Sonya

Thanks to many regulars on this board we had a wonderful trip to Niagara Falls, NOTL and Toronto. We started our trip from Birmingham, Alabama and flew to Buffalo on Delta. There we picked up a rental and drove to the American Falls. Even though we were staying on the Canadian side I would recommend this as there is a unique view to be seen here. Then it was off to Canada to check into the Sheraton Fallsview. Lovely club level room with 2 queens and a sofa bed.<BR>Got there in time for some complimentary snacks and then it was off to Clifton Hill.<BR>My teens enjoyed the Dinosaur and Race Car<BR>Experiences at the foot of Clifton Hill but thought the Ride Over the Falls was a bust.<BR>We enjoyed a trip to Hard Rock for t-shirts and the Hershey store for some delicious fudge and chocolate shakes. No dinner for us tonight just some take out pizza. The fireworks were dazzling as was the illumination of the Falls. We finally made it back to the room for some much needed rest. The only sour note was that the Canadian Customs agent wouldn't stamp our passports with a Canadian stamp but we were able to get a stamp before leaving Toronto thanks to a kind Delta agent at Pearson who directed us to another Customs agent who was glad to help. More later.

Sonya

Day Two. Up early to pick up another rental car and return the one we picked up the day before in Buffalo. This is one of the few snags we encountered in planning our trip. None of the car rental companies would allow us to pick up a car in Buffalo and return it in Toronto. We manage to do this without a hitch and even return to the hotel in time for the complimentary breafast in the Club room. The kids are dressed and ready to go. Our next stop is the Maid of the Mist. If you only do one thing in Niagara this is it. Fun for all ages and a facinating look at the Falls. Next we are off to NOTL. The drive is a pleasant one and we arrive in time for lunch at The Olde Angel Inn. This part of the trip was planned shortly after a trip to London in which the kids enjoyed their pub lunches and was the only meal which did not meet our expectations. The food was not bad and the service was good but it just wasn't memorable. We then left to drive around and walk around a little to see this lovely town. Next was a trip on the Whirlpool Jet Boat. A favorite for one of the children and enjoyed by everyone. Prepare to get very wet! As a side note the video they sell has just a few minutes of "your trip" but we have<BR>watched it several times since returning and are glad we bought it. We had planned a short stop at one of the vineyards but time constraints did not allow this. The traffic was heavy but we had great directions thanks to mapblast.com. and we were soon in Toronto and checking into the Renaissance Skydome Hotel. I booked this<BR>on Priceline for $50US per room per night. I had booked 2 rooms and when the front desk was unable to put us on the same floor my charming husband asked if the kids might have a room overlooking the interior of the Skydome.<BR>Not only did they comply but the parent room was upgraded to Club level. Talk about luck! So we are off the return the rental car at Union Station and then to the subway to meet up with a Ghost walking tour in Chinatown. Just as we are leaving the subway it starts to rain cats and dogs and even though we have umbrellas we decide that one through soaking a day is enough (Whirlpool Jet Boat being the first). So<BR>Plan B comes into play. We hail a taxi and head to Rodney's Oyster House on King West. Now we don't have a reservation and I certainly do not recommend this but they graciously offer a large table in the bar and we quickly accept. The oysters are delicious as are the "steroid" shrimp, and the fresh and smoked salmon. This place lives up to its reputation. It is still raining when we leave so we hail a waiting cab and go back to our home away from home for the next 3 days. We<BR>all enjoyed our stay and not just because of the great deal we got. The Club room had a great breakfast and snacks later on and the housekeeping was<BR>outstanding. The rooms were nicer than the Sheration Fallsview by just a bit. More later.

Sonya

Just a few words about the planning for this trip. This board was full of wonderful advice, free for the searching. When we had decided that a trip to Niagara and and Toronto was what we wanted I began reading all I could on this board and others and found lots of free stuff I could reqest. Without exception all of the free tourist stuff arrived shortly after I requested it and I soon had a good idea of what we wanted to do. I found a good deal on the Sheraton Fallsview ($189 CA) that I never found any cheaper. I found a great deal on rooms in Toronto ($50US) by using Priceline. At first I was disappointed that we had gotten the Renaissance Skydome Hotel since this is a little away from the main downtown area but we ended up with such good rooms that I am thrilled with our good luck. The plane tickets were booked last as I watched prices go up and down. Still these were booked over 3 months in advance and even though I kept checking I never saw them any cheaper. We had restaurants and activites planned, including a Plan B in case something wasn't available. Theater tickets were purchased just as soon as we had hotel reservations. Most every thing we did was planned online and every business I emailed responded very quickly. This trip went off without a hitch!

