Niagara Falls
 

Not sure if this belongs here or somewhere else, but the wife and I are going to Niagara Falls on Oct 21 and am trying to figure out where to stay, what to do etc. I definitely want to go to the Canadian side (never been to Canada!). We'll be flying into BUF I guess and getting transportation of some kind to the hotel in Canada. I see each loyalty program has specific threads on each of the hotels there, but didn't see a master thread that ranked hotels of different loyalties. I have SPG, Hilton etc.

Also any suggestions on things to do? From reading the site, I like the sound of..

Aero Car
Niagara Falls 4d
Whirlpool Jet Boat
Behind the falls

etc.

The only negative I guess is it's going to be in the ~50's probably. Speaking of which, is it pretty busy there in Oct?

Thanks.

Add Niagara on the Lake to your list. It's worth renting a car for the day just for the drive along the Niagara Parkway. Lots of winery tours with restaurants. October can be really nice but like anywhere in the Great Lakes region who knows.;)

I'll second the idea of Niagara-on-the-Lake. Very quaint town and worth a visit.

Although it's extremely touristy, a ride on the Maid of the Mist is a must while in Niagara Falls. www.maidofthemist.com/en/

It's always fairly busy in Niagara Falls, but October shouldn't be too crowded since the kids are back in school. Canadian Thanksgiving is Mon, Oct 11th, so perhaps that holiday weekend might be a bit busier.

The Embassy Suites Niagara Falls is pretty nice. Most rooms overlook the falls, and may have a nice jacuzzi tub that looks directly out to the view. Hotel offers full buffet breakfast and nightly managers reception (with a couple of free drinks) complimentary with room.

Hotel is directly in front of falls, right beside Fallsview Casino, and about a 10 minute walk from the main attractions downtown. I have stayed there for a couple of conferences, and would recommend it. Prices shouldn't be too bad at that time of year.

I would second the car rental from the airport and a drive to Niagara-on-the-lake. A leisurely day with a stop at a winery or two with a nice lunch is a great way to spend a day.

Search the Hilton forum for info on the choices on the Canadian side. If you rent the car park in the Fallsview Casino garage and get a players card. That will give you free parking for your stay. The buffet at the Fallsview is also good for a buffet.

How many nights is your trip? If it's for the weekend and you do rent a car at BUF which I think would be your best bet have you considered driving to Toronto and staying a night there. Shameless plug for my hometown but I think you would enjoy it.:) Niagara Falls is OK for a night and a couple of days but I personally wouldn't stay there for longer.

Thanks all. I decided on the Hilton Fallsview and am gonna rent a car. We're flying out on a thursday night so not much except for grabbing a bite to eat and sleeping that night, but the next 2 days/nights we have a lot planned.

Right now the plan is we're going to go to all the Niagara things we can during the daytime, maid of the mist, aero car, journey behind the falls, niagaras fury, etc. And then squeeze in some 'touristy' things like the nightmare fear factory and the bird kingdom in the afternoon. Then at night time, one night we'll see Greg Frewin and the next Dana Carvey. And at night time after all the fun is over I might play the slots at the casino. Should be a good time!

If we really like the Falls, we might skip the touristy stuff, but it's just a plan right now. I may also have to move things around or skip a few things so we head out to Niagara on the Lake as you all suggested.

Toronto - I'd love to go! But will probably have to make another trip out of it.


Yeah I'm going to rent a car. So to park free, is there a minimum level of play for free parking for multiple days? We're going for 3 nights.

Definitely worth a visit to Niagara on the Lake!

Enjoy your trip, dress warm, and don't forget your passport lol

One thing we did the last time we stayed in Niagara Falls, is we bought a pass that got us into several of the attractions (Journey behind the Falls, Maid of the Mist, the Gorge boardwalk and I think a couple other things) as well as unlimited use of the people mover bus system. A lot of the attractions are spread over quite a distance along the river, so the people mover is definitely the way to go. Parking isn't cheap and you'd be moving from one lot to the next. The pass is sold at each attraction, and costs around $40/person.

Just be cautious that you are right on the edge of the end of the tourist season, the Maid of the Mist closes for the year on October 24th for example, some of the other outdoor/river things may have already shut down by October 21st, just check first.

In a addition to the other stuff already mentioned I'm fond of the butterfly conservatory.

The pass is definitely well worth the money if you're doing the 4 major attractions. It also includes the ride up and down the incline, and various discounts for other attractions, e.g. aero car.

I stayed at the Minolta Tower Hotel which looks right over the Canadian Falls and has gorgeous views of the American Falls too. I could see the rooms in the Embassy suites from mine and I think the views from the Embassy Suites are very good too.

