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FRUGAL TRAVELER
Misty About Niagara Falls
Carrie Boretz for The New York Times
A viewing platform near Bridal Veil Falls.
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By SETH MARGOLIS
 HEN
I finally saw Niagara Falls, I felt, inevitably, let down. The falls were
certainly impressive, but after looking at them in countless photos, calendars
and tourist brochures, I was destined to be disappointed. I was soon to change
my opinion. The falls really do deliver; given the hype and overdevelopment
of the surrounding area, it just takes some effort to fully appreciate them.
Appropriately
enough, it was a late-spring wedding, in Rochester that took me, my wife,
Carole, and our kids, Maggie, 14 and Jack, 12, to the falls. Since we'd be
flying to upstate New York anyway, we decided to add a minivacation in the
region. A family-friendly destination and affordable budget were prime considerations.
Niagara Falls fit the bill, especially since we'd be staying on the Canadian
side, where the United States dollar is still quite strong. We started
on Goat Island, on the New York side, where most of the interesting activities
are centered. After our initial viewing, we signed on for the Cave of the
Winds tour. The $8 admission price ($7, ages 6 to 12; prices at $1.25 Canadian
to the U.S. dollar) includes a plastic parka and sandals, both of which you
can keep, our first clue that we'd be getting seriously wet. (Getting seriously
wet turned out to be a theme of this trip.) We rode an elevator down
175 feet through a rock cliff to the base of the spectacular Bridal Veil
Falls. A tour guide led us along a sturdy wooden walkway, past thousands
of noisy seagulls, many of them nursing fluffy, gray chicks on the cliffs,
to a spot just 20 feet from the falls, where we began, tentatively, to climb
steps directly toward the cascading water. And that's when I began
to get it. You have to feel the bone-rattling power of all that water up
close to understand the awesome natural wonder that is Niagara Falls. Thoroughly
drenched, chilled despite the bright sun and not a little unnerved by our
proximity to the thundering water, we all felt perilously small and mortal,
which is perhaps the real point of visiting the falls, to put nature and
mankind in proper perspective. We dried off and headed into town for
lunch, remaining on the United States side of the border. The Misty Dog Grill,
a quick drive from Goat Island, serves very satisfying food at low prices,
including 25 varieties of hot dogs. Jack pronounced the Misty Dog's Buffalo
wings (about $7) among the best he's had. I boldly tried the Niagara Dog
($2.46), which comes topped with cheese and bacon. Next door, crowned by
a kitschy giant ice cream cone, Twist o' the Mist offers 50 flavors of locally
made Perry's Ice Cream as well as superb vanilla custard. To work
off lunch, we hiked around the Three Sisters, tiny forested islands just
south of the falls where you can explore a variety of surprisingly secluded
paths to the edge of the Niagara River and watch the water rush headlong
to the falls a few hundred yards downstream. It's a more intimate experience
than viewing the cataract from above. The only obstacle to this otherwise
pristine encounter with nature is the clutch of hotel and casino towers on
the Canadian side. Imagine imposing a mini-Las Vegas smack in the middle
of Yosemite Valley, or next to Old Faithful in Yellowstone, and you have
some idea of the spectacle. Like Niagara Falls itself, a ride on the
Maid of the Mist, sheathed in another plastic poncho, is one of those tourist
activities that can't possibly live up to its reputation and somehow manages
to. As we approached the Horseshoe Falls, the buildings above faded in the
mist; the roar of the cascading water grew deafening; huge, cartoonishly
perfect rainbows appeared. With Niagara Falls, nature trumps tackiness, gallon
after cascading gallon, day after day. We were ready for warm showers
and dry clothes. For travelers on a budget, the challenge of visiting here
is that once you exclude the luxury hotels overlooking the site, you're firmly
in the land of motel-chain dreariness or wrong-side-of-the-track seediness.
But about 20 miles north, along a very pretty road on the Canadian side,
is the quiet and charming town of Niagara-on-the-Lake. Home of the
renowned Shaw Festival Theater, Niagara-on-the-Lake sits at the juncture
of Lake Ontario and the Niagara River. A remarkable collection of beautifully
preserved 19th-century buildings now houses inns, restaurants and boutiques.
