niagra falls

ruthy14

hello
want to go to niagra falls, been reading about it and figure 4 days is plenty of time to relax and see things at our leisure. anyway canada is a long way to go for 4 days so maybe turn it into a 10 day break, we will be arriving in toronto so figured a 2 night stay there 2would be nice, any suggestions for the other 4 days please. like touristy things.
thanks

rikmartin

I'd probably say stay longer in Toronto, you've got stuff such as:

CN Tower
Baseball / Basketball games
Toronto Zoo
Toronto Islands
Casa Loma

susancs

Niagara Falls is an hours drive from Toronto, Hamilton Airport (JC Munroe) we went with Globespan to it. The main Toronto airport is a few hours drive away. I would advise you to hire a sat nav with your car, as it is so easy to get around using this-we would have been really lost without it. There are a lot of things to do in Niagara Falls like the Maid of the Mist boat tour which passes by the falls (lots of spray), under the falls,over the falls in a spanish aerocar. Ripleys museum is there, Hard Rock Cafe, Toronto wheel and many other touristy bits (including a red London bus tour). Marine Land is great as you can feed bulgar whales, watch dolphin shows etc. As it is on the border you can fill out a form to get a permit to go across to New York state and back for cheaper shopping and eating. It is about £6 for this and £2 to return back into Canada (admin charge each time). Niagara on the Lake is a beautiful old Town, just a short drive from the Falls-along this route are vineyards you can visit. Perkins at the falls is great to try the huge stack of breakfast pancakes and endless cofee refills. There is an open air, drive in cinema about 15 minutes drive from Niagara. There is a casino with a 50's style diner . Lots of motels with swimming pools nearby (we stayed with family, so did not use). Howard Johnson hotel chain seemed popular and cheap.

Toronto is great too. If you go for a meal in the Hard Rock Cafe it overlooks the baseball stadium and you can watch a baseball game, whilst eating. CN Tower and great shopping there. You can go to the Toronto islands by ferry. The zoo is worth a visit.

LondonDiva

How long do you want to spend in Niagara & area? If a couple of days:

If you catch the am train from Toronto to Niagara, you'll arrive about 10.30 and can head off to the Maid of the Mist tour and a quick wander round that side.

I'd then suggest getting to Niagara on the Lake (either by bus or have a tour pick you up) & wander round. Have an ice cream at Cows, then drop in to your b&b before being picked up there for a tour of several wineries & dinner.

Then the next day, have a lie in at the b&b then wander round town before heading back to Niagara. The bus does various drop offs & you can ask to be dropped off at the observation tower. You can get a better look at the falls from up top. (Don't forget to scan all the tourist info brochures in the area as there are always discount vouchers).

Then either have a wander round the tacky plasticyness of Niagara or nip across the bridge to see the falls from the American side before heading back to Toronto on the 5.30ish train.

nb: if you do do a wine tour, most of them pick up & drop off at your hotel in Niagara or Niagara on the Lake.

hammy_the_hammer

2 days absolute maximum for the Falls (this if visiting Canadian and US sides )...if you have a car you could cross into the US and shop at the Outlet at Military Road ...about 3 miles from the Falls.
Niagara on the Lake is a must

madkid88

Hi im looking for flights for end of august to toronto. Any ideas where i should look and how much im expected to pay.

edda

You definitely need to visit the Falls from the Canadian side - must better views than from the USA.

The 1000 Islands area (about 3 hours from Toronto) is great if you like water - activities or scenery.

stu_iow

Hello there,

We visited the Falls a couple of years ago. We got there and back from Toronto for $5 which is by far the cheapest way to see the Falls. We did this by booking a coach trip with one of the large Casinos in the area (of which there are a few). We paid $25 for the coach trip then went into the Casino when we arrived signed up to the Casino and got £20 back in cash. It was only a day trip and we couldn't go to the lake etc, but got to see the Falls.

Whilst seeing the Falls during the day and night was great I was a little surprised by the tackiness of the area. Huge Casinos overlook the falls which detracts from the spectacle. I expected a National Park type place like we would get in the UK, but it was more like a mini Vegas.

Having said that still very much worth a visit from the Canadian side.

matty17r

Hi,

2 days at the Falls is definitely enough! You will probably want to do Maid of the Midst, Journey Behind the Falls, Skylon Tower and Spanish Aerocar. We stayed there 2 weeks ago at the Sheraton on the Falls. Try Priceline, Name Your Own Price for a good deal we paid 60 pounds a night for the two of us for a room overlooking the Falls. Hotwire is also good.

You will need more time in Toronto 4 nights at least. In terms of things to do there is Casa Loma, CN Tower, Rogers Centre, City Hall, Eaton Centre (shopping), Toronto Zoo, Hockey Hall of Fame, Toronto Islands etc. Get a CityPass its only 30 pounds for 6 attractions. We went from Toronto to Niagara Falls on the train, think it was about 20 dollars each takes about 2 hours or so. You definitely need to stay on the Canadian side.

If you need any more info please PM me.

Matt

papi34

If you are going before the winter, then a couple of days in niagra is all you will need. If you are going in the winter, I would do a day trip. I've been to Toronto 4 times now and we actually did a day trip to niagra (we have stayed over also though). You can find a decent private day trip to niagra for about £30-£40 (includes maid in the mist) and that usually covers a trip to a vineyard and a couple of hours in niagra in the lake.
It really is a case of once you've seen the falls, you've seen them, head back to Toronto.

Again if you want any info, do pm me!

ruthy14

hi some great tips thankyou, we have this years holiday booked we are going to vegas, we are planning on going next may or june as the flights are quite cheap with canadian affair, i think the weather is also ok then. i looked at the sheraton it looks lovely, going to take a better look at toronto, we have a 13yr old is it a place for kids?