Christmas Eve on Sparks Street: Where the Lights Lead
Snow squeaks underfoot and the trees along Sparks Street are wrapped in white and gold, each branch outlined in lights that stay on all evening. Vendors in wooden kiosks pour steam into the cold air — hot chocolate, roasted chestnuts, the sharp smell of evergreen from wreaths stacked on tables. A choir somewhere near the Bank of Canada building runs through a carol while a horse-drawn wagon waits at the curb. This is the pedestrian mall as it is every December, and on the evening of December 24 it belongs to people walking slowly, in no hurry, because everything worth doing is within a few blocks.
Ottawa's Christmas Eve is a walking city's night. The ByWard Market, the ceremonial precinct around Parliament Hill, and the downtown streets between them are close enough to cover on foot, and the cold gives you a reason to move between them.
Walk the ByWard Market Before the Shops Close
The ByWard Market is one of Canada's oldest public markets, and on Christmas Eve afternoon it runs at full tilt before winding down early. This is your window for the food side of the holiday.
- Buy a box of butter tarts or a fruitcake from a market bakery to carry back to your hotel — the stalls along the market's covered sections stay stocked through the afternoon.
- Look for maple syrup in tins and ice wine from Niagara and Prince Edward County on the shelves of the specialty shops around the market square.
- Warm up with a bowl of soup or a plate of poutine — the Quebecois dish that Ottawa, sitting right on the provincial border, treats as its own — at one of the market's casual counters.
- Note the outdoor ice surface at the market's edge; in recent winters the city has kept rinks open through the holidays, and a skate before dinner is part of the local routine.
After the stalls shutter, the market's pubs and restaurants fill with people finishing their shopping and starting their evening. Book ahead if you want a table — Christmas Eve is one of the busiest dining nights of the year in the ByWard Market.
Carols, Concerts and Candlelight in the Downtown Churches
Ottawa's downtown churches hold Christmas Eve services and concerts that are open to visitors, and the music is the draw. Anglican, United and Catholic congregations across the core — including the historic churches near Confederation Square and along the Rideau Canal — mark the night with carol services, often beginning in the late afternoon and again near midnight.
- Look for a Festival of Lessons and Carols — the format, with scripture readings interspersed with choral music, is a standard Christmas Eve offering in the city's Anglican and United churches.
- Midnight Mass at a downtown Catholic parish is the traditional late option; arrive early, as these services fill.
- Check the National Arts Centre's December calendar for holiday concerts — the NAC Orchestra has programmed seasonal performances in past Decembers, and the building's glass atrium on Elgin Street is worth a look even if you only stop in for a drink.
- St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church on Wellington Street, a short walk from Parliament Hill, is among the downtown congregations that have historically hosted seasonal music.
Services are free and visitors are welcome; the collection plate is not a ticket. Dress for the walk between venues — the wind off the canal cuts through the blocks around Confederation Park.
Parliament Hill and the Lights Across Canada
The illumination of the Parliament Buildings is the city's signature December gesture. Each year the federal government flips the switch on the Christmas Lights Across Canada program in early December, and the lights stay on nightly through the holidays — the Centre Block and the surrounding precinct outlined against the dark, with the Peace Tower lit above it.
- Walk the grounds of Parliament Hill after dark on Christmas Eve, when the crowds of the early-December switch-on ceremony are long gone and you can take in the lit facades without jostling.
- Continue along Wellington Street past the Langevin Block and the Supreme Court of Canada, both of which sit within the illuminated precinct.
- Cross to the National War Memorial at Confederation Square, where the lights and the wreaths make a natural pause before you turn toward the ByWard Market or the canal.
- Look for the skating rink on the Rideau Canal — the Rideau Canal Skateway, the world's largest naturally frozen skating rink, opens when the ice holds, typically in January, so on Christmas Eve it is usually a construction site of boards and hoses rather than a place to skate. Check the National Capital Commission's ice conditions before you plan around it.
The Hill itself is a public space; there is no gate and no ticket for the outdoor grounds. The light display is the reason to come, and it costs nothing.
Fireworks and the Countdown on the Hill
Ottawa's biggest public New Year's celebration happens on Parliament Hill, with a concert and fireworks at midnight on December 31 — not on Christmas Eve. If your visit stretches to New Year's, that is the city's headline event, and it is free.
- Expect a stage on the Hill, a broadcast-quality concert, and a fireworks display over the Parliament Buildings at midnight; the crowd gathers from late evening.
- For Christmas Eve itself, the reliable public spectacle is the lights, not pyrotechnics — the city does not stage a Christmas Eve fireworks show.
- If you want a countdown on the 24th, the ByWard Market's bars and the hotel lounges downtown are where the evening ends for most visitors.
Where to Eat, and the Day Trip Worth Saving
Christmas Eve dinner in Ottawa means booking early and choosing between two moods: the ByWard Market's busy rooms, or the quieter hotel dining rooms along Wellington and Elgin, several of which serve traditional turkey dinners on the 24th. For something distinctively local, order the poutine, the butter tarts, and — if you are in the market for a splurge — a cut of Canadian beef or a plate of Quebec cheese at one of the market's white-tablecloth restaurants.
- BeaverTails — the flat, fried dough pastry topped with cinnamon sugar, lemon, or chocolate — originated in Ottawa and is sold at stands in the ByWard Market and along the canal; it is the city's most identifiable street food and it tastes best in cold air.
- If you have an extra day, drive or take the bus across the river to Gatineau, Quebec, and the Canadian Museum of History in Hull, where the architecture alone justifies the crossing; the museum's December programming has included holiday-themed family activities.
- Alternatively, spend the 26th at the Canadian Museum of Nature or the National Gallery of Canada on Sussex Drive — both stay open through the holidays and both are a short walk from the Château Laurier.
Christmas Eve in Ottawa is a night of walking, warm drinks, and lit stone. Book your table and your room now — the downtown hotels fill for the holidays — and plan to be outside, because the city's Christmas is at its best underfoot, in the cold, between the lights.