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Canadian Museum of History: Cultural Journey
4.5
154 Ratings
Gatineau
Discover the rich and diverse Indigenous cultures at the Canadian Museum of History. Explore galleries, art, and personal stories that have shaped Canada. Fun for all ages!
Discover the rich and diverse Indigenous cultures at the Canadian Museum of History. Explore galleries, art, and personal stories that have shaped Canada. Fun for all ages!
Duration:
3 hours
Cancellation:
24 hours
Highlights
- Canadian Museum of History - An architectural gem crafted by the Canadian architect Douglas Cardinal, this Museum is a mere stone’s throw from Ottawa’s downtown and the Parliament Hill.\n\nDelve into the vast tapestry of Canada’s history and the remarkable contributions of its First Peoples. Be in awe of the largest indoor collection of totem…
- Canadian Museum of History - An architectural gem crafted by the Canadian architect Douglas Cardinal, this Museum is a mere stone’s throw from Ottawa’s downtown and the Parliament Hill.\n\nDelve into the vast tapestry of Canada’s history and the remarkable contributions of its First Peoples. Be in awe of the largest indoor collection of totem poles in the world. The Canadian History Hall, our premier exhibit, invites you to explore the defining moments, influential figures, and powerful forces that have molded Canada from the dawn of time to contemporary days.\n\nExperience a fresh perspective on the continuously unfolding story of Canada through genuine artifacts and captivating narratives. The Hall presents a panoramic view of Canadian history by embracing stories from a variety of viewpoints, celebrating the nation’s triumphs while also confronting its more somber episodes.\nFueled by personal narratives, historical gems, and innovative design, this flagship exhibition is a distinctive space where you can appreciate the breadth and variety of the Canadian narrative.
What's Included
- Admission ticket includes access to special exhibitions
- Access to Canadian Children’s Museum included
- Admission ticket includes access to special exhibitions
- Access to Canadian Children’s Museum included
What's Not Included
- Food and drinks
- Transportation to/from attraction
- Guided Tours
- Food and drinks
- Transportation to/from attraction
- Guided Tours
Additional Information
For an enriching museum experience in the National Capital Region, be sure to visit the Canadian Museum of History. Crafted by Indigenous architect Douglas Cardinal, this museum—one of Canada’s most visited—honors the rich histories, narratives, and cultures of Indigenous Peoples through its galleries, exhibits, and impressive artworks. It also delves…
For an enriching museum experience in the National Capital Region, be sure to visit the Canadian Museum of History. Crafted by Indigenous architect Douglas Cardinal, this museum—one of Canada’s most visited—honors the rich histories, narratives, and cultures of Indigenous Peoples through its galleries, exhibits, and impressive artworks. It also delves into the fascinating personal stories that have shaped Canada from its earliest days to the present. Children and their families will delight in learning through play at the Canadian Children’s Museum, and visitors of all ages will appreciate the breathtaking outdoor grounds and views.
- Children ages 2 and younger are free
Location
Canadian Museum of History
100 Laurier St,
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.5
(154 Ratings)
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Smoltman
May 19, 2026
An amazing museum - We arrived just after 10 am and found out there was a special virtual reality event about Napoleon. You put on your headset and for approximately 30 minutes you are imbedded into his world! It was fantastic.
After that we started to explore all the floors and at 4:30pm we were done - 6.5 hours and we enjoyed every minute.
The Panorama Cafe was okay but I believe it could have been better.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Smallworld7354
May 18, 2026
Important museum of history - We had what turned out to be a personal guided tour with Ralph after some confusion about our booking that we had made in January from UK. It turned out to be a very full and frank overview of the museum. We then went around on our own.
The Residential Schools section on the third floor was extremely harrowing but important to remember and learn from.
We needed a break so went for a coffee in the cafe, a mistake! Big queues, noisy with school parties and the coffee was awful. There’s a bagel place across the road, we should have gone there instead.
Overall an excellent museum, beautifully designed and a very thought provoking experience.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Paulangan
Apr 16, 2026
Wow, Simply Amazing! - It really was an amazing place. We spent 4 hours but if you wanted to take your time and add in movies shown there, You could have stayed longer easily. As many have said it is well laid out. Impressive displays and building. Very quiet when we went mid- April in the morning. Only small issue was cafeteria, though it has great views the food is average. Highly recommended to visit the Canadian Museum of History.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jlsoph25
Apr 15, 2026
Complete, varied and fully interesting - I enjoyed the visit, the First Nations part highlights the identity of each of these peoples. The French and English periods laid the foundations for the new nation. Very interesting.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
N8delaney
Sep 17, 2025
Amazing layout for the history and great children's museum - We came here to learn more about the indigenous cultures of Canada and for the children's museum. They have a great set up here, we were able to go to the children's museum right after getting our tickets to wear out our daughter a bit before going to the main museum. The children's museum is really interesting, much more than we had expected. It is really great that they have so many interactive and educational displays about different cultures around the world. Following the path from Asia, to Egypt to Mexico was a lot of fun. They have the room to rent marbles and other things to build as well. Definitely a must stop if you have kids.
