Niagara Falls Ontario

DonaldnDaisy5

DIS Veteran
Joined
Mar 22, 2012
Trying to plan a weekend trip to gift the family for Christmas. We will travel MLK weekend to take advantage of the extra day.

Family of 5, 15, 13, and 8. Looking for hotel recommendations, restaurants, and activities.

I know there was other threads but when I search now I can't find the threads that were just the Falls...

We know it will be cold, but we live in Michigan so we are used to it and have the gear.
 
https://www.niagaraparks.com/visit-...dRzWbsP7jFknVy7m4dYKWMQQ0DqmbAtBoC4yEQAvD_BwE

There is so much to see, and do. It's difficult to give suggestions. We are seniors, and live 45 minutes from the Falls; It never gets old in our many, many visits. We like to stay at the Hilton Fallsview Hotel.
Their pool in under renovation 'till 2019 if that's a consideration. The Skylon Revolving restaurant a must experience. The village of Niagara-on-the-lake is gorgeous. Niagara Falls at Christmas is 'Magical.'
 
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Embassy suites is really nice if you get a fallsview room. The keg steakhouse is right in the hotel and offers nice views of the falls as well. One thing to note is their parking is ridiculously expensive ($60 cdn per night) but the casino is not garb and you can park there for about $20 or if you do gamble there get the players card and it would be free. They do not offer in and out privilege so be aware of that
 
We stayed at the Hilton Fallsview and we had a great view of the falls. We were only there one night and had to hustle to get our son to Pittsburgh to catch a plane to Orlando, so it was really nice to see the falls from the room.
 


Niagara Falls OFF

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That picture is from 1969 when the flow to the much smaller American Falls was turned off for a few months. Horseshoe Falls cannot be turned off and can be seen in the background to the right.
 
As another Michigander one of the things that has kept us from visiting the falls in the winter months is the reputation of 402 for nasty driving conditions in the weather.
 


We just came thru the area a couple of weeks ago and do not under estimate the Us side. We spent over 3 hours on the US side. We were on the Canadian a few years ago, so we did not cross over.

We also drove from NH to Wisconsin last Christmas and we had cold driving conditions. No snow was predicted but we ran into lake effect snow driving along Lake Erie. Buffalo can experience a ton of lake effect snow too. But they can handle it, since they deal with it all the time.

Have fun.
 
As another Michigander one of the things that has kept us from visiting the falls in the winter months is the reputation of 402 for nasty driving conditions in the weather.
We live in Sarnia and my husband drives the 402 daily for work. There has only been about 5 days in 15 years he couldn’t make it.
What makes it rough the odd time is the blowing snow as there are no trees or fences to stop the blowing, which is what caused the drivers to be trapped for a few days 8 years ago.
 
Thank you for the suggestions. Currently looking at Marriott falls view, Hilton and the Oakes...

We aren't too worried about the drive. We frequently make the trek to our cabin about 4 hours north in the winter too.
 
https://www.niagaraparks.com/visit-...dRzWbsP7jFknVy7m4dYKWMQQ0DqmbAtBoC4yEQAvD_BwE

There is so much to see, and do. It's difficult to give suggestions. We are seniors, and live 45 minutes from the Falls; It never gets old in our many, many visits. We like to stay at the Hilton Fallsview Hotel.
Their pool in under renovation 'till 2019 if that's a consideration. The Skylon Revolving restaurant a must experience. The village of Niagara-on-the-lake is gorgeous. Niagara Falls at

I am leaning towards taking the Hilton off the list because of the pool info! Thank you!

We won't want to spend a ton of time in the pool but the kids might want a quick dip!
 
Have you considered staying on the Canadian side? We've really loved staying in Niagara on the Lake. It's a small, peaceful town with a colonial heritage and lots of nice B&B's, a short drive from Niagara Falls.
 
Thanks for posting the picture! We were there for our honeymoon in 1969, so coming up is our 50th anniversary next June, time goes so fast!
 
Embassy suites is really nice if you get a fallsview room. The keg steakhouse is right in the hotel and offers nice views of the falls as well. One thing to note is their parking is ridiculously expensive ($60 cdn per night) but the casino is not garb and you can park there for about $20 or if you do gamble there get the players card and it would be free. They do not offer in and out privilege so be aware of that
We love Embassy Suites too. We go once or twice a year for a short get away. I love the views from our room and the Keg. The breakfast is awesome! And it's a quick walk to the casino. :)
 
We live in Niagara Falls, NY so we visit the Canadian side often. IMO, with kids those ages, you'll want to be within walking distance to the Clifton Hill area which is the main hub for all the entertainment, good dining options, and the Falls are located at the bottom of the hill. The area near Fallsview Casino is more adult oriented, and the further you get away from this area towards Lundy's Lane, the more seedy the area becomes.

My favorite hotel in that area is the Sheraton on the Falls. In January, I would expect it to be decently priced. It's more of a resort feeling than just a hotel, with a great buffet that has an amazing view of the Falls. There's also a Starbucks in the hotel, and some shops you can check out without going outside. Hard Rock Cafe and the Hershey Store are right there, and there is an indoor walkway to the indoor water park if that's of interest to you. The location is right between the start of Clifton Hill and the Falls, so easy walking to all the main points of interest. Also close to the holiday lights, which should still be up while you're there.

Have you considered staying on the Canadian side? We've really loved staying in Niagara on the Lake. It's a small, peaceful town with a colonial heritage and lots of nice B&B's, a short drive from Niagara Falls.

OP is looking for options on the Canadian side, according to the thread title "Niagara Falls Ontario". Your description of Niagara on the Lake is accurate, beautiful area, but I would caution the OP that the kids will be bored to tears, and the town can be a dead zone in the winter. It's about a 15-20 minute drive to the Falls and the action of Clifton Hill, which is likely where they'll spend the most time with kids those ages.
 
We live in Sarnia and my husband drives the 402 daily for work. There has only been about 5 days in 15 years he couldn’t make it.
What makes it rough the odd time is the blowing snow as there are no trees or fences to stop the blowing, which is what caused the drivers to be trapped for a few days 8 years ago.

The winds and their effects is what I was referring to, not full on closures.
 

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