Ottawa's
Macdonald-Cartier
International Airport is located
about 15km south of the city. From
the airport, a Hotel Shuttle bus
runs to various downtown hotels; it
leaves every half-hour at a cost of
$9 one-way, $14 return. A taxi from
the airport to downtown will set you
back about $20. Ottawa's
train
station is on the southeastern
outskirts at 200 Tremblay Rd, about
5km from the centre. There are
direct VIA Rail trains to and from
Brockville, Kingston, Montréal and
Toronto. Local bus #95 goes downtown
from the train station; the same
journey by taxi will rush you
approximately $15. Long-distance
buses
arrive at and depart from the bus
station at 265 Catherine St on the
corner of Kent just off the
Queensway. Take local bus #4 to get
further downtown.
The Capital
Infocenter,
90 Wellington St (daily: mid-May to
Aug 8.30am-9pm; Sept to mid-May
9am-5pm; tel 613/239-5000, www.capcan.ca
), is handily located right opposite
the Parliament Buildings. It's a
busy place, but the staff will help
you find accommodation and hand you
masses of free literature, including
city maps, transport maps, a Where
listings magazine and a useful Visitor
Guide .
Most of Ottawa's important
attractions as well as many of its
better restaurants, bars and hotels
are clustered in the downtown area
within comfortable walking distance
of Confederation Square. If you're
venturing further afield, however,
you may need to use a bus .
OC Transpo (tel 741-4390) provides a
comprehensive network of bus
services across Ottawa and its
suburbs, while STO buses (tel
770-3242) cover Hull and the north
side of the river. The hub of the OC
Transpo system is the Central
Transitway , which runs from the
Mackenzie King Bridge along Albert
Street (one-way west) and Slater
Street (one-way east). STO buses
leave for Hull from outside the
Rideau Centre at the west end of
Rideau Street, between Nicolas and
Sussex. Key buses operate from 5am
or 6am to around midnight daily. Ticket
prices are very reasonable and
start at just 80¢, but for many
visitors the best deal is a DayPass
($5), which allows unlimited travel
on the OC Transpo system for one
day. Tickets can be bought at corner
stores, the tourist office and many
hotels, or paid for on the bus
itself - exact fare only. The same
applies to the DayPass, except you
pay a $1 surcharge for buying it on
the bus. If you're travelling on an
ordinary ticket and need to change
buses to complete your journey, ask
for a (free) transfer at the point
of embarkation. Incidentally, to
reach Hull's prime attraction, the
Musée Canadien des Civilisations
, take OC Transpo bus #8 from the
Central Transitway.
As regards to taxis ,
these can only be boarded at ranks,
which are mostly located outside
major hotels and nightspots. Cycling
is popular in Ottawa too - the city
boasts over 100km of cycling trail -
and there are several cycle-hire
companies, the most central of which
is Rent-a-Bike, 1 Rideau St, at the
back of the Château Laurier
hotel (tel 241-4140).
