The Rideau Canal is one of Canada's most famous historic landmarks, and one end of it is right in downtown Ottawa, where it empties into the Ottawa River.

The total length of the canal is 202 km and connects the Ottawa River to Lake Ontario. The Rideau Canal is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

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The oldest water canal

This is the oldest still active water canal in North America - it was built in 1832.

The original Rideau Canal was built for military purposes to efficiently move troops from Montreal to Kingston towards the US border.

However, once it was completed, the threat from the U.S. passed and the canal was used solely for commercial purposes. It became a busy transport route for heavy goods such as lumber, minerals and grain.

Today it is used primarily for small yachts and leisure boating. The canal can be navigated by cruise ships, which do not use the locks but only sail in the upper part of the canal. For details, see What to do in Ottawa.

Rideau Canal locks

The biggest tourist attraction is the still-functioning historic locks, which are still manually operated today.

In total, there are 47 locks on the Rideau Canal, but the most eye-catching are the 8 locks right downtown between Parliament Hill and the Chateau Laurier Hotel.

A popular hiking trail runs along both sides of the locks, and you can walk right along the edge of all 8 locks without any restrictions.

Lock times

You'll have to be a bit lucky to see the locks still being manually operated by Rideau Canal staff to open and close them.

The canal is only open for commercial traffic from mid-May to mid-October from 9:00 or 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 or 7:00 p.m. each day, see official times.

An average of 5 to 20 boats per day pass through the final section with the most photogenic 8 locks. It is not possible to find out the exact times in advance, as it is not necessary to have a cruise booked.

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