Niagara Falls August 8, 2019
Niagara falls has always been on our list of places to visit but had somehow always come up as a runner up option for us. Finally, we decided to make the trip across the country to see the majestic falls.
We decided to take the trip at the last minute so we didn’t take as much time to plan as we usually do. Based on some last minute research, we decided to stay on the Canadian side of Falls. The hotels on the Canada side seemed to have much better views of the falls and also had access to some of the other tourist sites that we were interested in.
Planning
Ok, so now that we knew where we wanted to go, we started planning out our trip. Flying into Buffalo and then renting a car to the falls seemed like the most straightforward way of getting there. Flights to Buffalo were not cheap and after adding the price of the car rental for a week and the cost of hotel parking, that became a less attractive option. How about flying into Toronto? We had never been to Toronto, and there were some spots along that route that looked like they might be worth a look. We decided on Toronto, but we still had the issue of the car rental. Hotels were charging a premium just to park overnight and we really only needed the car for driving to and from the falls. Everything else appeared to be an easy walk. We thought about taking the train that went to/from Toronto and the falls but there was only one train per day and the timing didn’t work out for us. In the end, we decided to rent a car at the airport in Toronto, then drive to the falls and return the car there. We would then rent the car at Niagara falls when we were set to head back to Toronto, and return the car in Toronto. Our instincts told us that having that many moving parts was a recipe for disaster, but in the end it worked out perfectly for us. We found an Avis location in Niagara falls to return and re-rent a car. It was walking distance to all of the hotels. In Toronto, we found an Avis to return our vehicle in a parking lot a block away from our hotel. Aside from the heavy traffic in Toronto causing us to bail on attempting to refill the tank, all went smoothly.
Where to stay
So, what’s the one thing that we wanted most to see on this trip. The falls, the light show on the falls, and the fireworks over the falls. It was pretty obvious to us that we wanted to get a hotel room on an upper floor facing the falls. We found out pretty quickly that hotels in this area had this all figured out. All of their pricing was set based on how much view you had of the falls. For a high floor, looking out over the falls, you paid a premium. We decided to compromise and stay the first 3 nights with a city view at the Sheraton, and the final 3 nights with a falls view at the Marriott. We also tried to strategically place our hotels at both ends of town, giving us close proximity to all of the attractions. The Sheraton was close to the falls boat tour and the Marriott was at the other end near the “Behind the Falls” attraction. Anyway, that was the plan.
City view from the Sheraton
The falls view from the Marriott
Nightly fireworks view from the Marriott
Our Trip
As it turned out, it was a good thing that we didn’t plan around taking the train. Our flight into Toronto ended up to be several hours late. At least I had something to do while we waited at the airport as I frustratedly wrote my letter of complaint to United. (By the end of the trip I felt a bit better as they offered us $500 in vouchers as compensation for the delays) By the time we rented the car, it was afternoon and traffic was already starting to build up. Traffic is really heavy in Toronto so it’s important to plan for that. It took us about two hours to drive to Niagara falls. We dropped the bags off at the Sheraton, then drove over to the Avis to return the car. Returning the car was a breeze, they’re a small shop and they weren’t there but they had a key drop off. The walk back to the Sheraton only took about 20 minutes.
The sites
How to get to the attractions
Well, we completely misjudged how walkable all of the Niagara attractions would be. Sure, everything around the falls are walkable, but there are plenty of things to do outside of the immediate area that we would have missed out on. Luckily, the Sheraton gave us a 3 day pass on the city’s WEGO shuttle buses. WEGO covers 3 different routes through the Niagara Falls area and provide a convenient way of getting to almost any of the Fall’s attractions. The Green Line is the most useful for seeing the sites, as it travels along the Niagara River where you will find many of the tourist attractions.
Falls Light show and Fireworks display
This is the easiest of all of the Niagara sites to get to and by far the easiest to view. Basically, you can see the light show and fireworks from just about anywhere in the Falls area. The light show begins shortly after dark, turning the majestic falls to a variety of different colors. An amazing fireworks show happens in the summer months starting at 10:00. Again, you can view the fireworks anywhere in the area, but seeking a higher vantage point provides the most spectacular shots. Several of the hotel restaurants have great views of the Falls and light shows.
Hornblower Niagara Cruises
This was one of the tourist attractions that we had looked forward to the most and it didn’t disappoint. The boat launch was only a few minute walk from the Sheraton. We tried to pick a time when the lines were short, but that never seemed to happen so we just went for it. As it turns out, tons of people can fit onto one boat, and they have two boats going at any given time, so the line moves very quickly. If you can, try to be near the front of the line when the boat starts loading because you’ll want to grab a spot along the railing for the best viewing and picture taking opportunities. They hand out red rain ponchos to keep you dry but the boat will park and turn very close to the falls so definitely plan to get wet. The whole ride takes about 20 minutes.
