Rob

We are from Perth, Western Australia, and will be flying to New York for a fortnight in late August. We would like to do a side trip to Niagra Falls, and then on to Toronto. We would like firstly to know the best way to travel from New York, whether or not it is worthwhile driving or is a plane or train easier. Where should we stay at Niagra Falls, we would prefer an upmarket hotel or B&B in a great location. And lastly from Toronto are there any tourist trips out of Toronto for a few days that are worthwhile doing? Any responses will be appreciated!

Nancy

Hi Rob, <BR> I grew up in the Niagara area, lived in Toronto for 10 years, and have lived in NYC since. <BR> A few facts - you can fly from NYC to Toronto for about $200 US pp (flight is 1 hr 20 min) or you can drive in about 9 1/2 hours. Or you can fly to Buffalo for about $110 US and drive to Niagara Falls in about 40 min. Toronto is 1 1/2 hours driving time from Niagara Falls. The train from NYC takes about 8 hours and is almost as expensive as flying - I don't recommend it. <BR> Here are my thoughts: <BR> <BR>Niagara Falls <BR> Make sure you stay on the Canadian side not in the US. Niagara Falls, US is a grey, depressing little city with not much to recommend itself. <BR> Don't stay in Niagara Falls, Canada. It is incredibly tacky and filled with horrible restaurants and wax museums. <BR> Twenty minutes from Niagara Falls is a very pretty little town called Niagara-on-the-Lake. The town is well known for its Victorian flavour. They are justifiably famous for their Shaw Festival Theatre - I would definately see a play while you're there. They also have several lovely small hotels - check out vintageinns.com. They are very luxurious. And the food is good too! <BR> Two nights in the Niagara Falls area is plenty. Niagara Falls (the rapids, that is) are quite magnificent - you can look at them for a while - say 1/2 hour. After that, you can do a tour of wineries and take in some theatre. Other than that, not a lot to do. <BR> There is a lot to see and do in the Toronto area - it depends what you like - nature, theatre, city living, etc. <BR> Very popular north of Toronto is Cottage Country - aka the Muskokas or Algonquin Park. It's a lovely part of the world with a uniquely Canadian landscape. Do a search on canoe.ca (I think) or Yahoo to get more info. <BR> Also, don't forget, Montreal is closer to NYC than Toronto. It's a great city! Very European in flavour. Depending on your timing, you could do a loop starting in Montreal, visiting Central Ontario (I love it!), visit Toronto, on to Niagara and then back to NY. If you have the time you could drive from NYC - upstate NY is very pretty. <BR> If you want to send me an email, please feel free and I'll be happy to help out.

mark

Further to Nancy's reply...Toronto is 1.5hrs from Niagara. Agree that staying at Niagara-on-the-lake is nicer but there are a bunch of new hotels in Niagara Falls (Marriott, Hilton)because of the casino. Although Niagara has tacky, there are a number of nice things to do including Maid of the Mist, Botantical Gardens, Butterfly Conservatory. The Parks Commission sells a package including a bus pass. <BR> <BR>A trip to Muskoka, Algonquin or Haliburton would be a nice outdoor retreat. Another suggestion is to go to the Stratford Festival, a premiere Shakespeare Festival, about 1.5 hrs west of Toronto. Booking tickets to Shaw or Sratford Festivals is a must for weekends and popular shows as they both draw a lot of visitors. <BR> <BR>Consider your total days in planning to add on a trip outside Toronto. NYC, Niagara, Toronto with travel can easily take up 10-14 days. Have fun!!

patg

I have a question for posters Nancy and Mark (or anyone else who is knowledgeable about the region). What do you think of Quinte's Isle/Prince Edward County? It sounds great in the few articles I've been able to find. Also, do you think Cooperstown is worth visiting, and how long is the drive from Toronto? It's very hard to tell from the map. Thank you in advance.

eric

Rob! <BR>I'm an American from Boston. A very nice city situated between NYC and Montreal. My in-laws are in Montreal and I have spent a considerable amount of time there and highly recommend this city...as well as Boston OVER Niagara Falls and any part of New York other than New York City. OK enough of the cordial polite bullshit. At the great risk of getting a ton of criticism from Nationalistic Canadians, Frankly, Niagara Falls is a piece of crap. If you want to see the falls buy a book or postcard photograph of it. Other than the natural wonder of seeing a large amount of water fall over a cliff there are no further redeeming qualities about Niagara Falls. Trust me Rob, the messages from Canadians that my note will bring on will be fueling entirely by nationalistic pride, trust me you don't want to fly around the grobe to see Niagara Falls. Upstate NY is also in general a piece of crap. Let me explain - there's New York City which speaks for itself and then there's the rest of the state which you can definitely do without. Now Montreal, Toronto & Boston are awesome first-rate cities worth spending time in and you'll find are a bargain compared to NYC.

