In this post I escape the big city on my second day trip from Toronto, to the magnificent Niagara Falls.
Planning my trip to Niagara Falls should have been exciting, but I was finding it quite overwhelming. I had been travelling through Canada for almost seven weeks now, and I was suffering from a serious case of decision fatigue. I was trying to decide whether to stay overnight at Niagara Falls and spend one day on the Canadian side and one on the U.S. side. I was trawling through accommodation sites trying to find a good deal on a hotel room. I was searching for a straightforward itinerary for the day. Eventually, after asking for advice in a Facebook travel group I’m a member of, I decided to go just for the day to the Canadian side.
I stepped off the bus at the falls and gazed in awe at my surroundings, not only the falls but the towering hotel buildings overlooking them. For a moment I wished I had booked a room for the night. I spent the first hour of my visit wandering along the observation areas admiring the views, jostling with the crowds for the best photo opportunity.
I left behind the crowds and walked to the Niagara Parks Power Station, a historic building perched on the banks of the Niagara River, and the first major power plant on the Canadian side. The building is surrounded by green grassy parkland and is a lovely walk away from the hustle and bustle.
A trip to Niagara Falls is not complete without a boat ride to get up close to the natural wonder, on immersive cruises like the iconic Maid of the Mist . I opted for a more adrenalin-charged option with Whirlpool Jetboat Tours. These tours don’t go to the falls like the bigger cruise ships, instead taking you for an exciting ride on the rapids of the Niagara River.
From the main observation area, I caught the bus to the famous Floral Clock. The intricate designs on the face of the clock are created with thousands of carpet bedding plants and are changed twice a year. The tower at the back of the clock houses Westminster chimes that greet each quarter hour.
During summer, Whirlpool Jetboat Tours offer shuttle bus pick-ups from the Flower Clock to their terminal, but it was still a little early in the season, so I made the forty-minute walk the rest of the way.
Having been feeling so uncertain about the details of my day trip to Niagara Falls, I hadn’t pre-booked my jetboat tour, in case I ended up heading out there earlier or later than planned. I had planned to do the Journey Behind the Falls experience, but by the time I went to the booking office, there wasn’t an available slot until late in the afternoon. I decided to go for the jetboat ride first. I was very lucky there too- I just fit onto a tour at 3.30pm. The perks of being a solo traveller! I would highly recommend pre-booking your tickets for both of these experiences to avoid disappointment.
I was back at Journey Behind the Falls by 5.30pm, ready for my booked timeslot at 6pm. I descended 125 feet below the cliffs to the observation deck. Stepping out of the elevator and following the tunnel to the deck, I could feel the thunderous vibration of Horseshoe Falls long before I saw them. One-fifth of the world’s fresh water crashed down in front of me. There are viewing portals cut straight through the rock. The sight left me breathless (and just a bit damp) . I felt so small in comparison to the size and strength of these giants of nature.
I spent an hour at Journey Behind the Falls and then caught a bus headed for Clifden Hill, to have dinner at TGI Fridays. Traffic was heavy heading out of the bus terminal. I was booked on the last bus back to Toronto at 9.15pm, and had a feeling that the turnaround of having dinner in Clifden Hill and getting back to the bus terminal was going to be too tight, so I jumped off the bus and walked back to the main tourist area, where I grabbed a takeaway sushi dinner and enjoyed the views of the falls at dusk until it was time to catch the bus.
Kate Kelsen 