wow

Hello Buddie3! Agree w/ the others here that 4 days in Niagara is waaaay too much in April. As TobieT has sadi, Ottawa is a much better choice & very easy to get there from Toronto. You can take the train from Union Sation which is not far south of your hotel @ Delta Chelsea.( I think you said Delta Chelsea) They probably have transporation from Delta Chelsea to Union Station. If you must go to Miagara do a "day trip" from Toronto. Again your hotel shd be able to arrange this for you. Any particular reason why you have chosen April to visit?

wow

sorry for my typos....Niagara & others....

Buddie3

Thanks for the advice. The holiday was arranged around the Scottish School holidays. It is frowned upon to take children off on holidays outwith the designated holiday timetable. Also, it was at least double the price to go around summer time. I know that I am going to enjoy Canada and maybe the next time I will ask for advice first before I book!. One of the websites I visited (niagaraairbus.com) shows that I can book the boat tour and helicopter ride with them during Easter at Niagara, so I am a bit confused. Can anyone confirm if this is true or not. Don't have a great deal of experience in buying things online but if I could book these trips in advance to ensure that we would get the chance to go, I would. Thanks

SallyCanuck

Before booking with that company, have a look at www.grayline.ca or www.greyhound.ca - they also have tours from Toronto to NF. If you don't book now, I can't see it being a problem at Easter. Like the others answering, I agree that 4 days in the Falls is too much - even in the summer - Ottawa would be a much better bet - the train from Union Station (especially first class, called Via 1 which includes a meal, is quite enjoyable and bus links from Ottawa's train station to the centre of the city are very good - cheap and frequent - I've done it myself.

TobieT

Hi Buddie,

The tour through Niagara Air bus states that Maid of the Mist is your tour "in the summer months". Off season you'll see Journey Behind the Falls. So you can indeed book at Easter, but the boat ride won't be part of it. Whirlpool Jet Rides (whirlpooljet.com) appears to book after April 22 according to their site.

I'm not sure about the helicopter rides but there doesn't appear to be any stipulation for dates. There should be a phone number available to call on one of the Niagara tourism sites to give you more info about that.

I would contact your hotel if you have any concerns about booking online as they should be able to help and likely offer to do the bookings for you. Because it is off season, I might even wait till arrival in Canada and phone from Toronto as it won't be as busy as the summer season, and you would also have a better idea of the weather forecast day to day.

Because your dates are fixed with the school holiday, just plan to make the most of the time you have, even if that means doing a day trip on a tour from Toronto to the Falls. torontotours.com has been recommended on other travel forums. Again, they state off season is November to April on their site.

PXYca

Buddie,

IMHO, I would not want to be on the Niagara river in April - still too early for safety - remember we can get snow and there is the spring swell of water which increases the currents.

Plan for an overnight only at Niagara - it's all you'll need (unless you consider niagara on the lake and the penninsula as recommended above). Lots of good day trips from toronto too - but I'd recommend at least one night so you can see the falls lit up at night - very pretty.

I think given that the weather can be unpredictable - Ottawa would be a better choice as there are a lot of things to see inside museums, art gallery, etc.

Toronto too has a lot to offer - casa loma, cn tower, science centre, zoo, to name a few.

saltymuffin

Is there any chance of changing your hotels??

As suggested, a Toronto, Ottawa, Niagara Falls itinerary would offer much more. TobieT's 5,3,2 sounds ideal. You can easily travel between the three cities by train. (I would HIGHLY recommend the train over the bus). And you will do fine without a car in Toronto and Ottawa. For two days or so, you would even be fine without a car in Niagara Falls. It is only if you stay in Niagara for longer that you would really need a car.

Buddie3

Thanks again for all the input. Is there anywhere in the Niagara area that we could watch an ice hockey game? I know they play at the Air Cananda Centre but is there anything else in the Niagara area?

TobieT

Check this site for Junior B (community) hockey in Niagara region:
http://www.ghlhockey.com/NFcontacts.htm

And sorry to sound like a broken record but for a professional NHL game, the Ottawa Senators are playing at home on April 6,8,11 and 13th.

See www2.ottawasenators.com

Sanni

Hi Buddie3!

We (=daughter 27, boyfriend, father 50 and his wife) are travelling to Toronto and Niagara in April (April 22th to April 29th), too. We live in Finland.

You wrote that the Made of the Mist does not open until May.

Check again: http://www.maidofthemist.com/
2006 SCHEDULE
(Note: Opening date depends on ice conditions in the River)
April—May 19 9:45 am to 4:45 pm (weekdays)
9:45 am to 5:45 pm (weekends)

So let's hope it'll be a warm spring!

Buddie3

Thanks for the info, I will keep my fingers crossed for mild weather. cheers