Looking for a cottage rental around Ottawa, but don't know where to look

November 6, 2012 7:46 PM

I'm looking at renting a cottage around Ottawa from just before Christmas to just before New Year's Day--Dec 22-29, give or take a day. I don't know the area at all, and haven't the faintest idea where to start. Help?

So far these are the rough criteria:

• About an hour out of town
• Sleep two couples and two individuals who don't want to share a bed
• Fireplace

Any suggestions or experiences welcome.

posted by Decimask to Home & Garden (3 answers total)

There are many cottage rental sites, some with more offerings than others.

One example: eastern Ontario / Outaouais

I agree with Dasein that looking in the Gatineau Park / Wakefield area would be a good start. In Ontario I'd suggest looking around Perth, which is a nice town to visit, with good shops and a few restaurants if you want to eat out at all, with other towns like Almonte and Westport not too far away if you want to explore the area, but Ottawa is about an hour.

When looking at cottages, be really sure what you want in terms of comfort. Winterized may mean insulated but only a wood stove in the main room. If you want comfort you'll want heaters in the bedrooms too! And check the access carefully, not all winterized cottages are on year-round roads... Some require a walk/ski/snowshoe from the nearest main road.

Feel free to mefimail if you have questions about specific places and I'll help if I can.
posted by valleys at 10:56 PM on November 6, 2012

It really depends on what you're looking to spend. I would stick to the Quebec side personally, there's a lot more to do with Gatineau Park as opposed to going west (Perth, Calabogie, Lanark...which is nice, but really in the middle of no where).

If you have the cash I would definitely look around Tremblant.
posted by Danithegirl at 5:53 AM on November 7, 2012

I've used airbnb to rent a cottage in the laurentians, and we got a really nice one for much cheaper than going through rental agencies. It wasn,t during holidays though, so ymmv,
posted by ddaavviidd at 7:03 AM on November 7, 2012 [1 favorite]