Patrick

Just a note about both the Shaw Festival at Niagra-on-the-Lake and the Stratford Festival in Stratford. The latter one is no longer called a "Shakespeare" festival and they have renamed it simply the Stratford Festival, as it includes a lot of other things as well, this summer even a production of The Sound of Music -- a far cry from Shakespeare. The Shaw Festival keeps its name even though they usually only do about 2 shows a year of Shaw's, because it consists of plays written since Shaw. This summer's line up includes great plays like The Man Who Came to Dinner, Picnic, Six Characters in Search of an Author, and even the musical The Mystery of Edwin Drood. You will have to search far and wide to find better theatre than those two festivals. We will make a pilgramage there in June and see seven plays at each. <BR>But back to the original question, I'd definitely spend a few days at Niagra-on-the-Lake, taking the pretty drive up to the falls and spending the better part of a day there doing the things mentioned above.

Robyn

Eric, <BR> <BR>Actually, many Canadians will agree that Niagara Falls is mainly a commercial tourist trap that revolves around a natural geographical setting.

Pat

Boston needs to be big. It has to fit Eric's head. <BR> <BR>That said, the Falls are a beautiful, one hour experience. Go on Maid of the Mist and see them upclose. The other highlights aren't all that special when compared to Toronto and the Lake Country north of it. <BR> <BR>Before you pass on the train ride from NYC to N.F., be aware that it is eight hours of the most breathtaking scenery on the planet. You'll move along the Hudson and Mohawk Rivers, through low mountains dotted with farms and forests--breathtaking ride. <BR>For time's and money's sake, however, the plane is the best choice. You can rent a car cheaply here and look around. <BR> <BR>If you like art, you might want to stay long enough in Buffalo to see the Albright-Knox Art Museum which is world famous for its collection of modern works. Take a minute before you head to Canada to eat lunch at Biac's, a much cheaper version of a four star NYC bistro.

Marie

Dear Rob, I live in the Finger Lakes area of western New York, the area Eric refers to as "piece of crap". I guess beauty if in the eye of the beholder, but western New York is indeed lovely. However, that said, I would not particularly recommend Cooperstown unless you have an unusually strong interest in baseball, in which case the Hall of Fame would be great for you. However it is a very long drive from Toronto - at least 6 - 8 hours. The above posters who recommend Niagara on the Lake and the Muskoka Lakes area have given you sound advice. Niagara Falls is wonderful, don't miss it. Enjoy your stay in Ontario and New York. Marie

Beryl

Hi Rob (and Deb?) <BR> <BR>We are also from Perth, Western Australia. Last year we did our LSL "thing" and part of it was Canada and the US. We came the oppposite way (Quebec City, to Monteal, to Toronto, Niagara Falls and then on to Albany in New York State to meet up with friends). We did the train which is a lot cheaper than air - given the horrible state of our dollar it is important. We were lucky though coming from Canada we did VIA rail which links with Amtrak in the US. VIA is better than Amtrak and the dollar exchange better in Canada. We loved the train - but be aware that on Amtrak you have to put your luggage "overhead" so if your case is heavy or you're not strong that could be a problem. We liked the train - saw the countryside which was great. <BR> <BR>As to Niagare sure it is commercial but somehow the awesome falls themself overshadow the tacky part. We stayed in a B & B along the River on the Canadian side - Andreas B & B, Simcoe Street it was called. We loved it. Email [email protected]. she also has a web site which is good, can't remember the address. At CDN $80 double it was a bargain. The Sheraton near the falls themselves are a good location if you want 5-star. be sure to request a room with views of the falls. We didn't like Toronoto anywhere near as much as Montreal or Quebec City which has a very special charm but there are always good things to see anywhere you go. Email me direct if I can help some more.

gail

You have to see Niagra Falls, but I agree with most of above that there is not much there after a day or so. We were in Toronto last summer. We stayed for a night at the Skydome Hotel - built right into the baseball park. An odd hotel - steel and concrete - like a stadium, but the experience was memorable. Only word of caution - in guide books we read about a funky area on the western edge of Toronto called "The Beaches". Supposed to have interesting galleries, antiques, restaurants. Most of the area was under some sort of major road reconstruction which seemed destined to last for a few decades. The area was so creepy that we left the next AM for downtown Toronto.