In the ongoing rivalry between
Lansdowne Park
and the ByWard Market,
the Market has edged
ahead with the installation of a
Christmas
tree billed as the tallest in Ottawa-Gatineau.
At 48 feet, the artificial tree on the George Street Plaza in front of the ByWard Market Heritage Hall towers over the 40-foot specimen in front of Lansdowne’s Aberdeen Pavilion, which held the title last year.
“We went really strong with the beautification of the district this year to really brighten things up and really enhance the experience for visitors,” said Victoria Williston, communications manager at the ByWard Market District Authority, noting the garland-wrapped, heritage-style lightposts, giant wreaths on Heritage Hall and two daily light shows.
One is the Aurora light installation, inspired by the Northern Lights, on York Street, while the other illuminates the George Street Plaza. To add to the seasonal atmosphere, a Saturday Christmas market takes place in Heritage Hall, while roving carollers and horse-drawn wagon rides make the rounds on weekends.
However, the star of the festivities — the towering tree — was late arriving, missing its own Nov. 21 tree-lighting ceremony due to a transportation delay. The supplier instead offered a natural tree from a local producer to stand in for the taller one during the ceremony. When the big one finally landed, the stand-in was relocated to the opposite end of Heritage Hall.
Meanwhile, on Bank Street, Lansdowne hosts the ever-popular Ottawa Christmas Market, founded seven years ago and getting bigger every year. The 2025 edition features 60 vendors of food, drink and gift ideas operating from a series of charming cabins, along with twinkling lighting and live music (in a tent). Thousands of people will flock to it on weekends throughout December.
Other contenders in this year’s battle for holiday-decor dominance include the Canadian Museum of History with its 46-foot landmark tree by the Ottawa River and a surprise 38-foot entry at Bayshore Shopping Centre, part of the west-end mall’s new Christmas setting. It was revamped this year with a nod to Canadian wildlife, including an Arctic fox mascot named Chester.
St. Laurent Shopping Centre has also spruced up its Santa set for the Instagram crowd, turning it into a magical woodland landscape centred on a 25-foot tree and flanked by the word JOY in huge letters.
Of course, no tour of Ottawa Christmas trees is complete without a stop to see the Trees of Hope in the posh lobby of the Fairmont Château Laurier. The 28th annual edition of the CHEO Foundation fundraiser features 44 beautifully decorated trees — not so tall, but definitely dazzling, and you can vote for your favourite.
And, while the ByWard Market has contracted the 48-foot tree for three years, it might need to step up its game next year.
That’s because a major new Christmas attraction coming to the grounds of the Canadian Museum of History in 2026 is expected to attract some 40,000 visitors.
Funded by a $2-million infrastructure investment from federal and provincial governments, the Gatineau Christmas Village will feature an outdoor cinema, miniature train, a cookie factory, a hot-chocolate station and a Christmas tree said to be a whopping 92 feet tall.
Until then, the ByWard Market can bask in the glory of having the tallest tree in town.