Don't miss the nightly illumination of the Falls. Very pretty.

Two quick tips.....

Try for a room in the North Tower at the Hilton, as it's the newer tower (open about a year with nicer rooms and away from the construction noise still going on near the south tower), although it's a bit of a walk from the lobby to get to the north elevators.

Definately get a players card from the casino to save $$$ over the daily parking at the Hilton. Use the casino's parking garage instead, which charges $5-10 per exit, but is free with the casino card which you can get from the VIP desk just to the left of the casino's main entrance inside the casino. The card is free (not a credit card) and just put it into any slot to get credits for your play. When exiting the casino's garage, insert your players card into the reader at the gates and off you go. No need to have any special amount of credits on it to get it to work. From the garage, there's a walkway at level 5 (entering from the Fallsview Ave. parking garage entrance just past the main casino entrance, you'll already be on level five) which connects to both the casino and the Hilton across the street. We usually park on a higher level as the fifth level is usually packed, and take the elevators down to level five for the Hilton, or all the way down to the casino and its hotel.

Agree that N-O-T-L is worth a few hour's day trip, with the drive along the river and the shops and restaurants there. Starting to cool down a bit here, so be aware that the evenings may be light jacket or sweater weather.

Have fun!

bj-21.

Thanks all, I will definitely get the adventure pass and hope things are still open when we get there! I'll catch the illuminations at night too, thanks.

bj-21 - thanks for the info on the parking and the casino - that's what I was wondering!

If you are staying during weekdays you should google Niagara Falls Hotel packages. It worked out more economical than cashing your points by the time you account for all the dining add-ins.

Link to one special package from a Canadian discount travel site:

http://www.travelzoo.com/ca/hotels/o...um=email_top20

The best time to visit Niagara Falls is mid-winter, when it is all white and iced up. I like to get a suite at the Sheraton on the Falls (complete with heart-shaped Jacuzzi with floor to ceiling windows facing the falls (not sure if that Sherton is still open, it was needing renovation).

Remember too that there are two casinos in NF, the old (temporary!!??) Casino Niagara, and the newer and larger Fallsview Casino Resort which is directly across the street and connected by the walkway to the Hilton. The old casino is about a mile or so away from the Fallsview and the first you'll see as you cross the bridge onto the Niagara Falls, Ontario side.

Also since the OP is HH Diamond, be sure to request an upgrade to the king suite with the fallsview (if available), as I've found the hotel to be very accomodating with upgrades if it's not too busy. North tower suites also have jetted tubs although not they're heart-shaped. The Watermark restaurant on the 33 floor of the hotel has super views of both falls, and a good buffet style breakfast which should be complimentary with your Diamond status.

bj-21.

Can I borrow this thread to ask which hotel offers the best view of the falls?

I can't decide between Marriott Fallsview, Sheraton FallsView (not to be confused with Sheraton on the Falls), Embassy Suites FallsView and Crowne Plaza FallsView. I intentionally picked one from each major hotel groups. But that's beyond the point.

So, is there any concensus about which one offers the best view? TIA.

Thanks, I booked a 2BDR DELUXE SUITE US VIEW, and hopefully at check-in I can instead get a king suite with premium view:D

I did put in the comments "north tower please and would love an upgrade thanks". So we'll see!

Thanks. I am going on a Thursday, but then I'd have to change hotels for the remainder of my stay. The hilton where I am staying, seems nice enough, around the same prices and benefits sans the dinner credit.

I've never been, obviously, but I think I've read a few times that the Embassy Suites has a great view.

Here is a map showing the hotels:

http://www.niagarafallslive.com/map_...lls_region.htm

There is another map too that might even be better but I don't remember where I saw it. Hopefully the Hilton has a decent view!

I love the interactive map on this site. I can click on buildings and find out who they are. It does look like Embassy Suites is at a location that would have great views. Being taller then the rest probably doesn't hurt. It's also cheaper than Sheraton and Marriott. The only thing is I don't have any status with Hilton, while I am PLT with Marriott and Gold with SPG. But in this case I'd rather book the room I want, instead of praying for a upgrade. So status doesn't matter too much I guess.

Embassy suite warning
 

I spent a lot of time researching on this for my trip last month.

I think amongst the hotel chains, the Embassy Suites were the best. You would be able to get really good views of the Canadian Falls from the Embassy suites. Some of the more expensive rooms would also give you both the American and Canadian Falls.

I stayed in the building to the right of the Embassy Suites - The Minolta Tower hotel. (I came across this hotel through a search on FT - it was recommended by two FTers)
http://www.niagaratower.com/
It is slightly cheaper than the Embassy Suites. I chose this hotel over the Embassy Suites because of the cheaper rate, free internet and also because I wanted free access to the viewing galley 24/7.

