We enjoyed the White Water Walk tour. It was beautiful and very relaxing.
Re: Some controversy as to whether Anchor Bar invented Buffalo wings. As with many things in America, this may or may not be a case of white appropriation of African-American culture. Frank and Teresa’s Anchor Bar does seem to be able to claim credit for severing the wings into separate pieces and serving them with celery and blue cheese dressing. This Calvin Trillin piece from 1980 is a reminder that once upon a time wings really were a regional specialty. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1980/08/25/an-attempt-to-compile-a-short-history-of-the-buffalo-chicken-wing
@amom2girls, I just spoke to a friend who is a Buffalo native and also said she prefers Duffs! We may have to do a Wing tasting tour!
Would we be able to do the Maid of the Mist boat trip and the White Water Walk tour in one day?
Yes, you can do both on a summer day. You will get pretty wet on the maid of the mist boat even with the raincoats they give you. There is a pretty long walking trail on the Canadian side above the falls which can take quite a bit of time to walk on, there are some old, disused buildings but very relaxing scenery. Make sure to bring bug spray and sunscreen.
If you go to the Canadian side, it is all about embracing the touristy tackiness with the stuff like Ripley’s and the wax museum, and eating cotton candy and juju bees. You feel like you were transported to the 1970’s. As soon as you get out of that area it is quite beautiful, but often crowded on a summer day.
We stayed at one of the Marriotts (there are 2 right next to each other!) on the Canadian side, just this past summer. Since I am always looking for a bargain, we had a less expensive room without a view of the falls. But when you exit the elevator on the way to your room there is a huge window with a stunning view of the falls. At the time, the exchange rate was $1 US = $1.25 Canadian, so many things were cheap. (Same exchange rate right now). We had a great meal at Antica Pizzeria & Ristorante in Niagara Falls Canada.
We also took a day trip to Niagara on the Lake. It was nice. We stopped at the beach (not really a beach because it’s all rocks) and it was so clear you could just make out the Toronto skyline on the horizon across the lake.
Our trip was very short, one night only. We decided to skip the Maid of the Mist because we would have checked out of the hotel already and figured we might get wet (even with the rain gear) and didn’t want to be in wet clothes all day.
When we drove across the Rainbow Bridge into Canada, the customs lady only asked if there was anyone else in our car (hiding in back? no!) and if we had any guns(no!) On the way back into U.S. the immigration lady asked us how long we had been in Canada and I replied just one night. She then asked incredulously, “You drove all the way up here (from North Carolina) to spend one night at Niagara Falls?” Had I been caught??? Well, we also went to a wedding in Buffalo… ok, have a nice day! (strange!)
Agree about the Marriott on the Canadian side, and the White Water Walk. We spent 2 nites, the Niagsra on the Lake for one nite.
Rather than pay to be crammed onto the Maid, we simply take the elevator down from the overlook brdige and walk around the river and up the stairs that run along the American Falls. Way out past the Tesla statue you can also get right next to the American Falls. But our family’s favorite thing has always been the Below The Falls trip on the Canadian side – you take an elevator down into the tunnels behind the Canadian Falls – you can feel the vibration of the water through the rock, through your shoes. I feel like at some point you are on a little patio right at the bottom of the Horseshoe. Visiting the whirpool further downstream is also neat if you are going that way.
I have stayed at the Sheraton on the U.S side for a convention and it was actually fine. There is good local Italian hot spot restaurant a few blocks away and also Niagara County Community College has a culinary program that runs a nice restaurant across from the convention center as well as a sandwich shop and a bakery/pastry shop.
In Niagara on the Lake I have stayed at the Oban Inn, very lovely. We added on a trip to Toronto and Niagara on the Lake following my business trip. Loved Niagara on the Lake. Went to the Shaw Festival and a few wineries as well as the historic War of 1812 fort, plus lovely residential area to walk around. Toronto is great for a weekend. We stayed at the Hilton downtown to build up Hilton points and went to Art Gallery of Ontario, walked miles and miles to look at the architecture, the Distillery, the market and so on, very pleasant city, nice restaurants.
Go to Duff’s for wings. Even the Bills chose Duffs. They sent a truck loaded with 1500 Duff’s wings and all the fixins to the Bengals for their help in the Bills getting into the playoffs.
We had a fantastic view from one of the Marriotts. I refused to pay their outrageous fee for parking, so parked at the casiono, 3 blocks away.
Groupon had some deals for Niagara Falls, I received an email today