Sonya

Day three. It's Sunday and the hotel does not offer complimentary Club level breakfast on this day so we head to Chinatown (I know there are several)<BR>downtown to have breakfast in a Chinese bakery. This is a fun experience for everyone and the pastries are great. We are the only non-Asians in the place much to the delight of the teens. Then we are off to meet our guide for the morning's walk-Shirley Lum, A Taste of the World, at the AGO. She is right on time. This tour I had booked online and paid for in advance since many of her tours sell out in advance and this particular one is limited in size. Our companions are a family group from Kentucky. We visit an herb shop (scenes of Harry Potter) an Asian supermarket, street stalls for strange fruit samples and the Bright Pearl restaurant for Dim Sum. A great tour and a very interesting non-tourist experience thanks to our guide who speaks Chinese and knows all the in and outs. This Chinatown strikes me as less of a tourist destination and more of a neighborhood. Next we head back to the hotel since the Blue Jays are playing and the kids want to see part of the game from their prime viewing spot. They munch on some snacks and even manage to get on TV from the large window in their room. Tonight we have tickets to the Lion King. These I ordered in advance and got great seats, including 2 aisle seats. The production is wonderful and I am surprised when the adults enjoy it just as much as the teens. Later we have dinner at the Dhaba Indian restaurant which is just down the street from the theater. Our reservation is ready for us and even though they are busy the food is excellent, especially the garlic nan. It is very late and we head back to the hotel, walking the few short blocks on a perfect evening.<BR>

Sonya

Just a few thought on Toronto. I am the only one in the family who has visited the city and it has been about 25 years. We find the city to be extremely clean. Even the subways and streetcars are clean and the escalators work! All of the people we come in contact with are polite and helpful. I can honestly say we didn't meet a rude or indifferent person. The taxis are clean and the drivers speak excellent English even when it isn't their first language. We walk around at all hours (well- before midnight) and never feel unsafe. The lake front area is beautiful. The parks are great and we take advantage of them while enjoying the great weather we had. This is a great family destination.

Sonya

Day Four. It's Monday so we know to expect rush hour on all forms of transportation. After a nice breakfast in the Club room we are off for a little walk about. Our plans are to take the Hippo tour at 11:00 and we stroll around Front street until the appointed time. Our first disappointment. The tour is booked. We decide to move our schedule around a little and go to Casa Loma. Now we only have about 45 minutes to spend at the castle but we make the most of it and buy the guide for later perusal. The gardens are lovely. When the kids find out that this is a bus that floats they don't want to miss the trip and we make it back in time to grab a drink and get a good seat. This trip is not sold out but there are only a few empty seats. We get a city tour, including some areas<BR>we haven't seen and then it's off to a man-made harbor for a little boat ride.<BR>The big difference is that the bus becomes a boat. The kids love it but the adults are a little underwhelmed.<BR>Next stop is a Swiss Chalet for some of the famous roast chicken and fries. The<BR>restaurant lives up to it's reputation.<BR>The food is fast, good and the service<BR>friendly. Once we are refueled we take the subway to the ROM. Our primary stops are the dinasours and the Chinese<BR>tomb exhibits. Good museum and well worth our time. The kids want to head back to the hotel to check out the Boston Red Sox from the comfort of their room so we do. Outside the hotel we stop to replace some lost sunglasses and one of the street vendors gives my son a ticket on the second row behind the dugout. He is thrilled and heads off for the inside of the Dome.<BR>We grab some soft serve icecream from a<BR>waiting food truck and go inside for some rest and relaxation. The girls watch the game a while and then decide to check out the pool. The health club is great but dosen't allow anyone under 19. Our big event for this evening is dinner at the CN tower. More later.

Sonya

The CN Tower is our splurge. We booked a reservation by phone as soon as we knew our schedule. I chose 7:30 as a time when we could watch the sun set but also have enough time to see the city during daylight time. Our table is right next to the windows and the view is terrific. The adults choose some fine Canadian wine and we decide to split some oysters while we are deciding what to have. The oysters are good but they don't live up to the ones we had at Rodney's Oyster House. The wine is great. The guys decide on prime rib, one girl had the vegetarian entree (portabello mushroon and tofu), one has the rack of lamb and I have the grilled salmon. All are outstanding. Eveything from the salad to the bread to the deserts are wonderful. This is one of the best meals we've had anywhere and the great exchange rate makes it go down much better. We take the complementary elevation" and visit the glass floor. We also go up to the very top of the tower. Both the daylight and evening views are superb and we all agree this has been our best day yet. But unfortunately this is our last full day in Toronto. I did forget to mention that while in Niagara we were privileged to see some gorgeous tulips<BR>in full bloom. Late May has turned out to be a wonderful time to visit.

