Niagara Falls Awesome Things to Do and Amazing Places to See

Ready to have some fun? Hop on the GO Train and take a trip with us to Niagara Falls, Ontario. On this trip we will take a ride on the 175 foot Skywheel and watch an artificial volcano explode, descend a 125 feet to take a journey behind the falls, visit North America’s only class six rapids, ascend 775 feet above the falls to get a 360 view of it on the Skylon Tower, visit a miniature village with a cool model train on it, cross the Niagara Whirlpool suspended 240 feet above it on the Whirlpool Aero Car, see The Floral Showhouse, visit the Niagara Parks Butterfly Conservatory, watch the light show on the falls at night and of course have some wonderful walks enjoying the views that Niagara has to offer and much, much more. So join us to have some fun and click on the video below (watch it on a large screen for best effect):

The sheer beauty and majesty of Niagara Falls is just too stunning to describe with words. It is surely something that can only really be captured with one’s own eyes. But how did these falls get created? To understand that we must travel approximately 10,000 years earlier to what is known as the Wisconsin Glaciation. At that time most of Canada and much of the northern U.S.A was under ice sheets that were sometimes 2 kilometers high in places. To give you some perspective it is calculated that Toronto was once under such a sheet of thick high ice that would have dwarfed the CN Tower being almost 4 times higher than the 1815 foot high tower! When all this ice started to melt it created torrents of water that eroded the rocks underneath creating the Great Lakes and Lake Algonquin and many other lesser lakes and carved out the niagara falls in the process.

Niagara Falls is actually three waterfalls, the American Falls which is about 1050 feet wide and a 110 feet high, the Bridal Veil Falls which is only 55 feet wide being the smallest of the three and then of course the magnificent Horseshoe Falls or the Canadian Falls which spans which is about 2700 feet wide and 167 feet high.

While gazing at the falls mesmerized all day might be a thing for many people, other folks might want something with a bit more involvement. So what can we do apart from looking at the falls all day? Well there are plenty of other activities to do when you visit Niagara Falls. Let’s start with the Clifton area which houses the Skywheel a giant ferris wheel 175 feet across which offers some great views of the Falls but also the surrounding theme parks. Talking about theme parks there is a prehistoric themed miniature golf course with an artificial volcano which occasionally belches out these giant flames with a boom. There are go karting facilities, house of horrors, small roller coaster rides, Guinness World Records Museum, Ripleys Museum. If you are feeling ravenous or just peckish there are plenty of eateries here too. Whether fast food, steak houses or gourmet dishes you can find all kind of restaurants too. Oh if you are one who has a heavy wallet and wants to lighten it a bit there are casinos here to help you along the way.

Built in 2006 the Niagara Skywheel is a relative newcomer to the area at a 175 feet high this ferris wheel is air conditioned for both winter heating and summer cooling. It offers interesting views of the Clifton area and surrounding theme parks but it has some interesting views of the falls. But truth be told I think if you want an aerial view of the falls the Skylon tower is the way to go but more on that later.

What about something with a bit more of an adrenaline rush? Well if these bore you then there are some activities with a bit more of a thrill. How about trying the Niagara Whirlpool Aero Car? This cable car built in 1916 has been upgraded over the years but is still carrying people over the violently swirling waters of the Niagara Whirlpool below. Interestingly the car crosses the US Canada border four times each trip. But riding it can give some passengers a feeling of vertigo. It is suspended by six cables each an inch thick and spans 1770 feet across the gorge.

Hold on what about the Falls? After all isn’t Niagara Falls all about the falls? Well it is maybe just a bit sometimes. So what else is there about the falls? Well you can always take “The Journey behind the Falls”, which will take you 125 feet down along the Canadian Falls through some tunnels to these portal like viewing areas where you can see the water roaring thunderously down and feel the throbbing created by the force of tons of water hitting the rocks below. But for safety reasons the portal area is pretty small but there is an interesting open air viewing point that offers some stunning views of the mist filled gorge being cut out of the rock by torrents of water where you can stand right by the falling water. Alternately you can take the Hornblower cruise and get right up and close to the falls but whichever activity you choose be prepared to be drenched.

For the more botanical minded there is an interesting place to visit called the Floral Showhouse. Outside this house there is a miniature village with a really cool model town. Visiting the village will certainly make you feel like Gulliver in Lilliput with the intricately built houses and mansions surrounding you. The train runs around a miniature lake with lake houses on its shore. There is a tree full of miniature tree house which the squirrels can’t seem to get enough of , jumping on and around them. Check out the video above.

If you want to get a 360 degree view of Niagara take a ride on the Skylon Tower. It will take you up 775 feet above the falls. It has some truly stunning day or night views of the falls. On a clear day you can even see the Toronto skyline almost 70 kilometers away over the azure of Lake Ontario. At night we watched the falls light up from there and it was truly awesome to view the moon rise over the Niagara River and its light reflected in the water while the light show is happening on the falls.

The Niagara Parks Butterfly conservatory is a unique experience. We were quite awestruck by the colors and patterns displayed by the hundreds of butterflies fluttering around. Honestly we kind of thought this would be boring but to the contrary it wasn’t. The butterflies are imported from far flung places like El Salvador, Costa Rica, Philippines and Australia. At any one time there are over 6000 butterflies of sixty species on display here. The conservatory also has a 200 seat auditorium/theater where you can view short films that they offer. Don’t miss out on the gardens outside which are nice too. The recreated prairie area is pretty interesting too.

On the way back to Niagara city from the butterfly conservatory check out the White Water Walk. This is one of those cool places that will leave you awed where you can see the torrents of water of the Niagara River from up close. It also happens to be the only class 6 rapids in all of North America. The massive waves created by millions of liters of water flowing through this narrow gorge will simply take your breath away.

There are a variety of other activities that Niagara Falls has to offer. Whatever you choose to do or how long you plan to stay there the experience is always unique. I hope that you are able to visit Niagara Falls and enjoy it as much as we have.

This is my amazing Canada wishing you the best!!!