Niagara Falls

[JohnT]

Has anybody gone to Niagara Falls? We are planning a trip to the Canadian side (I was told to avoid the US Side). Just wondering if anyone has any tips or recommendations.......

 

[vacuumpumpman]

John
we did the US side several years ago and loved it.
Yes we did the complete tour, I did hear that the Canada side was even more beautiful bur we did not have passports at that time

 

[JohnT]

John
we did the US side several years ago and loved it.
Yes we did the complete tour, I did hear that the Canada side was even more beautiful bur we did not have passports at that time

Any recommendations on what to do? I have heard of the "mail of the mist", but that is just about all I know of the area.

 

[wineforfun]

Any recommendations on what to do? I have heard of the "mail of the mist", but that is just about all I know of the area.

Google and especially Trip Advisor are your friends. A lot of helpful information(Trip Advisor) when traveling to a new area.

 

[Runningwolf]

JohnT, ensure you have passports and go Canadian. I'm only about 1.5 hours from there and only go on the Canadian side. There is the Maid of the Mist, tunnels that come out right next to the falls, walks by the rapids and lots of interesting wax museums. Niagara on the Lake is an area to visit for shops and lots of wineries.There are botanical gardens that are worth seeing. I believe you can get a bus ticket for the day and they continuously drop off and pickup folks at the different attractions they wish to go to.

 

[cpfan]

The Canadian side is said to have a much better view of the Falls, also it is more touristy (if you like that). I live about 30min away, and avoid all the touristy areas especially at this time of year.

The Maid of the Mist is only on the US side now. The Canadian version is now called Hornblower Niagara Cruises. It's probably very similar.

The bus service is called WEGO. There are places that you can get free parking and then take the WEGO bus to the Falls and other attractions.

Also your American dollar is worth about 1.25 Canadian these days, and many Canadian retailers will accept US cash. Credit cards are, of course, accepted. I think you would probably get the best exchange rate at a Canadian bank.

There is an entry on Niagara Falls on Wikitravel that might give you some ideas.
https://en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/Niagara_Falls_(Ontario)

Dan mentioned the wineries, and there are quite a number around Niagara-on-the-Lake. I haven't visited them all, but Inniskillin was the first of the "better" Canadian wineries, and Reif is my favourite. These two are near each other on the River Road just south of the village of N-o-t-L.

If transportation intrigues you, try to visit the Welland Canal. Hopefully, there will be some ships in transit when you are there. The Lock 3 Museum is probably the best spot unless you're a serious photographer, in which case ask, and I'll give you some suggestions.

Steve

 

[JohnT]

Thanks guys!

 

[Runningwolf]

I was going to mention the Welland Canal, I enjoyed that a lot. Being from Jersey though I thought maybe you saw all the ships you want to see, but it is really cool watching them go through the locks.

 

[Floandgary]

If you manage to get to "the other side" (haha) be aware that there is a pretty good wine trail right near by!

 

[Floandgary]

As Dan already mentioned the Welland Canal, I recall being there when the first Russian freighter transited after the COLD WAR.. Impressive bit of engineering

 

[Floandgary]

[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYP1OBZfFK0[/ame]

 

[berrycrush]

There is also a casino, forgot which side. 18 years has passed since our last visit.

 

[clight385]

If you can visit both sides I’d highly recommend it, the Canada side is very commercial where the US side is a park like setting. I don’t think one side is better, just depends on what you want to do. Both sides have casino’s and boat rides that take you up and close to the falls, the boat rides are identical just launch from different countries. For getting close to the water and falls the US is hands down the winner, from the Canadian side you only have access to one side of the Canadian falls where on the US side you have the other side of the Canadian falls and all of the American falls. My suggestion is to visit the US side in the day and visit the Canadian side at night. Look into getting a Discovery Pass for the US side it includes “The Maid of the Mist” and “Cave of the Winds”. Cave of the winds is my fav as you can walk right under/into the falls, and you will get wet. They give you sandals (you can keep them) at the Cave of the winds, then go ride the maid of the mist now that you have the sandals so your shoes stay dry. We kept a dry set of clothes in the car and changed. Also they don’t turn the falls off at night both sides are open 24 hours. If you want to venture out, the Welland canal is cool if you haven’t seen anything like that. There is a web site that tracks commercial boat movement on the great lakes so you can see what traffic may be passing thru the canal system and can time your visit. Fort Niagara is another interesting place to check out if you have time.



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