The Majestic Niagara Falls

In my checklist of exploring United States of America, Niagara Falls were second in my list after Walt Disney World.

My husband Peeyush and I planned our first long awaited trip in US to the majestic Niagara Falls, this summer 2015. It was an Independence day long weekend & just the perfect time to visit the Falls.

(Please do click the video to get the feel of the World’s largest and most beautiful natural Wonders- The Majestic Niagara Falls and I bet, it will make you spellbound by its glory.)

Thursday

11:30 PM — Landed at Buffalo Niagara International Airport

The duration of our flight was almost 3 hours from our place, Tampa which is located at east coast of Florida. We took a rented car from airport and drove to Niagara Falls, New York. The distance between Buffalo and Niagara Falls is 25 miles and a drive of almost 40 minutes.

Friday

12:45 AM — Hotel Check in

We stayed at Quality Hotel & Suites “At The Falls”. This hotel is located within walking distance of the mighty Niagara Falls, Seneca Niagara Casino and the Canadian border. The rooms here are not huge but they are comfortable, beautifully designed and decorated.

8:30 AM — A perfect morning walk through ‘The Niagara Falls State Park’

The best part to stay so near to the American Falls is bliss. A perfect morning walk after leisurely breakfast. We went close to the American Falls as Prospect Point, and then took the pedestrian bridge over to Goat Island where Terrapin Point gets you close to Horseshoe Falls.

When I saw the Niagara Falls for the first time, I was mesmerized by its natural beauty. It was magnificent, powerful, beautiful, splendid, surreal and hypnotic. Any of these adjectives could not be sufficient to describe the ‘glory’ of the majestic Niagara Falls.

Niagara Falls straddle the International border between Canada and the United States of America and more specifically between the province of Ontario and the state of New York.

 Niagara Falls State Park is the oldest park in America. The park is well maintained with its spacious parking, many walking trails and ride attractions. Though people say that Canadian side of the Falls has a better view but we could not see the Falls through the Canadian side as we did not have visa for Canada.

I liked the American side of the Falls as it was surrounded by lush greenery and preserving the natural beauty of the majestic Niagara Falls. There is no entry fee to the park but some excursions do cost.

10:30 AM — Cave of the Winds

The name is slightly deceptive as there is no ‘Cave’ involved. This is an amazing  experience to touch the Falls and feel from within. You get outfitted in yellow colored poncho and green colored slippers with blue stripes and then take an elevator down into the Niagara Gorge. From here, a series of boardwalks lead to a ‘Hurricane Deck’ basically right beneath ‘Bridal Veil Falls’. You will get wet for sure, but don’t worry, you will encounter breathe-taking life time experience to get so close to surging waterfalls.

12:00 PM —- Lunch at Top of the Falls

Top of the Falls is located at ‘Goat Island’ which is a family-friendly restaurant with views out towards Horseshoe Falls. Well food was not so good to write about as you can see in the below picture but it’s not every day you can take a bite somewhere with this kind of view.

2:30 PM — Maid of the Mist

No trip to the Niagara Falls is complete without the ride on the famous ‘Maid of the Mist’. This is a boat ride tour from both the sides of the Falls but the original Maid of the Mist boats only operate from the American side these days (in 2013, Hornblower Cruises took over the Canadian side operation). The experience includes access to the observation tower, an elevator ride down to the river, and then a cruise that puts you right in the middle of the thundering action of Horseshoe Falls. You are given a poncho  of blue color from American side and red color from Canadian side for the ride, but be warned that you probably will get wet — the word “mist” is used lightly.

Maid of the Mist is the best way to see the Falls from any side because it will take you very close to the Falls. This boat ride was by far my favorite part of the Niagara Falls. I remember, people started screaming at the top of their voices once the boat reached very near to Horseshoe Falls. There was so much mist that hardly, we could open our eyes. The sound of the waterfall was ferocious as if it was roaring at us.

4:00 PM — The Aquarium at Niagara Falls

I was quite disappointed by Aquarium. The Aquarium was very small and most of the attractions are meant for Kids. I only liked these little Penguins who looked dull and uninterested. 😀

5:30 PM —  Exploring the Market 

The other side of the park was surrounded by Shopping Complex and  Food- Court, where multiple International cuisines are available.

The most fascinating thing that attracted me was, our ‘Tiranga’ heading high along with other flags at the entrance of the ‘One Niagara International Food-Court’.

As soon as we saw that, we ran inside and found Indian food. Though there was a huge queue in front of Indian Food counter, we waited for almost half an hour and ordered ‘Chole-Bhature’ and ‘hot Jalebies with Rabri’ on the top. (As rightly said “You can take an Indian out of India, but you can never take India out of an Indian)”.

Finally our long lasted craving for an Indian food was satisfied after having such a mouth-watering food. It was a perfect delight for our taste buds. 🙂

10:00 PM — Niagara Falls Fireworks

Every Friday and Sunday during the summer, Niagara Falls puts on a fireworks show at 10 p.m. ‘Niagara Sky Wheel’ and ‘Skylon Tower’ at Canadian side were dazzling from the American side. 

Later the Falls got illuminated. It was looking like heaven.

I had an amazing experience with the Falls. Whenever you get a chance to visit Niagara Falls, please go ahead as you should never miss an opportunity to see the world’s most beautiful natural wonder –The Majestic Niagara Falls. 

I mean, Who wouldn’t want to walk across it…?

‘Happy Travelling’ !
Ana