Niagara Falls is one of those destinations that if you live in Canada, specifically the Ontario region, you remember your first big exciting school trip when your teacher announced that you’d be fundraising to cover the necessary costs, so that meant using your skills of persuasion (or maybe coercion – if you were more savage as a youngster!) to anyone and everyone that crossed your path.
Then there was the night before packing excursion, where your adult would decide that you needed an unusually large backpack filled to the brim with first-aid kits, a change of socks, extra underwear, a sweater if it got cold, an extra t-shirt if you accidentally spilled funnel cake on yourself, you know, all the things you wouldn’t remember that was packed.
Day of the trip –Sitting on a bus crammed with all your classmates, some you like, others you wish you could throw off the Falls when you got there. It was fun too because there was always that person who would say “Teacher, I think I’m gonna be sick!” It stunk to high heavens after the first heave because your teacher was adamant about keeping on a “tight schedule!” so that indicated to the woefully clueless bus driver that they didn't need to stop.
Finally, you arrive and your eyes widen seeing the beauty of the Falls. Everyone piles out and the “map” comes out of what the plan for the day would be. Maid of the Mist was always a hoot, while having to wear oversized bright blue plastic attire and posing for countless pictures. Also buying copious amounts of souvenirs that would sit in dust pretty much as soon as you got home, except that one “I went to Niagara and all I got was this lousy t-shirt...” Now that my friends is the one item that you probably wore until the threads started unravelling!
When I think of school trips, these are the thoughts that pop into my head, as I never got to go on my grade school trip to Niagara Falls. I had the sheer pleasure of getting extra homework from my teacher instead.
Fast forward now to 2021 and Bill and I were looking to celebrate our upcoming 13 year anniversary/2 years now on marriage (coming up on Sept 16th!) with a short little getaway. Instead of our usual Stratford trip, we went to Niagara Falls!
Our first stop was venturing into Clifton Hill. The ultimate destination for funnel cakes, souvenir stands and lots of fun for everyone, including The House of Frankenstein, which had the Frank N Coaster that Bill was so excited to ride, after not being able to go to amusement parks since the pandemic started. This is Canada's ONLY roof-top rollercoaster.
Here is a little footage and he’s on the second cart!
Of course, another must on the trip was to take photos of gargoyles. He got his coaster fix, I get my gargoyles. They were lovely! Oh and Count Dracula, never forget the immortal one.
An interesting thing to note is that when our waitress came up to take our order, we didn’t realize that we had to use our phone to access the menu! The downside to this, no wifi available. Neither of us have data on our phone, so luckily, they had paper menus that we could look at.
The food was pretty good and portions were hearty, so no one was leaving the table hungry at all. A little sticker-shocked by the prices, but pretty much expected with a touristy area. Our waitress was also really attentive and friendly, so it was a good experience.
Our final destination was a hike through Niagara Glen. It was a perfect way to end the evening. A lot of steep rocky areas to climb, but it was very picturesque as you can see from this photo here.
If you are planning a trip to Niagara Falls, I would highly suggest checking out Niagara Falls Tourism where you can find everything your heart desires from 5-star hotels, awesome food, exciting attractions for the whole family and more.
Oh, and before I forget, we did briefly visit what is known as the Heritage District of Niagara on the Lake, as I have always wanted to go here after hearing many years ago about a spa resort that offered a tiramisu facial!
After the hike though, our bodies were pretty exhausted to even muster any energy to walk around, so it was just a drive through experience in the car, passing by some quaint little boutique shops around town, upscale patio dining with twinkling lights, and even spotting horse-drawn carriages. It reminded me a bit of Stratford with its romantic charm and scenic area. Going towards the vineyards, we saw some incredible homes, tons of wineries, and lost track of how many couples were biking along the pathway with matching designer sweater vests and visors on.
I would love to come back here and as the locals say, get to experience the "Niagara on the Lake" effect.
