractions, sites and events in Ottawa.
Frommer's® Ottawa with Kids by Louise Dearden. Reveals the most fun and educational experiences for kids in Canada's capital. It's full of incredibly detailed tips - right down to which hotels offer cribs and rollaway beds and which restaurants offer high chairs.
The Lobster kids' guide to exploring Ottawa-Hull by John Symon. Whether you're a parent, an educator or a tourist, if you're caring for children between the ages of 1-12, this book is the perfect answer. More than 100 suggestions for fun-filled family activities in the National Capital Region.
Books Guide... (includes local libraries, book stores, and more)

Camps in & around Ottawa
Summer Camps & March Break Camps
Day camps and stay-over camps

Nine great links for March Break activities in Ottawa (2010)
5-Star Camps
Above the Rim Basketball School
Actua
Bear Creek Outdoor Centre
Boomstown Entertainment - Animation Workshop
Bright Math Camp
Camps Canada
Camp IAWAH
Capital Camps
Carleton U. Summer Camps and Children's Programs
GCGC Gymnastics
Hila Science Camp
IFCO Youth Programs (learn to be a filmmaker)
Ottawa Art Gallery - Art in the City summer camp
OttawaCamps.com
Ottawa-Carleton Catholic School Board Camps
Ottawa River Runners
RA Centre Camps
Turnbull Learning Centre
Virtual Ventures Camps
Add your free listing...

Daycare, babysitters & nanny services

Andrew Fleck Child Care Services
Baby-Bumblebee Daycare
Betty Hyde Co-Operative Nursery School
Canadian Mothercraft of Ottawa-Carleton
Offers full time child care for children 18 months to 12 years, plus Ottawa’s only part time/respite childcare program for babies, toddlers and preschoolers.
CanadianSitter.ca
Centrepointe Childcare Services
Child Care Providers Resource Network
Child Daycare Garderie Nepean
The Children's Place
The Children's Welcome Centre
City View Centre for Child and Family Services
Community Child Care of Ottawa
Counterpoint Academy Day Care
Daisies and Dragons Daycare
EB Caregiver Placement Services (nanny)
Global Child Care Services
International Nannies and Homecare Ltd.
Kanata Research Park Family Centre
Military Family Resource Centre
Orleans Daycare
Ottawa Nanny Agency
Rockliffe Child Care Centre
Sharon's Home Daycare (Orleans)
Short Term Child Care
Totlot Childcare

Swimming Pools, Swimming Lessons, Beaches, and Water Parks

Visit our Ottawa Swimming Guide...

Resources for kids

Child & Youth Friendly Ottawa
CAYFO strives to engage, inspire, support, and celebrate children and young people in our community.
Kids Help Phone
1-800-668-6868. Available anytime of the day or night, in English and French, by phone and by web, it is the go-to resource for kids in Canada from five to 20 when they need help or trustworthy information on issues that are difficult to discuss with anyone else.
Youth Canada
From the Government of Canada, resources for teenagers and older youth.

Resources for parents

Canada Toy Testing Council
If you're buying for kids, a good resource is the Canada Toy Testing Council. Each year, they test hundreds of new toys, rating the toys for durability, safety, design, function, ease of assembly, battery consumption and overall play value.
Food recalls & allergy alerts
From the Canadian Food Inspection Agency
Multiple Birth Families Association
For parents and expectant parents of twins, triplets, quadruplets and higher order multiples.
One Parent Families Association
A non-profit association of families with one parent who have joined together to provide guidance, enlightenment and friendship for one another
Ottawa At Home Dads
A Yahoo! Group for stay-at-home-dads
Ottawa Families
Listing events, camps and resources for families
Parent Resource Centre of Ottawa
This website offers information about programs, workshops and where to get parenting help.
SavvyMom - Ottawa Edition
help with the ever-present challenges of modern day motherhood.
Single Parent Club of Ottawa
Social activities, events and meetups aimed at fostering new friendships.