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A Loto-Québec casino on the shore of Lac Leamy, joined by a covered walkway to a 349-room Hilton with a spa and two of the best restaurants in the National Capital Region.
The best-integrated casino-and-hotel pairing in Canada, across the river from Ottawa and set on its own lake.
Lac-Leamy is the most elegantly conceived casino hotel in Canada. The casino opened in 1996 on the lake shore in Gatineau, the Hilton followed beside it, and the two are connected by a covered walkway so that the whole complex functions as one property without the hotel ever feeling like an extension of the gaming floor.
The setting does a great deal of work. Lac Leamy and Lac de la Carrière sit immediately outside, Gatineau Park is fifteen minutes north, and downtown Ottawa is ten minutes across the river — which means the property has both a landscape and a capital city within easy reach. Few casino hotels anywhere manage both.
It is a Crown-operated casino, which shows in the details: the building is architecturally serious, the interior is calmer than a private-operator floor, and the staffing is generous. Service runs in French first and switches to English without friction.
Around 1,800 slot machines fill a floor arranged over a single level beneath a dramatic glass roof, with plenty of daylight — genuinely unusual in the category and one of the reasons the room is comfortable for a long session. Cabinet mix is current, with progressive banks and a proper high-limit area.
Roughly 65 table games cover blackjack, both roulette formats, baccarat, craps and carnival card games, with professional dealers whose technical standard is among the highest in the country. The poker room runs cash games and a tournament calendar, and it is the main room in the Ottawa–Gatineau region.
The Salon Privé is the high roller environment: raised limits, private service, its own cage and 24/7 VIP attention through the loyalty programme. It is discreet and well-appointed without the theatricality some properties bring to the same idea.
The adjoining Hilton carries 349 rooms and is a genuine four-star hotel that would function perfectly well without a casino next door. Rooms are large and quiet, lake-view categories are worth the difference, and the top floors have some of the best views of any casino hotel in eastern Canada.
Amenities include a full spa with a serious treatment list, an indoor pool, a fitness centre and substantial meeting space. The covered walkway to the casino means you never go outside in a Gatineau winter, and the lakeside paths are excellent in summer.
The best dining east of Richmond in this category. The hotel's signature restaurant is a genuine destination for Ottawa diners, the casino side runs a strong brasserie and buffet, and there are several bars including one overlooking the lake. Quebec ingredients are handled properly and the wine lists are better than the category norm. Reserve the signature room in advance, particularly at weekends.
A theatre seating around 1,000 programmes French and English-language music, comedy and cabaret, with a strong seasonal calendar. The property is also historically associated with the region's summer fireworks competition on the lakes, which is a genuine event rather than a marketing line. Ottawa's own venues are ten minutes away.
Check into a lake-view room, walk the paths around Lac Leamy and Lac de la Carrière before dinner.
The hotel's signature restaurant — book ahead — then the covered walkway across to the floor.
Gatineau Park, fifteen minutes north, or across the river into central Ottawa for the museums.
Spa, then the poker room or the Salon Privé depending on the budget.
The most gracefully designed casino hotel in Canada and the best choice in Quebec. Book a lake-view room at the Hilton, eat at the signature restaurant, use the walkway rather than the car park, and give a morning to Gatineau Park.
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