Marty

My brother is getting married in NYC on Jun 26th and my wife and I plan to fly to Toronto from Scotland a week or so beforehand and leisurely drive down to NYC for the wedding and back again afterwards. All in all we plan to stay around 10 - 14 days in the US/Canada. Any recommendations about what we should stop and see and do on the way? Thanks for any help.

Rachel

shortest distance is to come from Toronto through NIagara Falls, WNY and then thru NYS to NYC. Alternative would be to go from Toronto east towards Ottawa, MOntreal and then down from Lake Placid area to NCY. Longer, but different sights. You can spend 1-2 days in Niagara Falls, another day or 2 in Niagara on the Lake, a lovely small town about 20 minutes from Niagara Falls. The Shaw Festival Theatre is in NOTL and has wonderful productions of Shaw's plays and other plays from his time era. Great wineries in the Niagara Region also. Buffalo has some wonderful architecture and a great Art Musuem, among other treasures. buffalo is the home of chicken wings and you can still go to the restaurant where they were invented (he Anchor Bar). buffalo has many outdoor festivals in the summer. Try www.Buffalo.com for info. The weather in this area is wonderful in the summer. Great fishing and boating also. YOu can easily spend several days in Toronto-great sites, theatre, musuems, just about anything you want. It's a very diverse city. From buffalo to NYC you can go thru the Finger Lakes area, well known for it's excellent wineries. also, lots of water activities because of the Finger Lakes. Ithaca is a lovely town, home of Cornell University and Ithaca College. Corning, NY is the home of a fascinating glass musuem/factory. I believe Steuben Glass is also there. The Hudson Valley, closer to NYC is lovely in the summer also. Check with the NYS Department of Tourism for info on NYS. There slogan is I love NY (with a heart for Love) and I bet if you punch that into a search engine, you can get some great info. I haven't been to Ottawa or Montreal in many years, but everyone who does go there loves them. It's a different alternative. Also, Fodors has a Canadian message board if you want to go that route. The Canadian dollar is very weak so our American dollars go very far there. I'm not sure how euros (I'm guessing your country uses euros) fare against the US or Canadian dollar. My US dollar gets me about 1.50 canadian. Have a great trip.

Owen O'Neill

The previous poster has made some excellent suggestions. I'll second tyher vote for Ithaca NY, having lived there for four years. The gorges and the Cornell University campus are of particular interest, as is the gorge in nearby Watkins Glen State Park. Ithaca is also home to the Moosewood, a nationally famous vegetarian restaurant (justifiably so - the food is great!). Also consider seeing Letchworth State Park near Geneseo NY, southwest of Rochester. It's fairly close to the highway exit (off Rt 90 - NY State Thruway). Known as the "Grand Canyon of the East", it's a little known treasure outside of the region but IMHO has the most spectacular natural scenery ion the eastern US. It rivals many national parks in terms of rugged beauty (I have seen most of them) but is smaller in scale. Rochester NY also has a fascinating museum that focuses on domestic life of the 1800's and early 1900's. Of intyerest to a few is their doll collection - absolutely huge. See www.strongmuseum.org and also check out Eastman House - restored hoem of the founder of Kodak. Adjacent to it is the International Museum of Photography - also worth a visit.

Joe

Three possibles would be to the west, the above trip of Niagara,Finger lakes,etc. Second would be through Lake Champlain ,Vermont and Adirondack Mountains area. Third would be to east and down through Maine and Boston and then a trip to Foxwoods Casino and on to NYC.

Sandy

What does IMHO stand for please?

Judy

In My Humble Opinion

Jean

Marty if you are flying to Toronto be prepare for the worst user unfriendly airport you ever been to. Montreal is much better but if you already have tickets be prepare and you will be fine.
I vote for visiting Vermont, taking ferry in Burlington to the Adirondacks, visiting Lake Placid, Lake George and Saratoga, then I would stop in Mohonk before arriving in New York City

Tricia

Bravo, Rachel.
I love it when people write posts such as yours. Excellent advice!
I would definitely do the Niagara Falls route from Toronto. Much less driving, and so much to see and do along the way.

Carol

Marty, as a Native New Yorker, I have to ditto everything that is said. I love New York. New York is just not NY City. There are so many cities downstate and upstate. I live upstate in Rochester and there is more to offer than anyone may think. Owen is right on about the Strong Museum, Eastman house. We also have Strassenburg Planetarium. We have the High Falls Area that has a lazer light show every night over looking the Genessee Rive. A must see.

June is a great month, there are many many festivals that are wonderful.

We have the upscale resturants - Edwards, Rio Bomba, 2Vine, Carma's, Maxx's and than the must have resturants, Don & Bob's, the best hamburgers and Chocolate Almond Frozen Custard, served in a waffle cone. This located near Lake Ontario. As I type, the harbor is getting ready for the fast ferry boat that in 2003 will bring your directly from Toranto to the Rochester Harbor. You will be able to drive your car right onto it and Viola - your in Rochester. Check before you you come to see if it is up and running.

No matter where you choose, have a great holiday in New York, you will be plesently surprised.

Marty

Thanks for all your replies - it's given me lots to think about.