Niagara Falls Trip Overview

In August we spent a weekend in Toronto followed by three nights in Niagara Falls, ON.
In Niagara Falls, you will find a variety of activities - Falls related activities, "tourist-trap kitsch", Fallsview indoor Water Park, casinos, and more. We spent our time in the Falls area and did not venture to the wineries or Niagara on the Lake which are a little further from the falls.

We stayed at the Clifton Victoria Inn which is part of the Falls Avenue Resort which includes the Fallsview Indoor Water Park. While in Niagara, we were able to enjoy the views of the Falls, the fireworks over the falls, the Falls activities, the Clifton Hill Activities, and the Fallsview Indoor Water Park.  We loved the location of our hotel as it was easy walking distance of almost everything, but set off the main tourist areas so it was a little quieter.

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Groupon is currently running deal on the Sheraton On the Falls which is part of the complex that we stayed at.

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On Friday, Sunday, and holiday nights in the summer there are fireworks over the falls. We arrived on Sunday night in time for a light dinner. We had the Secret Garden recommended to us by a concierge at the Falls Avenue Resort. The restaurant is located adjacent to Oakes Park and is built into the hill between Falls Avenue Resort and the falls. They had outside dining that overlooked the American Falls and Rainbow Bridge to the US. We had sandwiches which were well done (their croissants were great). The waitress recommended the adjacent Oakes Park as a non-crowded fireworks viewing location. We were able to find benches to sit on to watch the fireworks. It was not crowded and was a very pleasant walk from there back to our hotel.

Our original plan had been to split the Falls activities across Monday and Tuesday and spend parts of each day at the Fallsview Indoor Water Park. However, the possibility of storms on Tuesday encouraged us to make sure to finish the Falls activities on Monday as many were outside. While it did not storm on Tuesday, it worked out well to have done the Falls first and arrive at the water park in the morning when it was less crowded than in the afternoons.

For the Falls activities, we bought the Niagara Parks Commission package that included Maid of the Mist*, Behind the Falls, Niagara's Fury and White Water Walk. It also included transportation on the WeGo bus system. We loved Maid of the Mist and Behind the Falls and enjoyed the White Water Walk. For more details, see my review of Niagara Falls Attractions.

Ready to Ride Maid of the Mist

Monday night we spent in the Clifton Hill area which I would classify as "tourist-trap kitsch". There are several mini-golf courses, several wax museums, numerous horror attractions, gift shops, and various other attractions (Guiness World Records, Ripley's Believe It or Not, arcades, etc). For more detailed reviews of the Clifton Hill attractions, see my review.

at Wax Museum

Tuesday we spent most of the day at Fallsview Indoor Waterpark which my daughter loved.

After the water park, we had a buffet dinner at Fallsview Restaurant with spectacular views of the Falls from one of the top levels of the Falls Avenue Sheraton. The food was quite varied including pasta, seafood, Mexican, and more. There was fresh fruit, salad, and sides. The desserts were also great. We arrived for dinner early which worked out great. We were able to get seats against the window (right next to the door for the observation deck) and they offer free kids buffet with an adult buffet from 5-6p.

View from Observation Deck at Fallsview Restaurant

We never made it across to the American side of the falls. The Rainbow Bridge crossing near the Falls frequently had a long line for Customs (into the US in the morning and into Canada in the evening). Had we been doing our main border crossing at Niagara Falls, we would have done the American side on our way in or out. Since we live in Michigan, it is considerably shorter for us to drive across Canada from Niagara Falls instead of through the US. My daughter was quite confused when we got in the car to leave Niagara Falls and we told her we wouldn't be back in the US for 3 hours even though she could see New York.

We had a great time on our Niagara Falls Trip and definitely recommend a family trip to Niagara Falls.

* I just discovered that Maid of the Mist is no longer operating from Canada. They will still operate tours from the American side. Boat tours from Canada will be provided by Hornblower Niagara Cruises. Hornblower currently provides boat tour experiences for US National Parks at Alcatraz Island in San Francisco and the Statue of Liberty from both New York and New Jersey.

Fallsview Indoor Water Park & Falls Avenue Resorts

In August, we spent three nights in Niagara Falls. When we were planning our trip, one of my friends mentioned they had stayed at the Fallsview Indoor Waterpark. I knew that would be a big hit with my daughter, so I made sure to check it out. You can choose to stay at one of the Falls Avenue Resort Complex's four hotels and include a water park on your stay or you can visit Fallsview Indoor Water Park on a daily pass.

