We have taken many three-or four-night trips in our lifetime. This one, however, happens to be one of our favorite three-night trips ever...
We called some good friends (who live in Texas) and asked them to meet us at the airport in Buffalo, New York. There we could meet and then shuttle across the border to another fun destination: Ontario, Canada, and the amazing Niagara Falls!!
The friends we contacted were some we have known for more than 50 years. One of them actually grew up with my husband in Fort Worth, Texas. They met in elementary school, played on the same sports teams, grew up in the same neighborhood, and (all three of us) went to the same high school…graduating in the same class. He was also the other "Best man" at our wedding! (The official one by wedding standards and traditions.) However, as you know, my husband (of course) was the actual Best Man (for me) at our wedding! I just wanted to mention that so we can continue to live "happily ever after" and continue to travel on many more fun vacations together! I love you, honey!! LOL!!
So, after we called our good friends and told them all about the (possible) "Birthday Trip" we wanted to take, they agreed to meet us in Buffalo, New York! My 68th birthday and the "other" Best Man's wife's birthday (I think I said that right?) are only three days apart. Also, many years ago, her parents spent their honeymoon in Niagara Falls, and she had always wanted to visit the place. So, we started to plan our trip…
Where could we stay and what could we all do in Ontario, Canada (near Niagara Falls) for three nights? None of us had ever visited the area, so we looked online at the "Top 15 Things to See and Do in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada". A whole list of fun things we could do popped up right before our eyes…YAY! I noticed a few things (right off the bat) that I really wanted to do. The Maid of the Mist Boat Tour and Ziplining the Falls!! Keep reading this article, and you will find out some of the fun things we did in just two full days. (I am not counting the first day we arrived in the Niagara Falls area)!
As it happened, our friend's flight arrived late the evening before we were due to land in Buffalo, New York. They had already booked a room at the airport hotel so they could spend the night and then meet us the next morning when our flight arrived. So, the next morning (after a little less sleep than they had planned), they met us at the airport and then we ALL crossed the Canadian border together in a pre-arranged shuttle. Since there were four of us, the cost for the shuttle to Ontario was much cheaper. (Yay, another great deal!) So, it was a good plan and, fortunately for us, it all worked out perfectly.
We booked three nights at the Marriott Fallsview Hotel (located at 6740 Fallsview Blvd., Niagara Falls, ON, Canada) right in front of the very famous Horseshoe Falls at Niagara Falls! We watched all of the Falls turn different colors every night right from our hotel windows. We were not expecting to see beautiful "light shows" every night; however, we were very glad for the colorful display. (They also had a fireworks display every evening by the Falls, too!) It was a great scenic bonus every evening. It was also one of the closest and best hotel locations we have ever had at such an iconic place to visit…the famous Niagara Falls!
(Another great hotel location was the time we stayed three nights at the El Tovar Hotel on the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. It was just steps away from another amazing view!)
Falls Incline Railway
There were plenty of wonderful restaurants and places to shop all around our hotel location.
The Marriott Fallsview Hotel was built high up on a hillside, and our room was on the 23rd floor of the hotel. So, we had a spectacular, unobstructed view every night from our hotel windows. The only downside (if you could call it that) was that we had to take the Falls Incline Railway (that is attached to the side of the cliff/hillside) from our hotel (and our hotel street level) down to the Falls level and some of the restaurants, shops, and Visitor's Center.
It was a great and easy way to get to the Falls (and then back up to our hotel). Also, the incline railway tickets were not very expensive. We bought tickets that were good for the entire day (every day) we were at the hotel. (And, if you know me at all, you also know that I rode that incline railway every chance I could get!) I absolutely love all gondola rides and incline railways! They are so much fun to ride!!
During the day, (when we were sometimes in our room), we watched the boat tours as they constantly entered the large Horseshoe Falls area. They dared to steer their boats close to the powerful and massive Falls just so all the tourists on board could experience the ultimate adventure. Of course, getting soaked by the Falls was also an option for some of the brave tourists. Also, from our hotel window, we could see the people crowding around the scenic lookout points located along the edge of the wall of the Falls. They were lined up watching the Falls and all those brave tourists on the tour boats entering the Horseshoe Falls area.
While we were in Ontario, we also took a fabulous tour that included a ride on the World Famous Maid of the Mist Boat (especially after watching that boat enter the Falls area every day right from our hotel window)! The tour did not disappoint. That boat ride takes you extremely close to Horseshoe Falls. In fact, you can hear the deafening roar of the Falls, feel the mist in your face, and get quite a thrill from the incredible ride into the Falls area. It is worth every penny you pay for that tour!
We also visited the Cave of the Winds. This tour takes you down an elevator, through a "cave-like" tunnel, and out to a wooden boardwalk. If you are brave enough and do not mind getting a little wet (even with a poncho on), you can climb up very close to the raging Bridal Veil Falls. There is also a Hurricane Deck you can climb up to so you can stand very close to the Falls as they come over the edge of the cliff.
Important Note: This is the closest we have ever been to a raging waterfall! We were surprised that they let you get so close to the water, speeding by you to the bottom of the Falls! (We did not want to personally experience the top portion of the "Hurricane Deck", so we watched from a few decks down.) We got to witness a lot of C-R-A-Z-Y people go up to the "Hurricane Deck" just so they could stand next to the massive Falls and get extremely soaked!
FYI: The Maid of the Mist boat tour company provides you with nice, big blue rain ponchos (for free) to help you keep dry during the tour!! (Thank goodness for that!) You will absolutely need them to stay somewhat dry on this tour!
