The Times Likes Its Visit To Ottawa

04/18/2025

Well, guess who came to Ottawa.

The stodgiest of stodgy newspapers, The Times of London, came to Ottawa for a tourist stop and kind of liked the town.

But then, maybe The Times revels in stodgy so Ottawa is a good match for it.

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So many purpose-built capitals are utterly dull, aren’t they? Canberra, Brasilia, Pretoria, Washington DC, we’re looking at you. Ottawa is another first city commonly added to this list, and to say Canada’s capital has an image problem is an understatement. “Canada in one city,” says Ottawa Tourism. The nation’s forgotten fourth city after Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver, says everyone else. Include Calgary (and even Edmonton) on that list and, frankly, its ranking doesn’t look so good.

But having spent the past week there following the relaunch of Air Canada’s Heathrow-Ottawa flights after a five-year break, I’d describe it differently. Yes, it’s a place of great lakes and glowing red maples, but it’s also prime short-break territory for memorable cultural encounters. Marc Forgette, whom I met the morning after landing, agreed. “There are so many untold stories,” he said simply.

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To read the full story in The Times, click here.