The four hotels in the complex are:

• Sheraton on the Falls
• Crowne Plaza Niagara Falls - Fallsview
• Skyline Inn
• Clifton Victoria Inn at the Falls (which was a Hampton Inn when I booked our stay in June)

When I looked at the on-site hotels, I was drawn to the Clifton Victoria Inn since we have had good experiences at other Hampton Inns and because it offered FREE breakfast, FREE parking, and FREE Wi-Fi all of which are big money savers for us. The FREE Wi-Fi was especially important since were were trying not to use the internet on our phones while in Canada (at $2.05/MB I was cautious). It was the only Falls Avenue hotel not physically connected to the waterpark, but it was a short walk - across the street and roughly a block to the parking garage. In cold weather you may be able to walk through the Skyline Inn so you would only need to walk across the street while outside.

We booked the hotel for three nights with the water package for only two of the nights. The water park passes are valid from 1p the day they start until the water park closes on the day your pass ends. We arrived on Sunday evening and based on the weather forecast that had Tuesday with a threat of rain, we decided to spend Monday on outdoor activities near the Falls and start the waterpark Monday afternoon and have it run through our departure on Wednesday.

We were traveling with my parents and my family of 3 staying in separate rooms. You have the option of booking just the hotel or the hotel with water park. The water park package is only sold as 4 admissions, but offers the ability to add additional passes for each day. Since the water park add-on was for 4 people (and I only needed 3), it made more financial sense for my parents to just reserve the hotel and use my extra Water Park pass and purchase an add-on pass.

The Clifton Victoria Inn was similar to a Hampton Inn. We found the WiFi to be adequate, the breakfast was typical of an included breakfast. It was quite crowded the first morning that we were there, but it was a Canadian Holiday (Monday of a 3 day weekend) which increased the crowds at the hotel. It was considerably less crowded the other two mornings that we were there. FREE Parking was available behind the hotel (most Niagara Falls hotels that I looked at charged nightly for parking). Our room decor was perhaps a little dated, but not overly so and everything was clean. I would definitely consider staying there again. While the Clifton Victoria Inn is not directly on Falls Avenue like the Sheraton or Crowne Plaza (and does not offer rooms with falls views), I enjoyed it's location. It was a quick walk to the water park, Falls Avenue, or Clifton Hill, but it was set apart from the noise and lights of the touristy areas.

We spent most of the day Tuesday at the Waterpark and stayed until lunchtime on Wednesday. We loved the watermark. One of the main features of the park is the slide tower which features 4 tube slides, 2 mat slides, and 2 body slides. We tested all of the slides, but our favorite was definitely the bowl slide. You can ride the bowl slide in either a single or double tube. You proceed through an initial pipe slide that exits onto the edge of a large bowl. You circle the outside towards a raised drain with a single opening. Once you enter that opening, you continue down a pipe slide (sometimes backwards) until the landing chute. We did have a few cases where we got stuck in the bowl just missing the exit and had to push ourselves back into the main flow to catch it the next time around.

I was very impressed with their organization on the slides. They had color coded lines on the stairs for the 4 tube slides and holding areas on the main landing if the lines were long (as was typical for the bowl slide). We definitely noticed an advantage in line length by arriving early in the morning.

On the mat slides, you could race since the tracks were mirror images of each other. You ride these slides head first on your belly. We also liked the body slides which you rode on your back with legs crossed, although we did end up with wedgies after each ride.

Fallsview Waterpark also features a Wave Pool, an outdoor basketball pool, and a play structure with anumber of slides on it. However, it does not have is a lazy river. We definitely missed not having the lazy river. The play structure had a number of slides, that went in different directions making it hard to keep track of our daughter. Our second day, we were smart and claimed chairs near the play structure so we could sit and watch our daughter play on the structure. Unfortunately the Wave Pool broke our second morning at the park. My daughter was not happy with us as we had hustled her past the wave pool to ride the slides before the line got long and then the wave pool was broken when we went back to it. They were working on the Wave Pool for quite a while, so it was probably up and running soon (unless they needed to order a part).

