Thousand Islands or not?
Jul 30th, 2006, 07:55 AM
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Thousand Islands or not?
We are planning a late July trip and have come to the painful conclusion something probably has to go in order to be able to travel to TI's. Our plan is a Sunday morning arrival (via Buffalo)to Niagra Falls- 2 nights at the Embassy Suites..The next three days we had hoped to go the TI. Is it too far??? It looks like 4 hours?.. then back for the Niagra on the Lakes/Shaw Festival and Erie Canal for the final two nights with a 6AM Sunday departure back to CA. any....suggestions/opinions welcome.Thank you from Napa, CA...
Jul 30th, 2006, 09:17 AM
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It's about 4-5 hours along the 401, which isn't very scenic. If you don't mind a longer trip, you can take PR2 (I believe) and drive along the lake and river. I stayed in Kingston and enjoyed it alot. You can take a 1 1/2 hour or a 3 hour cruise along the islands - very relaxing and enjoyable. If you go to Kingston, be sure to eat at Chez Piggy!
Jul 30th, 2006, 06:12 PM
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In three days, you can easily do it. First day, drive either to Kingston, which is a lovely city, or Gananoque, from where most of the Thousand Island tours depart. (it's about 30 minutes drive east of Kingston). You can take a cruise from Kingston, but much of the time is spent getting to the islands.
From Niagara Falls, follow the Queen Elizabeth Way (QEW) to Burlington. At Burlington, take Hwy 407 all the way to Brock Road in Pickering (Regional Rte 1). Take rte 1 to Hwy 401 and continue to Kingston or Gananoque. 407 is a toll road, but it will spare you the bother of Toronto traffic. Your car rental company will be automatically billed for the toll, so expect that charge to be added. For details see:
http://www.407etr.com/
It should take you between 4 and 5 hours to get to Kingston or Gananoque.
I would probably stay the first night in Kingston and spend the time visitng some of the city's many attractions.
http://tourism.kingstoncanada.com/home.aspx
The next day, drive to Gananoque, take your cruise and then either return to Kingston or stay the night in Gananoque. I would do the latter. Here's some information on the town:
http://www.gananoque.com/
To return to Niagara Falls, cross over the St. Lawrence into New York via the Ivy Lea Bridge, and take I81 south towards Syracuse, and then the New York State Thruway (I90) back, crossing into Canada at Lewiston and then to Niagara on the Lake.
From Niagara Falls, follow the Queen Elizabeth Way (QEW) to Burlington. At Burlington, take Hwy 407 all the way to Brock Road in Pickering (Regional Rte 1). Take rte 1 to Hwy 401 and continue to Kingston or Gananoque. 407 is a toll road, but it will spare you the bother of Toronto traffic. Your car rental company will be automatically billed for the toll, so expect that charge to be added. For details see:
http://www.407etr.com/
It should take you between 4 and 5 hours to get to Kingston or Gananoque.
I would probably stay the first night in Kingston and spend the time visitng some of the city's many attractions.
http://tourism.kingstoncanada.com/home.aspx
The next day, drive to Gananoque, take your cruise and then either return to Kingston or stay the night in Gananoque. I would do the latter. Here's some information on the town:
http://www.gananoque.com/
To return to Niagara Falls, cross over the St. Lawrence into New York via the Ivy Lea Bridge, and take I81 south towards Syracuse, and then the New York State Thruway (I90) back, crossing into Canada at Lewiston and then to Niagara on the Lake.
Jul 31st, 2006, 05:16 AM
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Hi there. You'll have a great time!!! We live in the area and you've chosen some great places to visit. We just stayed at the Embassy Suits in NF...if you can, get a Fallsview Room. We sat at our window for about 4 hours, having a glass of wine and watching the rainbow as it travelled over the Falls. Gorgeous!!! Make sure you buy the People Mover ticket in NF. It will take you to all the attractions without the hassle of parking etc. I would skip the Tunnel under the Falls, do the Spanish Aero car and the Board Walk instead. The BW doesn't sound like much, but you can really sense the power of the water in the river. Have a fantastic time!!
Kingston and Gananoque have lots of wonderful B and B's...
If you have a couple of hours, take in Old Port Dalhousie (about 30 mins. from Niagara-on-the-Lake).....it's on Lake Ontario, cute little boutiques and cafes, beach, and restored Victorian carousel, for 5 cents a ride!!
Kingston and Gananoque have lots of wonderful B and B's...
If you have a couple of hours, take in Old Port Dalhousie (about 30 mins. from Niagara-on-the-Lake).....it's on Lake Ontario, cute little boutiques and cafes, beach, and restored Victorian carousel, for 5 cents a ride!!
Jul 31st, 2006, 05:54 PM
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Yes, you should have no problem getting to TI and having enough time there to enjoy yourselves.