Journey Behind the Falls
This attraction is located at the Table Rock Welcome center, which makes it very easy to get to since all of the WEGO buses converge at this location. An elevator takes you down to the entrance where you will follow a tunnel that leads behind the falls. For us, there was a 15 minute wait just to stand next to the opening behind the falls. When you get to the front of the line, you’re at an open portal with water gushing in front of you. There are a few of these portals, but we only waited to stand in line once. It’s a cool photo opportunity, but not really worth the wait. By far the best part of the attraction is a viewing deck that is situated on the side of the falls accessed by another tunnel closer to the elevators. From this vantage point you can get a side view of the falls. As with the Hornblower excursion, ponchos are provided to keep you dry.
A portal that opens up to the back of the falls.
A much more interesting view from the side of the falls
White Water Walk
This wasn’t even on our list of things that we planned to do, but it ended up to be one of the best attractions for us. The White Water Walk is right off the main road and is one of the WEGO stops. We took an elevator down to the Whirlpool Rapids below. From there, you follow a boardwalk along the water’s edge. At this location, the rapids are apparently Class 6 and are illegal, and ill advised to even attempt to raft them. Just feeling the power of the rapids only a few feet from the shoreline is a great experience. There are several observation decks along the path where you can take pictures.
Observation decks are only a few feet from the rapids
Whirlpool Aero Car
We debated whether to stop at this attraction, mainly because of my dislike for high places, but we decided to give it a try. Again, this ride is along the WEGO route and was easily accessible from our hotel. The Aero car is a 10 minute ride on an antique cable car to the other side of the Niagara River. The ride offers spectacular views of the rapids below and of the Niagara Whirlpool. The Whirlpool is formed at the end of the rapids where the river turns abruptly to the left. At the far bank, passengers are asked to rotate around the car so that you get a view of the opposite side.
Crossing the Niagara River on the Whirlpool Aero Car
Butterfly concervatory
We’ve been to several Butterfly Conservatories but we had some time to kill and it’s yet another attraction that is steps from the WEGO bus stop, so we decided to spend some time there. It’s a great place to relax for awhile if you have some spare time. As you might imagine, they have a huge collection of butterflies and they also had a unique emergence window where you could see numerous pupae that are waiting to turn into butterflies.
Butterfly Conservatory is conveniently one of the WEGO stops
Floral Clock and the Orange Tram to Niagara on the Lake
The Floral Clock is the northern most stop for the WEGO green line. The clock face is made up of thousands of plants and flowers making it a great picture spot. It also marks the transfer point for the WEGO green shuttle to the WEGO orange shuttle that takes you to Niagara on the Lake. After about a 15 minute ride on the orange shuttle, you’ll end up at Fort George National Historic Site, just outside of Niagara on the Lake. From Fort George, it’s about a 10-15 minute walk into the center of town. There are plenty of quaint shops in Niagara on the Lake to buy souvenirs and plenty of restaurants to have lunch or dinner. We saw some great Yelp reviews for an English Pub called the Olde Angel Inn. We had a beef sandwich and the Shepherds Pie which were both outstanding.
Floral Clock marks the shuttle transfer point
Lunch at the Olde Angel Inn at Niagara on the Lake
Niagara Glen Nature Centre – Hiking Trail
If you feel like you need more exercise on your trip, exit the green WEGO bus at the Niagara Glen Nature Centre. There are several trails that will lead you down the hill to the edge of the water. We took the Cliffside trail down to the River Trail, then followed the water back around and looped back up onto the Terrace trail. It wasn’t too steep so probably qualifies as an “easy” trail. As we walked along the water, we saw several of the Whirlpool Jet Boats powering up the rapids. We didn’t have time to try the jet boats on this trip, but the people on the boats looked like they were having a great time!
The river trail at Niagara Glen
Falls Incline Railway
A well positioned funicular taking you down to the Table Rock Welcome center. After taking the WEGO to the welcome center, we took the Incline Railway back to Portage road where it was a short walk back to the Marriott.
The Food
There are several nice places to grab a bite to eat in the Niagara area. We focused on having a dinner with a great view of the falls. Massimo’s at the top of our Sheraton Hotel, and the Prime Steakhouse at the Crowne Plaza served up great food with an excellent view of the falls.
Massimo’s at the Sheraton offers excellent views of the falls
Great window table at the Prime Steakhouse in the Crowne Plaza
The Drive back to Toronto
We had heard that the region was famous for its Ice Wine, so on the drive back to Toronto, we stopped at Peller Estates to have lunch. We also took their tour which included a tasting session inside of their ice bar. After donning their warm coats, we were able to sample several of their ice wines. Peller Estates was a great place to stop to break up the drive back to Toronto.
Tour through the ice bar at Peller Estates
