Weekend Getaways From Ottawa: Drive & Cost

Ottawa sits at the meeting point of Ontario and Quebec, which gives its weekends a rare range for a mid-sized capital: the Laurentian mountains and Montreal an easy drive east into Quebec, the limestone towns and lake beaches of eastern Ontario to the southwest, and the Adirondacks just across the US border south. There are not a dozen trips here, but the ones there are travel well. The list below sorts them by what they actually cost you in road time, because the one number every other roundup hides is the drive.

Every drive time here was checked against a routing source, not the optimistic figure, and labeled one-way in typical traffic. The cost is an all-in estimate for two in Canadian dollars: a room, gas, and a normal weekend of eating and doing, at a mid-range pace. Halve those for a rough per-person figure.

One of these, Lake Placid, crosses into the US, so pack a passport. Quebec City reaches long-weekend distance; the rest are true two-day trips. Flagged below.

The short list#

Each destination links to its own section below. This is a shorter list than a big metro's, by honest necessity, but the range is wide: mountains, a world city, wine-and-beach country, and a walled old town all within a half-day. Quebec City is the one that reaches long-weekend distance; the rest are two-day trips.

Best for Quebec#

This is one of the things Ottawa is for. Cross the river and the Laurentians, Montreal, and Quebec City open up east. Lead here.

Mont-Tremblant#

An hour and 50 minutes north into the Laurentians, Mont-Tremblant is the closest mountain weekend. The pedestrian resort village sits under the ski hill, the gondola rides up for the views over the lakes, and the national park runs the canoeing and the hiking behind it. It is a ski town in winter and a lake-and-trail town the rest of the year. July, for the warm lakes and the summer festivals; October for the colour; winter for the slopes.

Mont Tremblant

Montreal#

Two hours east, Montreal is the big-city weekend, close enough for two days and worth a third. Old Montreal's cobbled streets run down to the old port, Mount Royal looks over the city from Olmsted's park, and the food, from the bagels to the smoked meat to the festival calendar, is the real draw. October, for the fall colour on the mountain and the crisp city weather.

Montreal

Quebec City#

Four and a half hours east, Quebec City is the long-weekend trip and the most European corner of North America. The walled old town climbs from the Lower Town to the Château Frontenac above the St. Lawrence, Montmorency Falls drops higher than Niagara just outside the city, and the whole place runs on its French-colonial history. Give it three days. September, for the mild weather before the tour crowds thin and the cold sets in.

Quebec City

Best for eastern Ontario and the lakes#

Kingston#

An hour and 55 minutes southwest where the St. Lawrence leaves Lake Ontario, Kingston is the limestone-city weekend. The grey-stone downtown and Fort Henry look over the water, the boat tours run out into the Thousand Islands, and the old capital keeps a walkable, university-town core. It is the gateway to the Thousand Islands parkway east. June, for the long days on the water before the summer peak.

Kingston

Prince Edward County#

Two and three-quarter hours southwest, Prince Edward County is the wine-and-beach weekend, an island of farmland reaching into Lake Ontario. The Sandbanks dunes run some of the largest freshwater dune beaches in the world, the vineyards and cider houses have turned the county into a genuine cool-climate wine region, and the farm-to-table restaurants have followed. It is the closest thing to a beach-and-wine weekend in the region. September, at the harvest and the last warm swims.

Prince Edward County

Best for the Adirondacks across the border#

Lake Placid#

Three hours south across the US border in the Adirondacks, Lake Placid is the mountain-and-Olympic weekend. The village that hosted two Winter Olympics sits on Mirror Lake below the High Peaks, the ski jumps and the oval are still in use, and the hiking and the paddling run in every direction. Carry a passport for the crossing. August, for the high-peaks hiking and the long summer evenings.

Lake Placid

Worth a long weekend#

Quebec City is the clear one: four and a half hours east into a walled old town and a stretch of the St. Lawrence that rewards three or four days rather than a rushed two. Montreal is worth an extra night too, given how much city there is to work through. For more at that range, browse the best long weekend getaways in the US.

Which to skip, and when#

Season shapes these more than distance. The fall colour, early-to-mid October, is the peak for the Laurentians, Gatineau, and the drives along the rivers, and it is worth planning around. Summer is the season for Prince Edward County's beaches and the Thousand Islands boats, while winter turns Mont-Tremblant and Lake Placid into ski trips. And the planner skipped one obvious one: Algonquin Provincial Park, about two and a half hours west, for the canoe routes and the moose, one of the great Ontario wilderness weekends. Gatineau Park, just across the river, is the closest escape of all.

Going without a car#

A few of these work on rails. VIA Rail runs from Ottawa to Montreal in under two hours and to Kingston on the way to Toronto, which covers two of the trips without driving; Amtrak's Adirondack line links toward the US side. The Laurentians, Prince Edward County, and Lake Placid, though, really need a car. Confirm current VIA and Amtrak schedules before you plan around them.

Common questions#

Where are the cheapest weekend getaways from Ottawa? Kingston and Prince Edward County are the lightest, around C$620 to C$860 for two for the weekend with a room and gas in, and both are under three hours southwest along Lake Ontario. Mont-Tremblant runs pricier as a resort town.

What's the closest weekend getaway from Ottawa? Mont-Tremblant in the Laurentians, about an hour and 50 minutes north, for the resort village and the national park, and Kingston, about the same to the southwest, for the limestone city on Lake Ontario. Both are easy two-day trips.

What's the best weekend trip from Ottawa to Montreal? Montreal is about two hours east, close enough for a two-day trip and worth a third. Old Montreal, Mount Royal, and the food and festivals fill a weekend; the drive is short enough to leave Saturday morning and still get two full days.

What are the best weekend getaways from Ottawa with kids? Kingston for the fort and the Thousand Islands boat tours, Mont-Tremblant for the gondola and the village, and Prince Edward County for the Sandbanks dunes and the beaches. All three keep the drive under three hours.

Do you need a passport for a weekend trip from Ottawa? For Lake Placid, yes. It is about three hours south across the US border into the Adirondacks, so carry a passport and check the crossing wait. Every other trip here stays inside Ontario and Quebec.

What's the best wine or beach weekend from Ottawa? Prince Edward County, about two and three-quarter hours southwest, pairs both: the Sandbanks dune beaches on Lake Ontario and a growing cool-climate wine region of vineyards and cider houses. It is the closest thing to a beach-and-wine weekend in the region.

Which weekend getaways from Ottawa are worth a long weekend or 4 days? Quebec City, four and a half hours east, rewards three or four days for the walled old town and the surrounding country. Montreal is worth a third day too. The close cluster like Mont-Tremblant and Kingston stays an easy two-day trip.

What's the best fall weekend trip from Ottawa? Mont-Tremblant and the Laurentians for the mountain colour, or the drive along the Ottawa and St. Lawrence toward Montreal and Quebec, all peaking in early-to-mid October. Gatineau Park just across the river is the closest fall-colour trip of all.

The bottom line#

The best weekend from Ottawa is short to choose from but wide in range. With two days, Mont-Tremblant, Kingston, or Montreal are all under two hours and hard to get wrong. With a long weekend, Quebec City is the one to build around. And add Algonquin and Gatineau, the wilderness trips this list leans past. Either way, plan your weekend trip free and the planner ranks these for your exact dates, group, and budget.

For a longer route once you have picked a base, browse the ready-made United States itineraries.

Cover photo by Arctic.gnome (CC BY 2.5) via Wikimedia Commons. Drive times verified against routing sources in August 2026; confirm border waits and seasonal conditions before you travel.