YOu really will have to time your departure from Niagara Falls to avoid Toronto rush hour. As Laverendrye states, you can mkae your trip through Toronto easier for yourself by taking the toll road 407. BUT be awared , it will cost you over $20 each way....and it is about 20 km longer. But if you are willing to pay the price, it is worth it.
If you decide not to.... you don't want to be heading through Toronto before 9 or 9:30 am in the morning.
Coming back, you don't want to be travelling through the city anytime between 3 pm and 6 pm.
As you pass through Hamilton, Burlinton, Oakville, you will have to then make a decision whether to go the north route through the city.... north on 427, east on 401. OR continue on QEW which turns into Gardner Expressway through the city and north on Don Valley Parkway where you will join the 401 again. There is only 1 km difference in the routes, so it depends on traffic. Listen to 680 am for traffice reports.
Having said all this, going through the States might be your best bet...not sure..
YOu really will have to time your departure from Niagara Falls to avoid Toronto rush hour. As Laverendrye states, you can mkae your trip through Toronto easier for yourself by taking the toll road 407. BUT be awared , it will cost you over $20 each way....and it is about 20 km longer. But if you are willing to pay the price, it is worth it.
If you decide not to.... you don't want to be heading through Toronto before 9 or 9:30 am in the morning.
Coming back, you don't want to be travelling through the city anytime between 3 pm and 6 pm.
As you pass through Hamilton, Burlinton, Oakville, you will have to then make a decision whether to go the north route through the city.... north on 427, east on 401. OR continue on QEW which turns into Gardner Expressway through the city and north on Don Valley Parkway where you will join the 401 again. There is only 1 km difference in the routes, so it depends on traffic. Listen to 680 am for traffice reports.
Having said all this, going through the States might be your best bet...not sure..
Aug 8th, 2006, 05:42 PM
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If you want to save some time, instead of going around the northern part of Lake Ontario and thru Toronto, just take the New York route to TI. My boss keeps his boat there and makes the trip from Buffalo every weekend in 3 1/2 hours.
Hope this helps!
Hope this helps!
Sep 4th, 2006, 12:00 PM
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Trip Report:
Thanks to all. We are back.We made a few revisions and saw more than we thought possible in the time we had allowed. We did take Fodorite advice and (90 to 81 RT) not circle the lake to get to the TI. It was simpler and frankly not that scenic after several hours!
I could not believe the Falls American side(even though forewarned!) We ended up there due to navigational error and and immediately were sheparded into a gravel parking lot for $10.00. Even the offer of a free drink with a food purchase at the adjoining Imperial Palace (aka. souveneir store) did not tempt us. It listed Niagara specialties including Bullfrog legs, Snapping turtle soup, and Bison chili. Call me a scaredy cat, but it did not look like a place I would be up for a food adventure!
We walked out to the observation platform ($1.00 pp), but forgot about Cave of the Winds Walk attraction. Wish we would have remembered, because we never had the time or desire to go back over.Those scenes from the movie Niagara with Marilyn Monroe were compelling, but not enough to get us back once we figured out the lay of the land.
Embassy Suites NF was a great one time only stay. It was pricey and when we got there we upgraded as advised(40.00 pn) to an even higher floor to see the fireworks better. The fireworks must have only lasted 20 minutes though. It was disappointing, but the Falls on either side were not. I can see how the Fallsview Suites would be great for kids. There were lots of families having a good time.
The free breakfasts were awful at the ES. I would not call them a incentive at all. Next time I will go to Niagara on the Lake or to a less expensive place.
We saw the Oh Canada Eh! show. It was pretty entertaining (silly and fun with pretty good food).
We tried to get over to the Erie Canal Locks, but just missed the boat tour. We still got to walk around and that was fine. It was interesting from a historical point of reference, but we have been on several other lock boat tours and were not too diappointed.
Our next stop was Niagara on the Lake. We used the Chamber of Commerce site and booked the Dairy Cottage for $100.00 CAN per night. It was one block from two of the venues. High Society and Design for Living were fantastic. The best meal we had here was at ZZs at the Shaw Hotel. I don't care for the pork mixed in the beef in the hamburger as we encountered a couple times, but the tomato poptart (served in a toaster!)was very clever and the porch service was enjoyable (did I mention the chocolate rasberry martinini?)Wow!
The wineries did not do a thing for us (but being spoiled from living in Napa CA makes us favor those cabs!). The ice wine is quite good (and a bit expensive). we ended up with a peach dessert wine, but traveling with liquids is difficult those days and I did not want my thousand Island Dressing and maple syrup mixxing w/ wine in my luggage!
