Going to Niagara Falls next weekend

The wife and i are going to Niagara Falls for a long weekend next week, Thursday through Sunday.  Any recommendations of things to do that are close aside from the falls?  Also, no passports so have to stay this side of the border.

Thanks

If you take a bus tour, do you need a passport ?  Been along time since I have been there.

Resist the urge to go swimming upstream of the falls.

In reply to Aaron_King :

Between Cleveland, OH and Buffalo, NY there is Erie, PA and Presque Isle State Park which is this spit of land off downtown Erie, PA.  

A pretty place.  Video

The Maid of the Mist boat tours launch from both the Canada and US sides, so that's an option. I've only ever played tourist on the Canadian side so that's about all I got...

I've been twice, but stayed on Canada side both times.  The view favors our northern friends.

Apparently across from Vincentian Niagara University there is a mural of Father Hennepin blessing the falls painted by Thomas Hart Benton. The mural is inside the Robert Moses Power Vista dam. 20' by 7'. Should be impressive.

In reply to Aaron_King :

Your puting in 5 hours to drive to Niagra from Deleware.  Would you be interested in driving 6 hours to Northern Michigan based out of Petoskey, MI?  

If yes, Ill put the whole agenda together like where to stay and what to do.  I can even add in Falls with just north 2 hours, in the Upper Peninsula the Tahquamenon Falls.  

More pics

If you want to go that route, a few questions:

Kids with you or adult and more romantic?

For hotel do you want a pool for the kids or historic with a great brunch and Irish pub in the basement?  

If kids, ages and M or F

Does the wife like small, quaint shops in waterfront towns?  

Any hiking or outdoorsy stuff?  Would you like sunsets on sandy beaches (though it might be cold)  

What will you be driving since there are options for spirited drives or near off-road adventures.  

Sadly, you are about 4 weeks too early for those fall colors.  

Get a double steak and cheese from Viola's on Military Road.

Outlet Mall

Buffalo beer week?

Sam Roberts is playing on the 22nd in East Aurora

Sabres are playing the Leafs on the 22nd

Nothing on the schedule at Artpark. :/

Carlos Mencia at the casino

Got to the Niagara Falls NYS web site.   They list a ton of things to do.

Yes,you do need a passport if going to Canada.

We went there in January and I recommend doing one of the winery tours. They have bicycle tours and I think bus tours, too. We really enjoyed going to the different wineries and sampling ice wine (me) and red wine (my wife). Go to Niagra-on-the-Lake, it's a wonderful little town with awesome wine shops, second hand stores, curio stores, etc. There is also a cheap shuttle that just goes up and down the river and you can see the Falls and the other interesting things along the way. Bird Kingdom was fun, Butterfly thing was OK but the Ripley's Believe it or Not Museum is kinda lame.

loosecannon said:

We went there in January and I recommend doing one of the winery tours. They have bicycle tours and I think bus tours, too. We really enjoyed going to the different wineries and sampling ice wine (me) and red wine (my wife). Go to Niagra-on-the-Lake, it's a wonderful little town with awesome wine shops, second hand stores, curio stores, etc. There is also a cheap shuttle that just goes up and down the river and you can see the Falls and the other interesting things along the way. Bird Kingdom was fun, Butterfly thing was OK but the Ripley's Believe it or Not Museum is kinda lame.

You're talking about the other side of the falls, no passports, no Canadian Bacon.

Adam

adam525i said:

loosecannon said:

We went there in January and I recommend doing one of the winery tours. They have bicycle tours and I think bus tours, too. We really enjoyed going to the different wineries and sampling ice wine (me) and red wine (my wife). Go to Niagra-on-the-Lake, it's a wonderful little town with awesome wine shops, second hand stores, curio stores, etc. There is also a cheap shuttle that just goes up and down the river and you can see the Falls and the other interesting things along the way. Bird Kingdom was fun, Butterfly thing was OK but the Ripley's Believe it or Not Museum is kinda lame.

You're talking about the other side of the falls, no passports, no Canadian Bacon.

Adam

aww crap, sorry, I missed that last part

If your state has "enhanced" drivers' licenses, they will get you into the land of wine tours and butterfly conservatories. My "edl" gets me into the land of freedom and guns.

Jet boat ride. Maid of the mist. Lots of cool stuff on the Canadian side. Funnest activity on the US side is trying not to get stabbed after dark lol

Too late now for a passport, so I'm sorry for bringing it up.  I'd argue that Niagara isn't worth doing unless you can do it from the Canadian side.  I wish you a pleasant visit nonetheless.

Darien Lake will still be open to the end of October if you're into roller coasters. Get tickets at Wegman's while you're picking up a gigantic meatball sub for lunch.

Lewiston is a nice town to explore. I hear good things about the Brickyard Tavern

When I worked in NF NY they had a helicopter tour on the US side. A yellow Hughes 500. 

Western NY pizza is excellent - my favorite was Buzzy's but coworkers swore by Jocko's and Goodfellas too. Also, the legendary Pizza Oven. I never tried it because it had weird hours. My buddy Chris preferred David's to Viola's but he's wrong.

Lunch at NY Fish Market if you like a good fish fry.

Go bar hopping in Buffalo. Anchor bar for wings? Beef on Weck?

Get a growler or two at consumers beverages and try some local and regional draft beers.

Cannoli from DeCamillo's 

Listen to 103.3 to hear the Fusillo ads. EUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUGE Buffaloooo! EUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUGE!

Seems I miss the food there. :(

akamcfly said:

Darien Lake will still be open to the end of October if you're into roller coasters. Get tickets at Wegman's while you're picking up a gigantic meatball sub for lunch.

Now there's a great option if you have to stay on the US side. Honestly even if you pony up for the indoor skydiving and the new kart track, you don't have to spend a whole day on the Canadian side of Niagara to do all the fun stuff. So maybe you should make Niagara just one quick stop on your weekend.

Thanks for all the info.  Our 25 th wedding anniversary was this year and we were planning a Viking river cruise but things happen and we had to put if off until next year so the wife decided we should go to Niagara.   

We went many years ago with my parents and did the Maid of the Mist so I figured I would ask to see if there was anything outside of the normal tourist stuff to do.  

Being  by ourselves for a few days will be nice whenever we are, kids are great but you need a break once in a while.  

Aaron_King said:

Thanks for all the info.  Our 25 th wedding anniversary was this year and we were planning a Viking river cruise but things happen and we had to put if off until next year 

Which one?

We did the grand European cruise last year.  It was her second, my first and she wants to do another. We live pretty close to the Falls and go regularly but not usually for touristy stuff.

I lived in NF ON and worked in NF NY from 2006 to 2013. More touristy stuff in Canada, but way better food in the US.

akamcfly said:

 way better food in the US.

Yup

In reply to Suprf1y :

The cruise that starts in Budapest.  We know a couple of people that live there that we met when I was in the Army.  

Budapest to Amsterdam is the one we took but we were on the return trip, starting in Amsterdam.

I loved Germany, Hungary and the Netherlands (she'd been before), and will probably go back to each country for a month when I retire, but I hated the cruise.

I don’t have much advice for Niagra Falls since I only went to the Canadian side but if you’re going up Rt 17 in NY to get there a stop in Corning for the glass museum is worth the brief detour.