Off to Niagara Falls
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Off to Niagara Falls
Tomorrow we are leaving for our day at Niagara Falls. We are going with some friends that used to live down the street from us. They also have a boy and a girl who are my kids best friend's. We will be leaving tomorrow morning and arriving up there in the early afternoon. We will hang out and look at the falls, then Saturday we are going to Marineland. Saturday night we will come home. I am hoping it is not going to be too hot, but I am sure it will be.
I am excited. This is our trip for the summer. It is not a long one, but it is just nice to leave for even for a little bit and do something different.
Sounds like a lot of fun. have a fabulous time and be safe. Take lots of pictures so we can see too.
Have a great time
OOooh, have fun! I loved Niagara Falls! I can't wait to see your pictures! Since we got back from our trip, I almost always have a picture of Niagara Falls in my head!
The nights have been cooler lately, so make sure you have jackets. Our days have still been hot and horribly humid, but the breeze and cool air comes in at night.
Have fun!
I'm back!
We had such a great time! Friday we saw the falls and went on the Maid of the Mist. That was really cool. I am glad it was a warm day, because we got pretty wet, even with the ponchos on. My friend's dh and I went through one of the haunted houses on Clifton Hill (she was chicken and so was my dh). It was pretty fun. We also saw the Lego city which was neat but not worth the $7.00 to get in! We ate dinner at the Rainforest Cafe. It was great food.
My friend and I went to Casino Niagara while the guys put the kids to bed. My friend lost her $20 pretty quickly at the slot machines. I actually only ended up losing like $5 which was pretty good for my first time at a Casino. Then we saw the fireworks over the falls.
Saturday we went to Marineland, which is alot like Sea World. We saw a dolphin, Walrus, sea lion show and then the kids went on a few rides. We ate lunch, saw more sea life and animals and then got on the road to drive home.
It was a fun weekend. The falls are just so magnificent. I wish we stayed one more night just to see more of Niagara Falls and to go to Niagara on the Lake. I will post pictures later.
Sounds like a fun trip! We got sooooo wet on the Maid of the Mist, but we were standing right in the front of the boat, on the bottom. LOL!
Niagara-on-the-Lake was pretty and I loved seeing Lake Ontario. We also could see a few tall buildings from Toronto accross the lake!
Oh, was it fairly quiet in your hotel, despite being on noisy Clifton Hill? Just walking the sidewalks on Clifton Hill is an experience like no other!
Dawn, we were also in the front of the boat, on the bottom. It was easier for the kids to see the falls down there.
It was fairly quiet in our hotel room. We had no problem falling alseep. I agree, walking down Clifton Hill is quite the experience!
Patti, my co-worker just went on vacation up the east coast and they took their kids (10 and 13) to Niagara Falls - they went on the Maid of the Mist - her 10 y/o DD did it withOUT a raincoat! LOL They did some of the same things you did.
Sounds like you guys had fun!
We've been thinking of this for our next vacation, but I was wondering what there was in the area that kids might enjoy (other than the falls, obviously). Mine are 15 and 10. Did you go up into Canada? That sounds so exotic to a Midwestern gal like me, LOL!
Yes we went into Canada. At the falls you can go on the Maid of the Mist which is the boat that goes right next to the falls. There is also a tour that goes right past the falls, i think there are tunnels or something behind the falls...but don't quote me on that.
Clifton Hill is a very loud, fun place to go. There are wax museums of the stars, video game places, several ride simulators and stuff like that. Major touristy stuff to do. There is the space needle that you can go up and look at the falls.
There is a nice area called Niagara on the Lake. It is a pretty quaint little town with shops and restaurants. And there is Marineland. I am sure there is much much more there too.
