Rideau River Provincial Park

Rideau River Provincial Park

Rideau River Provincial Park
3.5

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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

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3.5
3.5 of 5 bubbles43 reviews
Excellent
8
Very good
16
Average
9
Poor
6
Terrible
4

Jody C
Toronto, Canada145 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2020
Nice campsite for RV. Spacious and shady. Right by the river. Good for fishing, canoe and boat activities. Comfort station was closed because of COVID 19. #0 minutes to Ottawa.
Written August 26, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

MajaMontreal
Montreal320 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2013 • Friends
This is a very small park sandwiched between a rather busy road and the shores of th Rideau River. The campsites are large with lots of trees ; the ones closer to the water are very open but th ones closer to the road are quite private. Noisy but pretty. There are two small beaches with large areas for picnicing and games, a playground and boatlaunch. We rented a canoe $18 for 2 hours and enjoyed paddling along the shore where we saw lots of birds and other wildlife. There is one nice trail that is flat but passes through various habitats.
The big advantage to this park is its proximity to the urban Ottawa region. Unfortunately the road has become very busy during the day and some nights it was quite noisy. We still had a very enjoyable stay. Bring repellent though. The mosquitos are vicious and very sly!
Written August 28, 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

MomagerOttawa
Carleton Place, Canada96 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2015 • Family
We have gone to this park a couple of times now for day picnics. Nice, quiet beachfront with picnic tables, bbq's, washrooms, canoe and kayak rental, boat launch, playground. Dogs are permitted if leashed in the picnic area but are not allowed on the beach. There's also a boat launch and campground. Lovely restful spot.
Written August 14, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

PkGonzales
Montreal, Canada6 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2020 • Family
Will definitely not go back there and will make sure all our friends know. If you read the other reviews you will see the warden comes up and you’ll start to understand that he will ruin your stay. So if you go with friends and plan to talk at night (not party, just talk) don’t go here or else you’ll get in trouble for making too much noise, if you have a dog that barks (the warden S. Moulton) will tell you that he is 100% sure that your dog is barking excessively and will give you a ticket! Yes that right, a 95$ ticket in the middle of the day! It was around 5:30pm! I’ve asked everyone around us people in front, diagonally in front, to our right and our left if they found if our dog (my aunts dog) was barking EXCESSIVELY. They all said no, some even had a dog, they even said our dog wasn’t barking excessively. One of our neighbor's even came to see us to try to help with the situation, but the warden S, Moulton said she has nothing to do with it, she was upset for us. There were plenty of dogs, and as he was giving us the ticket, our dog wasn’t barking but the other dogs were. Please note, my aunt arrived Friday night, midnight-12:30 (so Saturday morning) the ticket was given Saturday afternoon at 5:30pm) the dog hasn’t been there 24h!

Other things, bathrooms are disgusting, couldn’t find running water close by, the beach was dirty, campsites are small and really close together. Remember you can’t talk at night so going with a group of friends isn’t recommended, don’t go if you have a dog that barks (even if you think your dog doesn’t bark excessively...it will be considered excessive)

Never going back and will make sure to spread the word.
Written August 2, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

FordMFord
Ottawa, Canada19 contributions
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2021
We stayed here for one night in the summer of 2021. We had the site for another night, but decided to leave. The site we were on had no privacy, with just a small line of trees separating one site from another. Our fire pit was located right up against the trees and there was a large gap between our site and the next, so sitting around the fire pit meant we looked right into the neighbour's site. I don't think I have been on another campground where the sites were so crammed in.

