Downtown Ottawa will be awash with red and green by the end of this week as the museums and Parliament Hill flip the switch and turn on the annual festive lights.

All of the lighting ceremonies are free and open to the public.

The ceremony at Lansdowne Park went ahead Friday night but here is a list of three upcoming ceremonies you can attend.

Canadian Museum of History

The Canadian Museum of History says this year they have the tallest outdoor Christmas tree in the region — standing at 14.3 metres high.

The official tree lighting will take place on Dec. 6 at 6 p.m.

It will be decorated with red and white coloured lights to mark the 150th anniversary of Confederation.

The public can go down to the tree-lighting ceremony and have a free hot chocolate and Beaver Bites while listening to Christmas carols.

Parliament Hill

A boy toasts a marshmallow bonfires during the Christmas lights illumination ceremony on Parliament Hill in Ottawa in 2012. (Fred Chartrand/Canadian Press)

Thousands of lights on Parliament Hill will light up on Wednesday, Dec. 7 at 7 p.m. with the launch of the 32nd edition of Christmas Lights Across Canada.

There will be live musical performances, fireworks, free BeaverTails and hot chocolate.

The downtown will be lit up until Jan. 7, 2017.

National Gallery of Canada

Previous Next The National Gallery of Canada will have an official tree-lighting ceremony at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 8.

You can go to the gallery at 5 p.m. before the official lighting to listen to Christmas carols and drink hot chocolate.

The tree this year is 11 metres high and 6 metres wide. It will be illuminated by thousands of lights and decorated with more than 400 large Christmas ornaments.

The tree will be on display at the gallery until Jan. 9, 2017.