Janet, my kids are 16 and 13. We there the week before Sarah's 16th birthday! They loved the falls! We were there for 4 days and were never really bored. If you go to the Canadian side, you can buy an attraction pass, which gets you the Maid of the Mist, Journey Behind the Falls, White Water Walk and the Butterfly conservatory, plus the use of the bus, for that day. (peoplemover)
The peoplemover takes you to all those things, plus Niagara on the Lake, a little park area, and a golf course. If you want the Peoplemover on the next day, it would have only been 5.50 Canadian.
Niagara Falls and Great Gorge Adventure Pass
Plus, when you get your pass, you can have times assigned, for when you are supposed to be there and then you can do the activity quicker, because you get to stand in a special line!
We got very wet on the Maid of the Mist and the Journey Behind the Falls. My kids and I thought that was fun! DH made a little more effort to get less wet!
Dawn's Falls Pics
We had a blast! After 4 days, we were ready to go home, though! Emily's only regret, was not getting on the Skylon tower. We didn't have a fallsview room, but we were close enough to walk to the falls!
Dawn and Bellajoe, what were the requirements for getting in and out of Canada? Did you cross over from NY?
All we needed were driver's licenses and certified copies of birth certificates. In 2008, you will need a passport.
On the way into Canada, we only had to show our driver's licenses and she really didn't look at them, just could see that we had them.
On the way back into the US, we had all our IDs in our hands, but they didn't actually look at any of them! Just asked if we were US citizens and that was it. They did check our car, to make sure we weren't bringing any illegal food products into the US and did go through the trunk and had the dog sniff the car. Then we were on our way again.
So, for all the trouble we went to, to get birth certificates, I was miffed that they didn't ask for them. I suppose if we hadn't, then they would have!
The border guard was from WI, originally. About the first thing he says, as we get out of the car is to tell us that Javon Walker signed a contract! I think he just wanted to talk about the Packers. I think that is part of the reason, we were singled out! We had no contraband. In fact, we had been munching on grapes, but threw the rest away, before we crossed the border. Since they were US grapes, in the first place, but purchased in Canada, I think they would have been okay. We had eaten most of the package already, anyway.
Oh, we crossed over into Canada, at the Peace Bridge, just past Buffalo, NY. On the way home, DH wanted to avoid Chicago again, since there was a LOT of construction in the west-bound lanes. We saw LONG traffic backups! So, we traveled through Ontario to Lake Huron and crossed into the US at Port Huron, MI! Other than the BIG bridge, it was my first opportunity to ever see Lake Huron, so that was cool. We continued on up through the middle of Michigan, crossed the Mackinac bridge and drove through the UP back to WI. We stayed overnight in a hotel in Manistique, MI!
Dh and I had never been over the Mackinac Bridge and we had never seen that much of the UP of Michigan. Also, it was cool to see the VERY top of Lake Michigan, too. It was a lot of driving to go through MI, but it was better than stop-and-go traffic, like we would have had near Chicago.
We crossed the border from(and into) NY on the Rainbow bridge. Leaving the U.S the guy just asked what our country of residence was, asked where we were going and how long we will be there and then asked if we were carrying any firearms. And then let us go.
Leaving Canada into NY we had all four birth certificates ready. Dh handed them to him. He barely looked at them. Asked where dh was born. Asked where had we been in Canada. And asked if we were bringing anything back over the border (just some stuffed animals we bought at Marineland). And that was that.
Dawn, i love all your pictures. Especially the ones in Cleveland ;-)
The one boat that is blue and white is hte one we went on during our family reunion this summer. IT's called the Goodtime III.
Oh neat. That boat looks fun! We were asked about the same questions. Where did you go, how long were you there, are you US citizens. didn't get the firearm question.
On the way in, they asked where we were going and how long we planned to stay.
We bought 2 waterproof disposable cameras for the wet stuff. We paid $7.49 for them at Target. While we were waiting in line for food at the Table Rock (by the Journey Behind the Falls), we saw the same thing for $17.49 Canadian. On today's exchange rate, the camera would have been $14.58 US dollars.
The question about the firearms cracks me up. As if anyone is going to say "yes sir, i have a semi automatic rifle under the seat"
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