Susan

What a nice series of reports, Sonya! I saw your posts when you wre planning your trip - I'm glad it went so well!

Sonya

Last day. We sleep in a little and get up to pack. Our plans are to check out and leave our luggage at the hotel while we spend the morning shopping. My girls would say we have saved the best for last. We take the subway to Eaton Centre. What can you say about a mall with 4 levels and 2 subway stops! We start with Roots and all of the kids find several things they love. I can't believe it when they pass on the US Olympic beret but I like the things they choose and we part with some hard earned cash and then decide to split up.<BR>The girls head for Dynamite, Le Chateau<BR>and Silk and Satin. We find some good stuff in each shop. The youngest finds some strange red shoes she can't live without and decides to wear them. How many of you remember this when you were a child? My son finds us when we are in the underwear store. I guess he always knows where to look. If you have girls size 8-14 there is a great store called La Senza (?). It is like Limited 2 only a lot cheaper. We are happy with our purchases and have only one more stop before lunch. While in London we fell in love with Lush. We stop in to spend copious amounts of money on bath goodies. Even the guys pick some soaps they like. Lunch is at Il Fornello. Everyone loves their pizza and we also have some yummy deserts. They even have sweetened iced tea which if you have ever met anyone from the South you know that our blood is primarily made from sweetened iced tea. My son is just happy to get food he recognizes. We kill some time in a small park and ruminate over our great vacation which is quickly coming to an end. It's time to go back to the hotel and retrieve our luggage. We have one last surprise for the kids. Instead of a regular airport limo we have ordered a stretch limo. My youngest almost has a heart attack when she sees the driver pick up her luggage with all of her recent purchases and put it inside what she thinks is the wrong car. We clue them in on the surprise and they happily jump inside. I have brought along drinks and we enjoy our luxury ride to the airport. I allow them to call 1 of their friends (each) and talk to them from the limo. We crank up the stereo and I think they are in heaven.<BR>Except for a little delay we don't encounter any problems on our trip home.<BR>We stop at the duty free for some great Canadian souvenirs, including canned<BR>moose (a novelty item). I think we have everything the world containing maple syrup. We finally get some ice wine and some other Canadian wine. This has been a most memorable vacation. Thanks for letting me share our highlights. When I was looking for information on Toronto I didn't find many trip reports and in all of our travels I have never repaid the many regulars on the boards I visited with a trip report. I decided it was about time.

Sonya

In re-reading my trip report I found one point that I felt needed clarifying.<BR>Priceline does not guarantee that 2 rooms booked together will be adjoining,or even on the same floor. We<BR>did however, call and request that they be and did make a note of the person we spoke with. Since the hotel had previously indicated this would be no problem and since they were not at full occupancy I think they were willing to upgrade us (in no small part thanks to my husband's charming grin).

Ann

Great report. Thanks!

Geoff

Sonya- Thanks for posting such an interesting and informative report.

Vince

This is great, Sonya. My wife and I are going to Toronto and Niagara Falls in August, and I think I'll just save all your posts for future reference! Thank you.

Sue

Sonya, this was a great trip report. I'm just now planning our trip and your itinerary & tips are very helpful. Did you order your theater tickets on-line? And if you did, would you share the site with me? Also, the limo sounds wonderful - what a nice treat- what company did you use?<BR><BR>Thanks for sharing your experiences.

Sally

Hi sonya,<BR><BR>Great trip report. Can you tell me about the following:<BR><BR>1. What is the dinosaur and Race Car Experience?<BR><BR>2. Where did you get your deal on the Sheraton Fallsview hotel?<BR><BR>3. How did you get in touch with Shirley Lum and how much did it cost?<BR><BR>4. Do you have a contact number for the Hippo Tour?<BR><BR>Thank you very much for taking the time to post your report.<BR><BR>Regards,<BR><BR>Sally

LJ

Sonya, <BR>You are the sort of Fodorite that makes responding to questions worthwhile! <BR><BR>I live in Toronto and I believe I may have contributed a couple of the suggestions you followed up on for yourself and your family. It is so gratifying to read your follow-up from your trip in May. <BR><BR>My family and I have also had the expereince of receiving terrific info through this site for trips to Maine, Italy, France, Portugal and our very own Northern Ontario-you have reminded me how valuable it is to provide feedbackto keep the ball rolling...<BR><BR>Thank you and may I add, that your kids are very lucky to have such a great role model for travelling as a Mom... organized, enthusiastic, patient. I did, too, when I was a kid and it has made a world of difference in my enjoyment of life. A zest for travel is a great parental gift.