Can't comment on the Marriott, Sheraton, or CP as we've never stayed at them. The Embassy has excellent views of the falls if you've gotten a fallsview room on a mid or higher floor. We had stayed at the ES frequently since it opened, but on our last stay in Nov., 2009 after a comped night at the Hilton, we found the ES room started to look a bit tired compared to the rooms we had gotten in the north tower of the Hilton and we preferred the Hilton's buffet breakfast to that of the ES. But the ES definately has the better views, as the Hilton towers are partially blocked by the casino's hotel tower directly accross the street (BTW, the Fallsview Casino Hotel also has excellent rooms and suites with great views of the falls if you're above the eighth floor with a fallsview room, but no FF points or stay credits there!). All the hotels mentioned are within a block or so walk down the hill to the viewing areas across from both falls.

Tentseller, what kind of delayed charges did you get from the ES, as that hasn't happened to us in the past. Other then the high parking charges, and the "tourist fee" of a few dollars that have may appeared on the folio at checkout, what else did they try to bill you for and were you able to get those charges removed on contacting the hotel?

bj-21.

I was billed for $26 which the hotel claim was out of the minibar/snack and $400 for two missing bedspread. Hotel claim the these were missing from the room when housekeeping cleanup the room afterward. They refuse the reverse the charges and I had to take it up with my Mastercard at BMO. Bank reversed the charges due to unsubstantiated claims by the merchants.

We are going next Tuesday! I changed the dates, so now it's Tuesday-Friday. I'm definitely going to go to Niagara on the Lake, sounds nice. And I'm also realizing that it's going to be hard to fill three days and nights of Niagara Falls alone!

Back to the hotels. I emailed the Hilton and they confirmed I am in the north tower, so that's good! I'll park in the casino garage with players card as advised. But from the Hilton how do I get to the falls? How do I get to Clifton Hill? Are most of all the attractions down by Clifton Hill - ie would a hotel thats down by Clifton Hill be better, or is it only the Clifton Hill stuff that's down there?

I don't know what sort of attractions you're interested in. I find Clifton Hill tacky and it seems geared towards children.

Looking at link you provided, http://www.niagarafallslive.com/map_...lls_region.htm,
I walked down Murray St to the Skylon Tower, American Falls and Maid of the Mist.

I got to the other two attractions on the pass - Niagara's Fury and Behind the Falls, including the Canadian Falls using the incline (free with the pass) near the Embassy Suites.

You can get to all the attractions with the frequent bus service (free with the pass) but I preferred walking.

Some of the night illumination photos I took:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/2108357...7625063757454/

I was there for two days and one night, and I found it quite rushed. I did not get to do all the sightseeing and take all the pictures/videos I wanted. :(

Thanks phaleesy! Those are some awesome shots. Can't wait to go now :)

Re clifton hill - definitely agreed. Just wasn't sure if the "fallsview" hotels were in the middle of nowhere with nothing to do around them. But after posting, I see there's a few restaurants around and with your info I see I can get to the attractions easily.

The Other Side of Niagara
 

Some other things:
1. The US side is actually very nice. Go to Goat Island (NY State Park). You can park for free on the street opposite the bridge to the island. Then walk to Luna Island and you'll be able to look straight down the falls. The Cave of the Winds is on Goat island. The Canadian side seems much more built up while the US side seems more traditional and park-like. The falls are not entertaining after a few minutes on either side.
2. My favorite place on the Canada side is the Niagara Glen. It's on the Niagara Parkway across from the golf course and north of the Spanish Aero Car. There is a parking lot and a picnic area. You can get a map at the restaurant/shop on the river side. Then walk down the big step of stairs to the paths in the Glen. It is beautiful in there and at the bottom you are right up against the Niagara River Rapids. It is the most dangerous natural white water class and you get a real feeling for the river and its power.The fall colors will be at their peak.

I am no fan of Niagara on the Lake but everyone else is so here's my two cents. Try the restaurant at the Strewn Winery, which is outside of town to the west. Also, try to catch a play at the Shaw Festival.

These are some of the things I would have liked to do if I had more time!

Is the Niagara Parkway open during winter? Or are the stairs too icy and are shut?

Thanks, that sounds like another great place to check out!

Ok I'm leaving tomorrow AM! When I first arrive to the hotel with my luggage and such, should I just valet and then from then on park in the garage, or is it close enough to park there from the start?

Hmmm. I think the plows will be there for you. For the stairs, bring you crampons.

Gallardo,

How'd your trip to NF go last month? Did you get in all the sightseeing you wanted, and how was your stay at the Hilton? Any problems overall, except possibly the weather?

bj-21.