There was a boat launch area from which we were hoping to let the dogs swim and take a swim ourselves, but it was incredibly weedy and gross and there was no way we were even letting our dogs in. There is a beach area, but of course the dogs aren't allowed there, so no one got a swim. The weeds also prevented us from using our paddle boards. Of course, the park management cannot do anything about the fact that the river is just a weed-infested mess, but that didn't stop it from ruining our experience. Never going back.
Written February 11, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

P Carrigg
1 contribution
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2020
Sites were small and very dirty. Trees need to be cut back - our site was advertised as a drive through but we had to back in to avoid damaging the top of our motor Home. Water at the beach was only knee deep. Staff at the gate was down right unfriendly and the park Warden wasn’t very personable. Fire band came into effect on Saturday night (we had been in the park since Thursday) but no one came around to advise us. The park Warden arrived on our site at 10:30 pm and berated us about still having our fire burning 30 minutes after time allowed. I explained that no body had informed us. We immediately put it out but he still went on about it. Very disappointed and sad
Written July 19, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Glenn M
1 contribution
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Sept 2020
Rideau River Provincial Campsite is the best camping experience I have ever had. I have camped all over Canada. We stayed in a clean spacious cabin with a cathedral ceiling, a sunroom and a porch with three chairs. There is a kitchen table with room for six people and one double bed and a bunk bed. It is wheel chair accessible. The cabin bordered the Rideau River and a lovely hiking trail. The cabin is very private and surrounded in huge pine trees. The staff are kind and friendly and attentive. They even dropped by to make certain we were having a good visit. A huge orange moon rises over the Rideau River at night. The stars are lovely. It is not a "buggy" campsite. The campsites are very large and clean. There are many hiking trails in the area that are accessible. This is a small campsite and very warm and friendly. I give this lovely campsite 5 stars. We have only good things to say. The Malone Family
Written September 6, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

imashutterbug
Oshawa, Canada117 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2021 • Family
We had an amazing weekend full of relaxation at Rideau River Provincial Park, site 301. It had been many, many years since I camped in a provincial site, and this group site did not disappoint. The site for 50, there were 6 of us, it was perfect. Privacy was good, location was great! The park staff were very friendly and helpful! (Especially the gentleman who our dog immediately bonded with who came numerous times to check on the water).
Written July 27, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

ECL29
Ottawa, Canada1 contribution
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2018 • Friends
I went camping this past weekend with my friends, and unfortunately will not be returning, nor would I recommend camping here unless you are a retired couple. My friends and I rented two campsites across from each other for two nights, the furthest away possible from all other sites (as well as right beside the loud highway). We purposely chose our sites so that we would not have to be beside any neighbours, and our closest neighbour was several campsites away and around the corner from us (out of sight and earshot). On our second night camping, without a warning a camp ranger, Shawn, walked up to our campsite with a $180 fine at midnight sharp, due to several apparent noise complaints (again, we had zero neighbours anywhere near us). This fine was completely unreasonable, especially considering we did not even receive a warning (they later told us that they do not need to give a warning before fining us). We were NOT partying, we were NOT playing any music, we were NOT shouting or yelling, we were simply sitting around the campfire chatting and roasting marshmallows. My friends and I are respectful, mature, and responsible adults (between 24-30 years old) who were looking for a nice weekend of camping, but unfortunately we did not have a relaxing or enjoyable time as we had hoped. In addition to this ridiculous $180 fine, we were warned to be asked to leave by 8:00 am the following morning if there were anymore apparent complaints. Lastly, during the afternoon while we were at the beach located on the campground, we received a notice on our picnic table telling us to clean up our site...we had left a few condiments on our picnic table because we were planning on BBQing after coming back from the beach and we were also still staying that evening and not supposed to leave until the following day....We were constantly being watched by park rangers and were unable to relax at all for no reason. Again, although I was here in the past, I would NOT recommend this campground to anyone other than a retired couple, especially not a group of friends or young families with kids who would naturally be a lot louder than any group of adults sitting around a bonfire, far away from all other campers (at most I saw three other groups of young adults camping in the whole park). Not impressed.
Written June 12, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

FoodandTea_Lover
Kemptville, Canada359 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2016
Every year, I see improvements added to this facility, washrooms, new fire pits, trails, etc...It is always kept clean and very close to Ottawa. You can rent canoes and paddle on a nice stretch of the Rideau River. There are a few grocery stores nearby in Kemptville to pick up camp food and drinks if you forgot to bring something. There are some very good sites but try to avoid the ones that back onto the main road. There are also some noisier ones near the kids play structures. There are also some larger group sites.

This is also a place where locals go to walk their dogs in the off season.
Written April 26, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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