The first day, we walked to Fallsview Water Park from the Clifton Victoria Inn in our swim suits with t-shirts/coverups on and walked back to our hotel in the same way to shower and change when we were done. The second day that we were at the Water Park, we had already checked out of our hotel since we were heading home that afternoon. There are showers and changing rooms available in the mens and women's restrooms that we used. There were only two showers (private) available in the ladies room, but since it was mid-day, my daughter and I were the only two using them. There are also open showers available in the hallway outside the restrooms for a non-private shower.

There are lockers that you can rent at the Water Park. We rented a large locker each day to store our phones, wallets, and dry clothes in. If it hadn't been for the phones we may have skipped it and used a waterproof case for money and credit cards. I loved the locker setup where you bought a key for a locker and had free in and out access to it all day. It was very nice not to have to pay each time we wanted to get something from our locker.

Our first day at Fallsview Water Park we stayed at the park from 10a until around 3p. We had lunch at the Planet Hollywood Beach Club (a counter service restaurant) which is inside the water park. They offered a variety of items such as burgers, wraps, chicken fingers, and more. It was convenient and nice to have options other than pizza or burgers and fries.

We definitely recommend adding the Fallsview Water Park to your itinerary at Niagara Falls. Note that we were there in the summer when the water park is open daily. During the winter months, the Water Park is not open daily.

Disclaimer: I am a LivingSocial Affiliate and am compensated for sales through LivingSocial Links. I appreciate your support of my blog by shopping through my links. Please read terms and conditions before purchase as they are only summarized below.

LivingSocial is currently offering a deal for the Clifton Victoria Inn that includes a one night stay for up to 2 adults and 2 children, four 2-day passes at the WaterPark (day of arrival and departure), 4 Mini-Golf Passes, and 4 Games/child at Adventure City. You will also receive dining credits at various restaurants in the Fallsview complex. You can combine vouchers for a stay of up to 4 nights. The package costs $145 Canadian on Sundays through Fridays and $169 on Saturday. Your LivingSocial voucher will be valid until February 29, 2016. Be sure to check blackout dates and other terms before buying your voucher.

Toronto Vacation: CN Tower and 360 Restaurant

Outside CN Tower

We visited Toronto in early August. I had previously visited Toronto as a child, and we had skipped going to the top of the CN Tower, so it was on my to-do list for this trip.

Note: All prices listed are in Canadian Dollars and reflect pricing at the time of our visit. Pricing is subject to change seasonally and over time. Menus and movie attractions are also likely to change. 

When I looked up the information for visiting the CN Tower before the trip, I saw they had the 360 Restaurant which rotates while you eat. I had initially dismissed the restaurant as too expensive - $55 for lunch (adult) for a 3 course Prix Fixe menu. They do offer a 2 course child's menu of entree and dessert however they do not list the price on their website and I cannot remember how much it was.

Regular admission to the CN Tower is $32/adult, $24/child 4-12. The admission includes your elevator ride to the Lookout Level, the Glass Floor, Legends of Flight 3D movie, and Himalamazon a motion theater ride.

When I realized that the lunch price included your elevator ride and access to the Lookout Level and the Glass Floor, it suddenly did not seem so expensive (only $23 more than regular admission for adults, less for kids). While we did not receive admission to the 3D movie or the motion theater ride, we may have skipped them even with our paid admission.

We were able to obtain a reservation on the spot for lunch, at 11:45a. However, the restaurant quickly filled up and had we arrived even 45 minutes later, we may not have been so lucky. Your reservation can be made at the 360 Restaurant Kiosk next to the ticket counter. You then proceed to a special elevator for the restaurant (to the right). Prior to boarding your elevator they will take your picture in front of a green screen and while you are dining they will bring you a photo with the CN Tower view to purchase if you wish. Since we were arriving at the start of lunch when they were not fully booked, we were able to have our picture taken and board an elevator without a wait. We were also seated right away at a round table by the window looking out at Lake Ontario.

Seated at the Table

The central dining floor takes 72 minutes to rotate the 360 degrees. The windows and the inside supports for them are stationary as is the inner walkway around the restrooms, wine cellar, and stairs. It can be quite confusing to come out of the restroom and have your table be in a different location.  With the 3 course Prix Fixe menu we were in the restaurant for about 90 minutes so we were able to see the entire view. We were about halfway through a bus tour of the city before lunch, so we had some idea of what we were seeing and were able to find some landmarks.