After she got a bit of her energy out we went upstairs to see the main exhibits. The long hallway with the mirrors telling the stories of places around the country was really interesting, a bit tricky to read, but very unique. The layout to walk through is fantastic. Walking through history from the indigenous communities, to the invasion from the French and British, to the modern day is so well laid out. Not too many interactive displays to keep our daughter entertained, but just enough. It was absolutely fascinating to basically walk through the history of Canada. Going downstairs to the great room/hall was incredible, the totem poles are enormous. Getting to see them in person and read about how the people carve them out was really impressive. I'm really glad we made the trip here and feel we got our money's worth.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Hec286
Sep 7, 2025
Interesting and comprehensive museum of Canadian History and life - Excellent museum experience. The museum is on several levels and starts on the lower ground floor with a large hall of First People’s history, including several totem poles, sculpture and artifacts. On this level is also an exhibit of every stamp issued by Canada Post.
Next level is a coffee shop, children’s museum, gift shop and special exhibit area. Carry on up and you then move through a fairly chronological history of Canada, displayed in an interesting and informative way.
Allow plenty of time if you want to get the most out of this museum. I did not go to the children’s museum but did take about 30 minutes for lunch and was there 4+ hours and could have stayed longer.
Enjoyed this museum, I can see it is not for everyone but if you like history or are interested in Canada’s historical story this is a good place to visit.
There is a cafe/ restaurant on the lower ground floor as well as the main floor coffee shop.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Kjktoronto
Dec 9, 2025
Better than Expected, a LOT to see - We spent two or three hours here and could have spent longer but we were a bit worn out. I also just don't have that much stamina for museums - my brain gets full at a certain point! We enjoyed the Retro exhibit. The stamps exhibit was extremely interesting if you are into that - I wish we had visited it earlier when our feet and brains were fresher :) The St Lawrence Impressionists exhibit was good, and I appreciated the comparatively narrow scope of it. I found the First Peoples Hall very interesting and particularly liked the short films in the small theatre there.
I really liked the Tsimshian gallery but we rushed through it towards the end of our visit as we were getting tired and hungry. ( We left lunch too late and the Panorama Cafe was closed when we finally tried to go!) I will have to come back to give it a closer look. Similarly, i was keen to see the films at Cine+ but we didn't have the time or the energy for it!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Dianeb845
Sep 24, 2025
A walk through their shoes - One learns a lot about the indigenous people of Canada, their lives, struggles, and their way of doing things. The exhibit about Canadian musicians and stamps were very interesting, too. One can easily spend 3-4 hours looking at the various exhibits.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
D9943cbsusanh
Mar 18, 2026
Sunday mornings - Note to self…,. I’ve been to this Museum more than 20 times over the years with my children, now with grandchildren.
On Sunday March 15/26 there was an unbelievable amount of people at the kids museum. Mostly kids 2 and under, I asked a staff member what’s the limit of people he said 300. I told him no way is there 300 people here, maybe 300 kids + their family does not equal 300! The amount of babies toddlers was incredible. Daycare’s separate the under 2’s for good reason, it’s a disaster waiting to happen, they can easily get injured. You can’t rely on parents constantly supervising, they want their kids to explore and runaround. And believe me the amount of under 2 year olds having to doge out of their as they were unstable. The older kids 5-6 year olds you had to be in their backs constantly to watch out for the little ones. Never ever again will I go in a Sunday morning at $89 for 4 it was a stressful time and not worth the money. Every room with activities were extremely packed. You need separate times for the under 2’s, otherwise it’s an accident waiting to happen.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Floyd1758
Jan 2, 2026
Could be More - Visited twice before but this but the first time in 20 years. Things have noticeably changed. Great First Nations representation but it is excessive.
One of the past highlights was the hockey display eg Canada - Russia series it was gone! Little or nothing on the industry and the people who work in them in different regions of our fabulous country eg grain farming in the West and fisheries in the East. Big emphasis on Ontario and Quebec but even then it didn't hit points it could have .
No doubt determining the content of the museum is a challenging task but look at how much space is used for what purpose and I think you will see what I mean.
The fact that this institution is buried well under other Ottawa attractions in Trip Advisor helps to prove my point .
Review provided by Tripadvisor