Niagara Falls and Watertown?
 

We, DH, DD16 and DD11 will be going on a college visit road trip this fall in northwestern New York. Suny Geneseo will be visited on Saturday and the other St. Lawrence in Canton on Monday. I am trying to fill in the time and distance gaps. I thought we could drive over to Niagara Falls (1.5 hours) from Rochester (where we would most likely stay) on Saturday after we are done with the visit which should be by 1 p.m.

On Sunday, we could drive over to Watertown which is closer to the college we will visit on Monday. As the drive is about 3 hours from Rochester, we would probably spend most of the day there. Can you suggest things to do near Watertown to keep us entertained? We considered driving to Montreal but it looks like that would be an additional 3 hours : - (, which would be tooooo much driving for one day.

Or.... should we just overnight at Niagara Falls and then do a slow drive to Watertown on Sunday? DH and I have been to Niagara Falls in the late 80s, the girls have never been.

Your suggestions would be appreciated.

I would spend the night in Niagara Falls, Ont, especially if the kids have not been before. It is quite different than what it was like in the 80's. Of course the falls themselves have not changed, but the surrounding area has. There are so many actvities there now - Maid of the Mist, the Bird Kingdom (an awesome aviary), Niagara Fury, Niagara SkyWheel etc. etc. plus many new restaurants and hotels.

Don't let people scare you about the border crossing. All you need are your driver's licenses and birth certificates (not the kids, they just need birth certificates). It is quite painless and quick. I live in Buffalo and cross over all the time without any problems.

Geneseo is an excellent school. Good luck and have a great trip!

Thank you kcapuani. I am leaning towards spending the night and enjoying it at a slower pace. I have heard good things about Geneseo also, which is why we are making the trip. Thanks for the boost!

Watertown is a small, kind of dull town on the edge of a big military base on the outskirts of the Adirondack National Park. While it is just fine as small towns go and has some okay scenery on the riverbanks, it is not full of things to do.

IMHO, you could just as easily spend more time in either of Rochester/Niagara Falls. Actually Rochester has lots to do...the Eastman House is amazing for those interested in photgraphy and the small town of Pittsford (suburb of R.) is very charming for shopping, gallery hopping, strolling by the canal and fine dining.

And the winters in Watertown are beyond your imagining! Not in such a wonderful way. It is very, very isolated, and very very cold and very very snowy. However, not that far from Montreal, one of the world's truly great cities.

lia-if you do decide to stay in Watertown, I would strongly suggest you vist the Thousand Islands..absolutely beautiful area! So often overlooked and so less touristy than Niagara Falls..
http://www.visit1000islands.com/visitorinfo/

lia_b: In that short time period, I would pick one or the other. Niagara Falls or the Thousand Islands. Both are awesome.

Honestly, although not far from Geneseo, Niagara Falls is in the opposite direction of Watertown. You can always visit NF when you have more time during a visit with your daughter.

Nonetheless, it's all doable.

If you really want to spend a day in a city, I will suggest Ottawa. It's much closer than Montreal. You need more than one day for either city, but Ottawa is the closer and easier choice IMHO.

My son has SUNY Geneseo on his list. It's a great school, but has a waiting list I believe. Good luck!

You're right about Ottawa. Ottawa is just great.

The Rome, Watertown and Ogdensburg Railroad, commonly known as The Hojack Line, operated along the south shore of Lake Ontario, from Niagara Falls, New York to Oswego, New York. Different segments of the line were abandoned at different times. In various areas the defunct railroad's right-of-way is in use by other railroads, such as the Somerset Railroad.
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Dhananjay

http://www.alcoholaddiction.org/new-hampshire

We just did a similar college trip with my daughter in July. We really enjoyed niagara falls. That's what I would recommend doing.

Thank you for all the great suggestions. You confirmed my suspicions about Watertown. We are leaning towards Niagara Falls because of the season. I am sure we will return during the summer and maybe allot more time so we can spend time in the 1000 islands and also Montreal. I am also happy to hear good feeback about Suny Geneseo. Everyone has been pusing Binghamton but this looks like it's a better fit for my DD.