The lushly planted public gardens along the main boulevard, Queen Street,
were in full spring glory, and quiet side streets lined with fine old houses
felt light-years away from the hurly-burly of Niagara Falls. The inns
along Queen Street are charming but quite expensive. We were lucky that an
online search turned up the King George III Inn, facing the town's small
marina a few blocks away. Our spacious, nicely decorated room, one of only
eight, included a king bed, queen pull-out sofa, modern bathroom and, best
of all, a roomy porch with a view of the Niagara River. The cost, including
a breakfast basket of muffins and juice, was about $103 a night, with taxes. For
dinner we walked to the Olde Angel Inn, which bills itself as the oldest
continually operating inn in North America. The pub in this charming clapboard-sided
inn, which dates back to 1789 but was rebuilt in 1826 after a fire, has dark
paneling, a low ceiling, and a cozy, 18th-century atmosphere. We enjoyed
the traditional pub fare, including shepherd's pie ($8), in the bar, seems
to attract as many locals as tourists; there's a slightly more expensive
restaurant behind the pub. On most of our vacations Maggie and Jack
manage to persuade us to try an activity that we would normally avoid. Invariably
this activity is noisy, stomach-churning and very expensive. This time, it
was a jet boat tour on the Niagara River. At $35 a person, we needed some
convincing. Their case was bolstered by the fact that the company that runs
the boats is housed on the first floor of the King George III, so we could
hardly plead inconvenience. They won, and we were glad they did. Once
again, the uniform was plastic parka, this time with the addition of a waterproof
jumpsuit, wool sweater, rubber boots and life jacket, and we climbed aboard
the jet-powered boat with about 30 other passengers. The scenery along the
river was spectacular, particularly at the Devil's Hole Rapids, where the
river slices through sheer cliffs as high as the famous falls, just one mile
downstream, and the Niagara Whirlpool. After our guide warned us to stow
eyeglasses and tighten hoods, the boat turned headlong into the rapids, showering
us with huge swaths of freezing water. It sounds dreadful but was actually
more exhilarating than any roller coaster I've ever been on, and with the
scenic tour thrown in, a worthwhile splurge. A more serious and less
costly pursuit awaited at nearby Fort George. We took a self-guided tour
through the fort, most of which was destroyed during the War of 1812 and
rebuilt in the 1930's. The view from the ramparts across the river to the
Fort Niagara was especially evocative: nearly two centuries ago the English
and Americans exchanged cannon fire from their respective sides of the river
in order to claim this strategic location. The Americans prevailed, briefly
occupying the fort in 1813 before abandoning it to the British. From
the fort it's a short walk into Niagara-on-the Lake, where we had an inexpensive
lunch at Old Towne Restaurant; the fish and chips, at about $10, was especially
good. The lovely Niagara Parkway, which connects the falls with Niagara-on-the-Lake,
is bordered by a long, flat bicycle trail and passes numerous wineries. We
had time for just one winery tour. Inniskillin was a good choice; helpful
signs throughout the property describe the winemaking process. The area is
famous for its ice wines. Grapes are left on the vines until the first deep
frost, which concentrates the sugars and flavors of the grapes, resulting
in unctuous, sweet dessert wines. A generous tasting of Inniskillin's strawberry
ice wine was $4; a nice fruity pinot noir was $1 for a smaller taste. We
returned to Niagara Falls to see the nighttime light show from the Canadian
side. Finding a reasonably priced place for dinner that isn't a fast-food
outlet wasn't easy. Clifton Hill, the epicenter of the town's tourist life,
is lined with all manner of kid-targeted entertainment, from a dinosaur-themed
miniature golf course to a Ripley's Believe It or Not! museum. We didn't
succumb. Instead, we headed out of town and discovered Frank's Tomato Pie,
a rare locally owned restaurant. Large, raucously decorated and very casual,
it specializes in Mediterranean cuisine, and is more popular with locals
than tourists, according to our waitress. The wood-oven pizzas, at under
$10, were very good, and a tasty T-bone steak (about $18) could easily serve
two. After dinner, the falls beckoned. At night, giant multicolored
lights are trained on both the Horseshoe and American Falls. The view from
the Canadian side is much better than that from the New York side, a comparison
that is a bit unfair; from Canada, the gaudy hotels of the Canadian side
are behind you, and most of the more modestly scaled American development
is hidden by trees. A gradually changing palette of pastel colors
bathed the cascading water during the light show. But ultimately the falls
themselves won us over, more beautiful when unadorned by colored lights,
infinitely more majestic than we had imagined. Visitor Information
We spent an average of $205 (U.S.) per day for our family of four, including
hotel and meals. Our midsize rental car from Avis, which we picked up at
the Buffalo airport, was $152 for four days. All prices are in U.S. dollars,
reflecting the exchange rate at the time of our visit in May, about $1.25
Canadian for the United States dollar. Getting There Niagara
Falls is about 370 miles by car from New York City. JetBlue offers several
daily flights between Kennedy Airport and Buffalo Niagara International Airport;
our fare was $97 each way, plus taxes. Lodging Quaint, quiet Niagara-on-the-Lake, in Ontario, is a 20-minute drive from the falls and a world away. The staff at the King George III Inn, 61 Melville Street, (905) 468-4800, www.niagarakinggeorgeinn.com, was very helpful; our double room was $108, including breakfast and taxes. Another affordable option in Niagara-on-the-Lake is the charming Olde Angel Inn, at 224 Regent Street, (905) 468-3411; on the Web at www.angel-inn.com. Standard rooms start at $103. Dining In Niagara-on-the-Lake, traditional pub fare at the Olde Angel Inn, like steak and kidney pie, is very satisfying (about $45 for four). One of the prettiest spots for lunch is the patio looking over the Niagara River at the Niagara-on-the-Lake Golf Club,
143 Front Street, (905) 468-0479, which bills itself as North America's oldest
course. Hamburgers, hot dogs and sodas for the four of us were about $25.
On the Canadian side of Niagara Falls, the Mediterranean entrees and individual pizzas at Frank's Tomato Pie, 6889 Lundy's Lane, (905) 371-9111, are well prepared; dinner for four runs about $80. Attractions To
experience Niagara Falls close up, begin on Goat Island on the American side,
where all-day parking is $8. The Cave of the Winds tour is $8 ($7 for children
6 to 12). Passage on the Maid of the Mist is $11.50 ($6.75 for children).
A "Passport to the Falls" from Niagara Falls State Park includes both of
these activities as well as a trolley tour and other attractions: $24.50
($17.50 for children 6 to 12). Information: www.niagarafallsstatepark.com. In
Niagara-on-the-Lake, a visit to Fort George, (905) 468-4257, is $6.40 ($4.80
ages 6 to 12). Whirlpool Jet Boats, (905) 468-4800, www.whirlpooljet.com,
depart several times a day from 61 Melville Street for the one-hour Wet Jet
Tour. The $44 cost ($37 for those age 7 to 14; those younger are not allowed)
includes use of several clothing items intended to keep you dry, none of
them completely effective.
SETH MARGOLIS is a novelist who writes frequently about travel. Home Delivery of The Times from $2.90/week - Act Now!
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