Billings Estate National Historic Site — Attraction in Ottawa

Spent the afternoon with some friends. Learned some local history with a wonderful, informed guide. The City run museum has been really well set up, they've done a great job with renovating and maintaining the building. The grounds are lovely and also well maintained.

We stayed for High Tea on the lawn. My friend and I chose three-tier tea service for two which included finger sandwiches, scones, and desserts. We found the sandwiches rather tiny, would have prefered a bit larger sized sandwiches. The scones were fantastic. And delightful with the cream and jam. Desserts -- well not really.... it was a selection of cookies and tarts --- all delicious and a great selection. The gal serving us was fabulous, kind and cheerfully answered our question.

Aside from the tiny sandwiches, my only other criticism is the tea. Rather weak for our tastes. Could have used at least 2 more scoops of tea leaves. Pretty sad given that this is about the tea? Which is why I've given 3 stars and not 5.

Overall, a very enjoyable afternoon. The weather was wonderful, which just...

While the house and grounds are well cared for and the staff were friendly, if you are looking for a museum that reflects the Truth and Reconciliation process or acknowledgment of women's value, this is not it. Still highlighting the colonialist message of 'where the world started', there is no clearly visible land acknowledgment or history of the land before the Billings built their cabin and eventually took over 1200 acres of land. The enterprising Matriarch is given lots of attention while there is little acknowledgment of the other women key to the Estate's success other than to acknowledge that a disprotionate number of them were unmarried. In our modern age, there is a cringeworthiness to the lack of attention that has been dedicated to modernizing the presentation of history at this facility. However, if you want to visit an international tea museum, an old house, or a place to celebrate colonialism and industry, this might...

A lovely quaint museum to see with a lot of local history. Guided tours are available with your admission fee. Lots on the go, so check out their website for upcoming events which are starting again slowly. Tea on the lawn is really nice, and one of my favourite places to go. Served outdoors under a tent in the backyard of the grounds. When the sun is shining, and the flowers are in bloom (which is all the time), a luncheon outside is spectacular. A hidden gem! Usually "High tea" in Ottawa is $35 - $70. Not sure what the price will be this year (if they have it again and I am hoping that they do), but it used to be around $12 per person. Also, no tipping because it is run by the City of Ottawa, so I would give a donation to the museum instead. Reservations have to be made in advance for the High tea, but entrance to the museum is open to the...