Beautiful and Stunning Fallls (Niagara Falls)

Member Name: HS28

Product:	Niagara Falls
Date:	18/05/09 (153 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Breathtaking views and a natural wonder and nice surrounding area

Disadvantages: to see the falls you best wear a poncho and the town is a bit like blackpool

**Niagara Falls**

After spending my 3 days in New York on my 3 part holiday to the US and Canada in September 2000 the next destination was Niagara Falls. This was the second part of my journey on my first trip to both USA and Canada and a very interesting trip. I had gone on holiday with my Dad whilst I was at Uni.


**Where is Niagara Falls and what is so special**

Well Niagara Falls is in Canada in Ontario just over the border form New York State and not too far from the big city of Toronto. Niagara Falls is most famous for the dramatic falls on the river Niagara which runs between the Canadian and US boundaries. Niagara Falls lies on both sides and the Buffalo side of the falls are less commonly visited although probably equally as brilliant to visit. The falls are separated by Goat Island and Horseshoe Falls. Niagara falls is a natural phenomenon and the second largest falls in the world. Apparently you can see between four and six million cubic feet of water go over its crest every minute. They are 188 feet high and the rim of the Horseshoe Falls is 2200 feet


**How we got there**

As we had already been in New York for a few days we then got a blue van to La Guardia Airport which took a strange detour through some of the rougher areas of Queens! La Guardia is quite a nice smallish airport for New York and was nearer to New York than JFK where we had flown into from Brussels/Manchester. We boarded a flight to Buffalo in New York State as the flight was some silly cheap price one way. From Buffalo we booked an airport transfer van to take us over the border to our hotel in Niagara Falls. Buffalo Airport was not that far from Niagara but like is said in my New York review the people on the passport control in Canada were a little miserable with us and not very welcoming to tourists and ended up with another stamp on my passport from them.


**Where we stayed**

We booked into the Marriot Courtyard in Niagara Falls and this was a far pleasanter experience than the tourist hotel disaster in New York which was improved by the Days Inn relocation to Times Square. I didn't book the hotels my dad did so it was pot luck on what I was going to get and this was a pleasant surprise. After the disaster in New York my dad decided to try his luck with reception and cheekily ask what free upgrades were on offer and I flashed my airport badge as I worked at the airport part time too. Well something worked as we got upgraded from a twin room to a massive suite type room with a Jacuzzi in the room and a queen bed and a king bed. Well we were stopping for 3 days and so that was a nice change form the previous hotel and for free!! The hotel was located just up from the main streets of Niagara and a walk down the steep hill to the bottom where you could see the falls but this was a bit of a hike. There was also one of those courtesy style buses that took you down to the main resort and dropped everyone off at their hotels which we used frequently. The hotel had all the mod cons and pool etc but I don't recall using it. The breakfasts were to die for though and was my first proper taste of the all American and all Canadian mammoth breakfasts. I adored the waffles and scrambled egg and bacon and used to pile on the whipped cream on the waffles then help myself to all the glorious fruit.

**Niagara the Town**

Before getting to the falls we also made it to the town for a spot of tourist shopping as this was not a far walk form the hotel. To be honest and I might sound a little nasty but Niagara as a town reminded me of Blackpool and the tourist shops were so tatty and tacky but it was all part of the experience! The shops that are nearer to the river and the falls are better than the ones on the steep street that winds up to the hotel we were in. Of course there are some nice shops here and more expensive ones too!


**The River and View**

Even just walking down to the river the views are great and there are nice gardens and walks. There are also nice places to eat down here and I got a few steaks or too. There is also a Casino which I visited and won about a 100 Canadian dollars in whatever that is worth nowadays! I took endless photos of the views form this point and enjoyed the nice sunny September weather. You can also look through those binocular machines over the river and falls for a better view. Apparently the best view is in the skylon tower where there is a restaurant but I remember this was a tad expensive and booked in advance.


**Seeing the Falls and more**

We booked into one of the tours where we got a red double Decker bus that took us out of Niagara to the Spanish Aero car although it wasn't working at the time! If I recall we did the red double Decker bus ride to the Spanish aero car and the country views of Niagara and surrounding area in one day. We went to see a butterfly sanctuary. On the other day we did the tour that took us to the maid of the mist and the walk behind the falls. In the other day we did. A big tip is to take a waterproof coat or buy a poncho thing as you get wet on the boat and also on the walking part.

The trip on the bus out towards the Spanish Aero Cars was nice and we got a tour of the Ontario state and what Niagara had to offer. It was lovely in the fall and I remember going to some nice country style tourist shops and buying maple syrup. It was also nice being on a traditional old British red double Decker bus.

The walk behind the falls was a good tour and the man who was our guide was very informative and we did keep our poncho things on as it still got wet behind here. In this trip you get into a lift and go deep down under 150 foot to get behind the falls. You go through a little tunnel and get to see the falls from observation decks looking directly behind the falls. I did feel a little claustrophobic going down in the lift but once under ground I found it truly interesting on my little journey through something so extraordinary.

We then went onto the maid of the mist boat to the horseshoe of the falls. This was an absolutely amazing experience and I got soaked somehow under the ton of water falling down. I got my photos taken though which were not that fetching in a poncho! It is an amazing natural beauty site to see though and one I will always remember.

**Moving on**

Well we were here for 3 days and 2 nights and got to go on a nice nature style drive and saw peace and tranquilly after the hectic stay in New York. We also got to see the Falls and go on the boat tour and behind the scenes as well as pulling in a bit of tourist shopping, a stop at a casino and a nice few steaks. The Hotel was fantastic and worth the money (as my dad sourced this it must have been some kind of deal!). The free upgrade made the stay even more brilliant too. From here we got a blue van thingy again this time to Toronto Airport for phase 3 of the trip.

**Recommend**

I would truly recommend a visit to the falls as the wonders of it is remarkable and there are some other natural beauties to see too. The falls are one of the great sites the world has to offer and there are other interesting trails and tours to take in this area. The town is a bit ''tatty'' but it is quaint and like good old Blackpool to me. I would recommend the Marriot I stayed at or any of the nice branded chains. Some hotels have better views of the falls than others. I would recommend going here on a stop off if going somewhere else in Canada or possibly New York like we did. I am not fully sure what the Marriot Hotel cost me as I just handed over my money for the full trip but it isn't that expensive and they do B&B deals. Try your luck and see if you can get a free upgrade as it worked for us! This is one of the better hotels I have stopped in stateside or Canada!


**Book or Plan**

You can book the flights yourself like we did and tailor the holiday to suit you then use Expedia, Opodo or Hotels Web pages to get the Hotels you want. Or you can use specialist tour companies that do multi city trips to the US and Canada. There are many options to pick but shopping around is best to get a good price as airfares to the US and Canada are quite high this year. Although the Hotels are still relatively cheap compared to the UK and the quality often exceeds UK Hotels for less money!

Summary: The Falls are fabulous and are well worth the journey