ByWard Market Ottawa: A Neighbourhood Guide for Renters

ByWard Market apartments put you in the oldest working corner of Ottawa, where the street grid still follows the plan Lieutenant-Colonel John By drew up while the Rideau Canal was being built. The market dates to 1826, and George and York streets were laid out extra wide so farmers’ wagons could reach the stalls.

Nearly two centuries later, the area holds more than 500 independent businesses within a short walk of each other. Housing is just as mixed. You’ll find walk-ups above storefronts, converted heritage buildings, and newer towers along Rideau Street, and the wider Lowertown area is one of the more bilingual parts of the core.

The trade-off for renters is clear. You give up a yard and some quiet on summer weekends, when the market averages around 50,000 visitors. In return, groceries, the LRT, the University of Ottawa, and most federal offices are close enough to reach on foot, which is why plenty of people living here never bother owning a car.

Daily Life in the ByWard Market

Food, Cafés, and Local Businesses

The outdoor stalls on ByWard Market Square sell produce, cheese, baked goods, and crafts, and the market building itself has small food counters and artisan shops. The surrounding blocks of York, Clarence, and Murray streets are dense with restaurants, pubs, and bakeries. Most residents end up with a short list of side-street spots they use far more than the busy patios facing the square.

Groceries and Everyday Essentials

Weekly shopping got easier in August 2024, when Metro Rideau opened at 255 Rideau Street with roughly 32,000 square feet of space and an on-site butcher. There’s also a Loblaws a few blocks east at 363 Rideau Street, and the Rideau Centre handles most larger retail trips.

Parks and Outdoor Space

Major’s Hill Park sits on the western edge of the market. It was Ottawa’s first official park, and its lawns look across the canal locks to Parliament Hill. The National Capital Commission uses it for festivals, but on a regular day, you will mostly see locals reading or walking dogs. From there, the NCC pathway network along the canal and the river is easy to join on foot or by bike.

Landmarks and Routines

The National Gallery of Canada and Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica are both on Sussex Drive, at the market’s edge. A typical week here might mean walking to an office on Wellington Street, picking up dinner ingredients from a stall on the way home, and meeting friends on a patio without checking a bus schedule. Winter changes the pace rather than stopping it, since most errands still sit within a 10-minute walk.

Getting Around Ottawa from the ByWard Market

Rideau Station on O-Train Line 1 sits under the Rideau Centre, so the LRT is a few minutes’ walk from most addresses in the market. Line 1 runs east-west through the core and links to the rest of the O-Train network, so uOttawa is one stop away, and Tunney’s Pasture is a straight ride west. On the surface, at least nine OC Transpo routes link the area to Centretown and other central neighbourhoods.

Most residents get around on foot. One Rideau Street address scores 99 for walkability, 91 for transit and 95 for biking on Walk Score. Cyclists can reach the canal and Ottawa River pathways from Major’s Hill Park.

Drivers have quick access to Highway 417 via Nicholas Street, and King Edward Avenue leads north to the Macdonald-Cartier Bridge for trips into Gatineau. Parking is the weak point. Many older buildings have limited spaces, so confirm parking before you sign a lease if you need it.

You Might Love the ByWard Market If…

The market suits people who treat the city as an extension of their apartment. If you’d rather spend Saturday walking to a gallery than mowing a lawn, it’s worth a serious look.

• University students at uOttawa are a natural fit. Campus is a short walk south through Sandy Hill, and the LRT covers the trip in winter. Sharing a two- or three-bedroom unit also brings per-person rent closer to what students pay further out.
• Young professionals working in the core benefit most from the location. Federal offices and the downtown business district are both walkable, which removes the commute from the monthly budget entirely.
• Couples and downsizers who want restaurants and culture nearby often prefer the quieter residential pockets east of Dalhousie Street or toward Lowertown, where the streets calm down after dark.
• Families with young children and anyone who needs guaranteed parking may find the area harder to make work. Night noise near the bars on York and Clarence is real, so the specific block matters as much as the neighbourhood.

Quick Checklist: the ByWard Market Could Be Right for You If You

• Want to run errands without a car
• Work or study downtown or at uOttawa
• Enjoy restaurants, patios, and festivals close to home
• Can live with some weekend crowds in summer
• Prefer an older building with character to a suburban complex

Renting in the ByWard Market with CLV Group

CLV Group has been managing Ottawa rentals since 1969 and has buildings in and around the market, so you can pick the block that fits your routine.

• 260 ½ Dalhousie Street. 260 ½ Dalhousie is the closest CLV Group option to the market itself, a low-rise on a quieter corner at Dalhousie and Murray, a few minutes from Major’s Hill Park and the Rideau Centre. It offers one-, two-, and three-bedroom layouts with heat and water included, and the building is pet-friendly with a secure entrance and on-site laundry. The larger units work well for uOttawa students splitting rent.
• 120 Wurtemburg Street. If you like the market but want to sleep somewhere calmer, 120 Wurtemburg is a heritage-style building in Lowertown near the Rideau River. Units have balconies, and the building has on-site staff and a community room. The market is a comfortable walk west along Rideau Street.
• 255 Stewart Street. Just across Rideau Street in Sandy Hill, 255 Stewart has studio to two-bedroom units listed from $1,499 at the time of writing, and puts both the market and the uOttawa campus within a short walk.

What Professional Management Changes

Independent landlords are common in older ByWard Market apartments, and service can vary from one owner to the next. CLV Group’s downtown buildings include 24-hour emergency maintenance and an online resident portal for service requests, so a leaking tap in February doesn’t depend on reaching one person by phone. Heat and water included in rent also make monthly costs easier to predict through an Ottawa winter.

Availability in these buildings changes quickly, especially before the September school term. You can browse current CLV Group apartments for rent in Ottawa to see which units are open and book a tour at the building that suits you.

A Place That Feels Like Yours

Living in the market means the city’s busiest square becomes your local corner store. You learn which vendor has the best tomatoes in August, and which side street stays quiet on a Friday night. It’s a neighbourhood with real history, short walks to almost everything, and enough variety in housing to fit a student budget or a first solo lease.

If that sounds like your kind of Ottawa, explore CLV Group’s available rentals in Ottawa and find the ByWard Market apartments that suit how you want to live.