Ottawa Chinatown

STREETSCAPE

Culture is built into the street.

LOOK AROUND

Custom Street Furniture

Throughout Chinatown, custom benches and waste receptacles bring cultural design into everyday public space. Their bold red colour and decorative cut-out patterns add identity, character and a strong sense of place to the neighbourhood. These details help make Chinatown’s streetscape both functional and visually distinctive.

LOOK DOWN

The Chinese Zodiac Beneath Your feet

As you walk through Chinatown, look down.

Along Somerset Street West, the twelve animals of the Chinese zodiac are embedded into the sidewalk through specially designed paving stones.

The zodiac is one of the most familiar traditions in Chinese culture, with each year associated with one of twelve animals.

See how many you can find as you explore the neighbourhood.

Find Your Chinese Zodiac Sign

Enter your date of birth to discover your Chinese zodiac sign. Because the Chinese zodiac follows the traditional lunar calendar, people born in January or February may belong to the previous zodiac year.

12 Animals. 12 Stories.

The Chinese zodiac follows a 12-year cycle, with each year represented by an animal. Your sign is traditionally determined by the lunar year in which you were born.

Enter your birthday above to discover yours.

You're a Snake

蛇
Lunar date
Element: Yin / Yang: Stem & Branch:

Note: The Chinese zodiac follows the traditional lunar calendar rather than the Gregorian calendar. The zodiac year begins with Lunar New Year, not January 1.

look up

Signs and Banners

Chinatown’s identity continues above the sidewalk. Distinctive red street lamps, neighbourhood banners and decorative signs create a recognizable visual language along Somerset Street West. Some of these elements feature Chinese cultural symbols, while others identify the neighbourhood and connect the streetscape with the Chinatown Gateway.

look Closer

Symbols of Good Fortune

Near the Chinatown Gateway, five decorative symbols represent traditional wishes for a good and fulfilling life. Together, 福、禄、寿、喜、财 express some of the most familiar ideas of blessing and prosperity in Chinese culture.

Share Your Chinatown View

See Chinatown through your lens.

Have you captured a favourite street, detail, storefront, cultural feature or everyday moment in Ottawa’s Chinatown? We’d love to see it. Send us your photos for a chance to be featured on the Ottawa Chinatown website or social media. Whether it’s a familiar landmark or a small detail others might overlook, your perspective helps tell the story of the neighbourhood.

Help us capture Chinatown — one street, one detail and one story at a time.

Submit your Photos

Accepted formats: JPG, JPEG, and PNG. Maximum file size: 10 MB per image. You may upload up to 10 images at a time.

PREFERRED REALTOR

Raymond Chin

RC Real Estate

Languges:

english | 普通话 | 粤语 | French

613-866-3656

1749 Woodward Drive, Ottawa, ON, K2C 0P9

The realtors listed on this page have experience with transactions in Chinatown or serve clients in the area. They are included as a resource for prospective businesses and property seekers. Their inclusion does not constitute an endorsement by the Ottawa Chinatown BIA.

PREFERRED REALTOR

Jun Yu 于军

Coldwell Banker

Languges:

english | 普通话 | 粤语 | French

613-850-8888

Ottawa — contact for office location.

The realtors listed on this page have experience with transactions in Chinatown or serve clients in the area. They are included as a resource for prospective businesses and property seekers. Their inclusion does not constitute an endorsement by the Ottawa Chinatown BIA.

PREFERRED REALTOR

Ruby Xue
薛如冰

KW ICON Real Estate

Languges:

english | 普通话 | 粤语 | French

613-789-4266

205 Catherine St, Ottawa, ON K2P 1C3

The realtors listed on this page have experience with transactions in Chinatown or serve clients in the area. They are included as a resource for prospective businesses and property seekers. Their inclusion does not constitute an endorsement by the Ottawa Chinatown BIA.

PREFERRED REALTOR

David Wen

Upside Realty

Languges:

english | mandarin | Ukrainian | Russian | French | Persian/Farsi | Arabic | Hindi | Malayalam | Punjabi

613-447-9983

2148 Carling Ave., Units 5-6 Ottawa, ON., K2A 1H1

The realtors listed on this page have experience with transactions in Chinatown or serve clients in the area. They are included as a resource for prospective businesses and property seekers. Their inclusion does not constitute an endorsement by the Ottawa Chinatown BIA.

Add a Business

Know a business that should be included in the Ottawa Chinatown directory? Submit the information below.

Submissions are reviewed before they are published.