The food was mostly good. I started with the 360 Caesar Salad and had the Crab & Mussel Spaghetti with Lemon and Arugula as my entree. Both were delicious and the spaghetti was a nice size serving. For dessert I had the Dark Chocolate Tower with Caramelized Bananas. I have to say that while the dessert looked fantastic, that I was disappointed in the taste. I did find that it improved if I ate the tower vertically instead of by level. With the kids menu, my daughter did not receive a starter (although bread was served to all). She selected chicken fingers for her entree and vanilla ice cream with a chocolate chip cookie. She called it a reverse ice cream sandwich since the cookie was wedged between two scoops of ice cream.

My daughter insisted that I take her picture returning from the restroom as she straddled the moving floor and the stationary floor.

I am so glad that we decided to do the 360 Restaurant. The restaurant is a level above the Lookout level and you have unimpeded views of the city and Lake Ontario that come to you. It was an extremely relaxing way to enjoy both our lunch and a view of the city.

We have been to the Sears Tower, Eiffel Tower, and many other lookouts over the years. While the 360 Restaurant rivaled other views, I was very disappointed with how the Lookout Level compared. About 1/4 of the Lookout Level windows are in the Horizons Restaurant which you cannot enter if you aren't eating. The Lookout Level was so packed (probably because it was a long weekend in Canada) that you could barely squeeze in to see out of a window. Also, there were no signs, or markers pointing out what you were looking at or what cities were in different directions. Fortunately we had taken a bus tour that morning and were able to pick out a few highlights.

The Glass Floor is located one level below the Lookout Level. When we had been to the Sears Tower a few years ago, my daughter and I had gone out onto their Ledge and looked through the glass floor to the street below. On the Sears Tower, the glass floor extends out from the building. However on the CN Tower it is the lowest level of the saucer at the top and is part of the regular structure. My husband again refused to venture out onto the glass floor, but my daughter and I braved it again. We were able to see the Ripley's Aquarium below.

View through Glass Floor

There is also the SkyPod that is 33 stories above the LookOut Level. SkyPod costs an additional $12/person to experience it. We did not make the trip up the additional level. And for brave teens and adults, you can do the EdgeWalk and walk on the edge of the roof the 360 Restaurant. You are harnessed, and are free to lean over

I was very happy with our trip to the CN Tower and having lunch at 360 Restaurant. I definitely felt that the price was worth it. Had we not done lunch, I think I would have been extremely disappointed in the experience. I definitely don't feel that the experience of the Lookout Level and Glass Floor was worth the regular admission cost.

Niagara Falls - Clifton Hill & Falls Avenue Resort- Tourist-Trap Kitsch

Before we visited Niagara Falls this summer, I had previously been in 1986 and one of the things that I remember was all of the touristy "kitsch" places. There is still plenty of kitsch to be found in Niagara Falls and much of it is centered on Clifton Hill. You will find Wax Museums, Horror Houses, Ripley's/Guinness museums, themed mini-golf, and of course shopping. The Falls Avenue Resort Complex includes hotels, a casino, dining, shopping, the Fallsview Indoor Waterpark, and attractions.

Clifton Hill runs from River Rd along the Niagara River (between the American Falls and Rainbow Bridge) past Falls Avenue to Victoria Avenue with the kitsch between Falls and Victoria Avenue.

The Falls Avenue Resort's 4D movies, Pink Panther Ride, and Adventure City have entrances on Clifton Hill as well as through the resort.

While in Niagara Falls, we decided to partake of some of the attractions.

Falls Avenue Resorts Activties

SWAT Ride at Adventure City

We started with the Falls Avenue Resorts attractions since they were included in our hotel package (mini-golf, bumper cars, SWAT ride, Pink Panther ride, and 4D movie). We played 9 holes of indoor glow miniature golf with a safari theme. They allowed us to use the golf and ride tickets interchangeably (the 4D movie was separate). My daughter was not tall enough for the bumper cars, so we headed for the SWAT ride. On the SWAT ride you drive through a city and use laser guns to shoot targets. My daughter loved this ride and we used our extra tickets for this ride to ride it several times while in Niagara Falls.

The Pink Panther balloon ride is located on the roof of Adventure City. There are 6-8 balloons arranged around the center pole that will each hold up to 4 people. The balloons ascend the pole and then rotate around it. While the Sheraton blocks your view, at certain angles you can see the falls (and Clifton Hill below). We boarded the Pink Panther as the fireworks* over the falls were starting. We were the only ones on the ride and there was no line, so the attendant kept us on the ride until the fireworks ended. It was definitely a unique view of the fireworks. If you are afraid of heights, definitely skip this ride. While you stay over the roof of the building, you are near the edge and looking all the way down onto Falls Avenue. Since the ride was included with our package, I am not sure how much it would cost to buy the tickets individually.

