Orleans, also written Orléans, is a suburban area within the city of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It is located in the eastern part of the city along the Ottawa River, about 16 km (10 miles) from downtown Ottawa. The Canada 2006 Census gave Orleans a population of 95,491. It became a ward of the City of Ottawa in 2001. Prior to 2001, the community of Orleans was spread over two municipal jurisdictions, the eastern portion being in the pre-amalgamation City of Cumberland, the western portion in the City of Gloucester.

The community is thought to have been named by its first postmaster, Théodore Besserer, after his place of birth, the Île d'Orléans near Quebec City. Orleans was an incorporated police village from 1922 to 1974 and was then known as St. Joseph d'Orléans. The name corresponds to the main francophone Roman Catholic Church, Paroisse St. Joseph of which the older part of Orleans is built around, along St. Joseph Boulevard.

The community's name inspired the name of one its main roads, Jeanne D'Arc Boulevard, which wraps its way around the community. Jeanne d'Arc (Joan of Arc) was a 15th century martyr who led the French army to victory in Orléans, France.

Largely a rural area for a great number of years, the first major suburban subdivision constructed in the community was the Queenswood Heights development starting in the late 1960s. Orleans has continued its steady growth as a suburban community since that time; its southern and easternmost boundaries continue to grow as more houses and businesses are built. Orleans continues to have a sizable French-speaking population, although the proportion of francophones has been decreasing in recent years. The community's name is spelled with an acute accent in French in the relevant regulation to the City of Ottawa Act, reflective of the area's francophone heritage.^{[citation needed]}

Growth has focused around the Place d'Orléans shopping centre, a large shopping centre with over 175 stores situated off Regional Road 174 (the Queensway). Place D'Orléans was originally constructed in 1979 and underwent major expansions in 1984, 1988, and 1990 to arrive at its current size and configuration. Many new business areas along Innes Road between Tenth Line Road and Mer Bleue Road and in the vicinity of Trim Road on the eastern end of the area have also been built recently which serve to diversify the commercial districts of the community. The country-wide housing boom starting from 2000 has also seen an extremely large amount of housing and residential areas being developed in the eastern Orleans area east of Trim Road and south of Innes Road, such as the new community called Avalon. The population and business growth also forced the improvement of Innes Road from a two-lane to a four-lane road in 2005.

The Elizabeth Manley skating rink at the Bob MacQuarrie Orléans Recreation Complex (formerly Orléans Recreation Complex) is named for Ms. Manley who trained there and who won a Silver Medal in Women's figure skating in the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics. It is home to the Gloucester Skating Club and the Canadian Academy of Skating Arts. The skating club is well known for sending skaters to national and international level competitions. The Ray Friel Recreational Complex in the more eastern part of Orleans is home to a public library, a high school, an indoor wave pool, exercising facilities, a physiotherapy clinic, a sports store, a restaurant, two soccer fields and three skating arenas making it one of the main centres for recreation in Orleans.

Along the Ottawa River in the north-east of Orleans, is the parkland of Petrie Island. The parkland is located on several small islands connected by Trim Road, a north-south roadway. The islands are sandbars developed over time in the river. There was a facility extracting sand from the islands, but this has been closed and converted into a large beach area. Petrie Island is home to turtles in some of its sheltered lagoons and has a nature centre for learning more about the local environment. One section of Petrie Island has several homes, but the area is mainly parkland. There is a marina with canoe and kayak rentals.

There are also several nature trails and paths throughout the area including the Bilberry Creek Trail and the Princess Louise Trail through which Taylor Creek runs and which results in a beautiful waterfall near St. Joseph Boulevard.