Our trip to the Thousand Islands was very interesting. We stopped at Sackets Harbor Brewing (per cooking Light Magazine article this month!) and the lunch was one of our best this trip. We stayed at Gananoque Inn. It was Ok, a bit too pricey for what it is though. I would stay in Kingston next time, (only food ordering disappointment the whole trip. The boat tour to Boldt Castle was very relaxing trip and boards in Gananoque. Make sure to plan this trip time as only two of the excursions actually let you out at the castle. The castle was more interesting than we had anticipated, and we would like to go if we ever revisit.
There are a couple public ferry routes you can take that looked interesting. We took the (free) one to Wolfe Island. Dragon's Breath Brewing was a great place for lunch in Kingston. We took the short boat tour there and it also was a realxing trip. Not so many over the top houses on the islands, more farming, but plenty to see.
On the way back we went to the Wooden Boat Museum in Clayton. It was fantastic. Over 200 wooden boats and the houseboat that was previously at the Boldt Castle was available on tour.
It started raining our last day and back we shuffled to Buffalo. Thanks again to all who helped provide input on this trip. If anyone wants specifics just ask and I will open up the ol' travel diary!
G&K
Thanks to all. We are back.We made a few revisions and saw more than we thought possible in the time we had allowed. We did take Fodorite advice and (90 to 81 RT) not circle the lake to get to the TI. It was simpler and frankly not that scenic after several hours!
I could not believe the Falls American side(even though forewarned!) We ended up there due to navigational error and and immediately were sheparded into a gravel parking lot for $10.00. Even the offer of a free drink with a food purchase at the adjoining Imperial Palace (aka. souveneir store) did not tempt us. It listed Niagara specialties including Bullfrog legs, Snapping turtle soup, and Bison chili. Call me a scaredy cat, but it did not look like a place I would be up for a food adventure!
We walked out to the observation platform ($1.00 pp), but forgot about Cave of the Winds Walk attraction. Wish we would have remembered, because we never had the time or desire to go back over.Those scenes from the movie Niagara with Marilyn Monroe were compelling, but not enough to get us back once we figured out the lay of the land.
Embassy Suites NF was a great one time only stay. It was pricey and when we got there we upgraded as advised(40.00 pn) to an even higher floor to see the fireworks better. The fireworks must have only lasted 20 minutes though. It was disappointing, but the Falls on either side were not. I can see how the Fallsview Suites would be great for kids. There were lots of families having a good time.
The free breakfasts were awful at the ES. I would not call them a incentive at all. Next time I will go to Niagara on the Lake or to a less expensive place.
We saw the Oh Canada Eh! show. It was pretty entertaining (silly and fun with pretty good food).
We tried to get over to the Erie Canal Locks, but just missed the boat tour. We still got to walk around and that was fine. It was interesting from a historical point of reference, but we have been on several other lock boat tours and were not too diappointed.
Our next stop was Niagara on the Lake. We used the Chamber of Commerce site and booked the Dairy Cottage for $100.00 CAN per night. It was one block from two of the venues. High Society and Design for Living were fantastic. The best meal we had here was at ZZs at the Shaw Hotel. I don't care for the pork mixed in the beef in the hamburger as we encountered a couple times, but the tomato poptart (served in a toaster!)was very clever and the porch service was enjoyable (did I mention the chocolate rasberry martinini?)Wow!
The wineries did not do a thing for us (but being spoiled from living in Napa CA makes us favor those cabs!). The ice wine is quite good (and a bit expensive). we ended up with a peach dessert wine, but traveling with liquids is difficult those days and I did not want my thousand Island Dressing and maple syrup mixxing w/ wine in my luggage!
Our trip to the Thousand Islands was very interesting. We stopped at Sackets Harbor Brewing (per cooking Light Magazine article this month!) and the lunch was one of our best this trip. We stayed at Gananoque Inn. It was Ok, a bit too pricey for what it is though. I would stay in Kingston next time, (only food ordering disappointment the whole trip. The boat tour to Boldt Castle was very relaxing trip and boards in Gananoque. Make sure to plan this trip time as only two of the excursions actually let you out at the castle. The castle was more interesting than we had anticipated, and we would like to go if we ever revisit.
There are a couple public ferry routes you can take that looked interesting. We took the (free) one to Wolfe Island. Dragon's Breath Brewing was a great place for lunch in Kingston. We took the short boat tour there and it also was a realxing trip. Not so many over the top houses on the islands, more farming, but plenty to see.
On the way back we went to the Wooden Boat Museum in Clayton. It was fantastic. Over 200 wooden boats and the houseboat that was previously at the Boldt Castle was available on tour.
It started raining our last day and back we shuffled to Buffalo. Thanks again to all who helped provide input on this trip. If anyone wants specifics just ask and I will open up the ol' travel diary!
G&K
Sep 10th, 2006, 07:27 AM
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We did not get to Goat Island. I remebered the recommendation though. I guess we was swept away by all the opportunities to see amzing things. We could have used another (sunny)day in NF!
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