We also stopped at a gift shop that happened to have a Whirlpool Aero Car! (You don't know what that is? Well, we did not know either!) We did not ride the odd-looking vehicle hanging high above the water, but we did take some great pictures of it! We even saw an impressive outdoor in-ground (working) Floral Clock that was made with beautiful live flowers. Also, the tour company drove us to the Skylon Tower so we could ride the elevator up to the top and view the city and the Falls area from the top of the tower.
The rest of the tour took us to other parts of Ontario and even (across the border) to the United States (New York) side to view the Falls and fun sights around that area. The tour also included a short stop to buy some lunch at a famous Italian bakery. The sandwiches we ordered were good, and the large cookie filled with ice cream was (of course) yummy! We really enjoyed our full-day tour and recommend that you look into taking a tour while you are visiting Ontario, so you can also enjoy many wonderful sights the city and surrounding areas have to offer.
We dined at plenty of great restaurants, including My Cousin Vinny and Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville. (Our friends had never eaten at a Margaritaville Restaurant before, so one evening we walked to a Margaritaville Restaurant that was located only a few blocks away from our hotel.) Our friends did love the restaurant and the food!
FYI: We have eaten at many Margaritaville Restaurants all over the country (actually, whenever we get the chance)! We love the food, music, atmosphere, and the tropical drinks!
We also took a cab to Niagara on the Lake (it is a town that is located about 30 minutes from the Marriott Fallsview Hotel). Niagara on the Lake is known for its "ice wine" (a special sweet-tasting wine made in the region), beautiful scenery, good restaurants, and some fantastic shopping.
We had a great lunch at the Corks Winebar and Eatery (formerly known as The Buttery Restaurant), located at 19 Queen Street. At the time we visited the restaurant for lunch, we did not know that this eating establishment had a very grim and ghostly history! It (supposedly) still has a ghost in its basement (that likes to scare people going up and down the very steep stairs)! I am not normally afraid of ghosts (I think); however, I would have liked to have known about a possible encounter with a ghost when I went down to the basement to use the facilities! Yep, that's where the facilities are located, people!! Climbing up and down those insanely steep stairs was scary enough for me!! (You will have to look up the history of the restaurant to get that joke!!) LOL!!
Formerly The Buttery Restaurant – home to a murdered woman ghost who could only be calmed by an exorcism.
Accidentally murdered by her insane brother. She was attempting to stop him from murdering her abusive husband. She was pushed aside, through an open door and into the basement. Later she would be found dead, her neck broken.
The brother buried her in the basement.
Today she is seen on the basement stairs.
The sister is a vivid ghost, many of the witnesses recognizing her face.
We (definitely) had to shop at most of the great stores and, of course, we drank some wonderful ice wine!! FYI: They have a great "special" ice wine sampler available that you can try, so you can taste 3 or 4 different kinds of ice wine while you are there! That is what we did!
Also, if you are into visiting old historic hotels, there is the famous Prince of Wales Hotel (built in 1864) right in the middle of town. (Hopefully, it does not have any active ghosts!) It is worth stopping by this hotel for a visit. It is beautifully landscaped outside of the hotel…so, you will not miss it! Inside the hotel is a great place to relax for a few minutes. You can sit and have a drink at the bar, order some lunch, or just stroll through the main areas of the hotel to take some great photos. They have the most amazing stained-glass in the hotel and beautiful antique decorations.
So, if you have some extra time while you are in Ontario, you should definitely go visit the beautiful town of Niagara-on-the-Lake. It is a very scenic and fun place to visit for at least several hours.
The day before we were supposed to fly back home was my (actual) 68th birthday. So, I decided that I would try ziplining for the first time in my life…at Niagara Falls! (And, of course, make my husband do it with me!!) I thought, what a great place to zipline for the first time! So, as my husband and I stood in line, with our harnesses in place and our cute blue helmets on our heads, we looked around at all the other people waiting for the chance to zipline the Falls too. Well, I thought, we were (definitely) much older than everyone else standing in line. (Oh well…that has never stopped me before!) Personally, age has never mattered that much to me. I believe in the old saying: You are only as old as you feel! Well, (at that moment in time), I felt pretty young!!
I remember smiling and getting more excited with every step we took closer to the zipline starting point. I was going to be able to watch Niagara Falls on the ride down to the zipline platform! (How cool is that?) So, when the time finally came to attach my harness to the zipline wires, I was more than ready to go! Then it happened…the zipline door opened and away I went…with a smile on my face, my arms out to the side, (Note: that was their instruction to us on how to ride the zipline down to the platform), and the wind blowing in my face. And… "Lo and Behold", right in front of me, were the amazing and beautiful Niagara Falls! All I could think of was that, in the future, I would always remember exactly what I did on my 68th birthday! A time or two, I took a quick glance at my husband, who was also racing down to the zipline platform (right beside me). He was also having a great time! I thought, how much better could it get? Ziplining was so much FUN!!
You know that I (absolutely) had to buy the video they were selling of our personal Zipline the Falls experience! (It was not expensive…And I am glad they did not know that because I would have bought it at any price! LOL!!!) So, now, whenever I want, I pull out my cell phone and watch the video so I can re-live the fun time we had ziplining at Niagara Falls! (Plus: I also got to "check off" another fun adventure from my personal Bucket List!) Now that is a very big "YAY"!
Maybe I will zipline again (real soon), at another wonderful location, because I really did enjoy it! After that experience, I do not think that age will ever stop me from doing something FUN that I really want to do!
So, take three days and go visit Ontario, Canada, and the beautiful Niagara Falls area. (We visited the Falls area in late July, and the weather was perfect!) You will never regret getting away to this fabulous and exciting location! It really was a fun time for all of us and another great memory for us to cherish for the rest of our lives!!
ALMA'S PHOTOS
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