Niagara Falls in Late June
 

I am thinking about a short vacation at Niagara Falls with my wife and two kids, ages 10 and 12. <BR><BR>Would really appreciate your help in identifying things to do in the area, best boat tours, economical lodging, restaurants, etc. I anticipate only about 3 days there - just trying to make the best use of the time. <BR><BR>Thank you in advance for your comments.

I took my daughter there a couple of years ago and we went to the Butterfly Conservatory on the Canada side. http://www.niagaraparks.com/attractions/butterfly.php<BR>It was so nice and the butterflies landed on us, which was kinda cool.<BR>

The marriott is a great place but pricey. Our boys enjoyed the magician entertainer at dinner so they do cater to families. The renaisance I think it is a ramada is great also. There are tons of things to do on Lundys Lane House of horrors etc. The maid of the mist boat tour is worth it expect to get wet! Truly an experience you will remember.Enjoy the spectacular view of the falls(no cost)If you have time I would definitely recommend a day trip to Niagra on the Lake beautiful little town great restaurants and shops you can rent bikes there too and bike on the escarpment pathway. Also the Shaw theatre is there.Great also.There is also the indoor butterfly sanctuary and botanical gardens. These are all on the Canadian side I do not know what the U.S. side offers. Niagra Falls offers so much to do from super touristy to low key outside of the main tourist area. Joanne

Your kids are the right age to really enjoy Clifton Hill (a kids year round tourist trap) in Niagara Falls, Canada.<BR><BR>We got a hotel room (fallsview) at the Sheraton on the Falls for $80 US during the last week of June 2002. Try bidding on Priceline for that YOU MAY BE ABLE TO DO LOTS BETTER or checking rates at www.biddingfortravel.com. I would also really recommend taking the Maid of the Mist. Go to Niagara on the Lake a small town but scenic drive from Niagara Falls it was beautiful and a place you can enjoy as adults! I found the flowers and such in upstate New York awesome, much better than the midwest because the weather is more moderate and the flowers don't die in the heat so quickly. Have fun.

From an economic standpoint, you're better off staying on the Canadian side. You'll benefit from the exchange rate on your hotel and food, as well. <BR><BR>Down a ways from the Falls (Canadian side) is a stairway/elevator (I recommend this all the time but can't think of the name of it!) that goes down to the lower Niagara river next to the rapids. The rapids are the strongest in the world and it's really fabulous to be down at the bottom of the gorge next to the rapids and looking up at the gorge walls. <BR><BR>Of course, there's the Maid of the Mist which travels close to the Falls and the speedboat tours through the lower rapids. There's a theater that shows a movie about the Falls, and in the lobby there are several barres, containers, etc. that people have actually used to go over the Falls. I always recommend staying on the Cdn. side but viewing from the American side as well. You can stand at the railing where the water goes over and walk along the upper rapids. I think a lot of people miss out on this by staying on the Canadian side the entire time! <BR><BR>Many people will recommend Niagara on the Lake, which is truly a lovely, historical town worth visiting. However, with children (and even without) I highly recommend Old Fort Niagara on the American side, just a few miles from the Falls. It's been there since before the French &amp; Indian War. It is in excellent condition, and the French Castle is the oldest building on the Great Lakes. It has a great history (and is supposedly haunted). There's lots of exploring to do and it has a fantastic museum. My eleven year old son begs to go there every summer. The fort is within a state park which has picnic grounds and swimming pools, and a beautiful (no swimming) grass beach which overlooks Lake Ontario. Toronto can be seen on a clear day. Their website is www.oldfortniagara.org.<BR><BR>Have a great time.

I agree with all others. Canadian side gives you much better view of falls. Along with all others have suggested, drive east 1/2 mile or so &amp; there is a lookout point for the whirlpool. Pretty cool!

The jet boat ride from NOTL isn't cheap, but it's great fun. The kids would probably love it.

I can't add too much to the recommendations here, but I do want to emphasize that staying on the Canadian side is MUCH preferable to the American -- even if the exchange wasn't so favorable (which, of course it is right now.)<BR>If you have a car, you may want to drive back to the American side and see the falls from there. If you do that, you might want to do the Maid of the Mist from that side as the lines are generally much shorter.<BR>There are a couple of hotels that have nice views over the falls (although they're not right at the falls. They're set back and up a hill, but as a previous poster mentioned, there's a funiculair (sp?) to bring you down.) One is the Sheraton that someone mentioned and I can't remember the name of the other one, but it's very close to the Sheraton.

On the Canadian side, my son loved the attractions on Clifton Hill: wax museums, Guinness, Ripley's, etc. There's also a couple miniature golf courses on Lundy's Lane.

I'm heading to Niagara Falls on Thursday. I heard you can walk behind the falls somewhere (it's a tour I think)- does anyone know what/where this is?

Suzanne, I think there's a version of this on both sides of the border. We did this a few years ago, and recommend it.

http://www.niagarafallslive.com/cave_of_the_winds.htm

You've really gotten the Niagara Falls highlights from the previous posters. However, you might want to include a day going to Buffalo to your agenda. There are fantastic festivals all summer long in buffalo. Our Taste of Buffalo is the 2nd largest in the nation (2nd to Chicago), The Allentown Art Festival is one of the oldest and largest outdoor art shows. There's a great Italian Festival, and they go on and on-just choose your weekend and you'll find some kind of festival. Try buffalo.com for more info about the entire western new york area. Also, there's a terrific ball park for AAA baseball in Buffalo. Our team is a farm team for the Cleveland Indians.
In my book, Maid of the Mist and the Butterfly Conservatory are not to be missed adventures in Niagara Falls. NOTL is great, but not always for kids. Great theater, great shopping, but if they're not shoppers, you can only look at quaint streets and beautiful flowers for so long.

Although I agree that if you happen to be going during the Allentown Art Festival or, possibly, during a Taste of Buffalo, a side trip to Buffalo might be worthwhile. But if not one of those weekends, no offense to Buffalo (I enjoyed living there) but I really don't see it offering much to a traveler. If you do decide to make a side trip, you'd be much better off going to Toronto, which is less than an hour and a half from the Falls.

SUZANNE, it's called journey behind the falls, you get very wet even tho rain gear is provided, it is truly amazing.

NEAL, I always suggest this...Dinner in the Skylon, a revolving restaurant on the Canadian side. Visit www.skylon.com, we did this at sunset and it was a fab view all the way around. You can make reservations on the website. I strongly suggest this, you won't be sorry.

I'd say stay on the Canadian side, more value for your dollar. When in the area the Travelodge on Clifton Hill was a nice place. Ate buffet breakfast for $5 or $6 - didn't stay there. There is a Holiday Inn and Econolodge not far away.

Regarding things to see. What I'd really like to see next time I go is the Niagara Power Plant tour which I believe is on the NY side. Would like to learn about how power is taken from the Falls and generated through NYS. At the Falls I'd say take a tour under the Falls (underground tunnels) which gives you the ability to peer up at the Horseshoe Falls and then I've actually seen people walking straight up the Falls on the American side. There is also a nice park on the Canadian side to walk around in. There are fun houses all up and down Clifton Hill and a Hard Rock Cafe within viewing distance of the Falls, maybe 1 or 2 blocks away. The Maid of the Mist is a must, very fun and wet and that is probably the best thing you'll do the whole trip. Then what I did really enjoy is the IMAX theatre which isn't too far away (maybe a mile tops). It has a lifelike film on the history of Niagara and a mini-museum inside theatre building telling of people and events around the Falls.