Our package also included a show at the Iwerks 4D movie theater. We were not sure what to expect, but knew that the movies were Happy Feet: The 4D Experience and Journey 2: The Mysterious Island. I wasn't sure what to expect from a 4D movie. It is a 3D movie that you watch from a motion simulator chair. The chairs are in sets of 2 and move you in conjunction with the movie plus add special effects like sprays of water and puffs of air. The show included both movies (which were under 10 minutes each). My daughter loved the movies and the ride. They do offer a few stationary seats which my parents took advantage of since my mother does not like motion simulators.

The Falls Avenue Resort shopping is located at the opposite end of the Falls Avenue Resort from Clifton Hill. There is a Hershey's Chocolate World and Always Refreshing Soda Shop which features Coca-Cola products and merchandise.

Clifton Hill Area Attractions
When walking along Clifton Hill it is hard to miss the kitsch. There are the Guinness World Records Museum, Wax Museums, miniature golf, Ripley's Believe it or Not Museum, Haunted Attractions, and much more. The museums are pretty small and will take under an hour to explore.

One night, my parents suggested the Louis Tussaud Wax Museum. They had visited it in the late 90s with my siblings and enjoyed it. The Louis Tussaud Wax Museum is located on Victoria Avenue just east of Clifton Hill. Unfortunately, many of the wax statues were still from that era so my daughter did not recognize them. Even some of the newer statues were not people that she would identify with. She did get a little excited at the Harry Potter and Pirates of the Caribbean, although she seemed a little apprehensive of the wax figures. Also, she did recognize a younger Harrison Ford from Star Wars and Indiana Jones. By far her favorite part was getting to walk the tightrope over the falls. It was nice that you can walk right up to the figures and touch them to pose with them. I definitely recommend waiting until kids are teenagers for the Louis Tussaud Wax Museum.

The Guinness World Records museum was more to my daughter's liking. She loves trivia and history, so this was right up her alley. There were a few exhibits that we steered her clear of (ie the most tattoos on a stripper). Even so we spent under an hour in the museum.

The one night we ate along Clifton Hill. We had a large, late lunch that day, so we weren't looking for a big meal (either in time or size). I would have loved to find a nicer counter-service place (ie Noodles & Co, Panera, Chipotle, etc). Instead, we found either fast food or table-service restaurants. Even when I tried asking the concierge, he had no idea what I was talking about steering me to a bar for counter service. We ended up getting counter service pizza at Pizza Pizza (comparable to Little Caesars) on Clifton Hill and eating outside listening to music.

Clifton Hill is definitely a great place to shop for souvenirs. Many of the shops have affordable t-shirts, sweatshirts, and other memorabilia. They also had plenty of "Canada" food items like maple syrup, maple cookies, etc.


*There are fireworks over the Falls on Friday, Sunday, and holiday nights in the summer. They also held them on Monday night while we were there since it was a Canadian holiday. We watched the Fireworks on Sunday, so were not making plans to see them on Monday.

Niagara Falls Attractions - Trip Review

As I mentioned earlier, we spent a few days in Niagara Falls, ON earlier this month. I had previously been to Niagara Falls in 1986. The main draw to Niagara Falls are the Falls themselves.

Niagara Falls with Maid of the Mist

Since we arrived from Toronto and were returning home to Michigan (by driving west through Ontario), we stayed on the Canadian side of the falls. The Canadian side is an absolute must-do since you have the best view of the falls from the Canadian side. On my first visit  we had not visited the American side even though we came through New York.

Niagara Falls has done a great job keeping the area immediately surrounding the parks un-commercialized. While there are modern amenities including bathrooms, concessions, and merchandise stores, they are limited to the Maid of the Mist Plaza and the Table Rock Welcome Center. The White Water Walk is even more rustic. There is a small gift shop that houses the elevators.

We purchased the Niagara Falls Adventure Pass from The Niagara Parks Commission. The Adventure Pass included a ride on Maid of the Mist, Journey Behind the Falls, Niagara's Fury, White Water Walk, and two days on the WeGo bus transportation system. The Adventure Pass is $46.95 ($68.05 value)for adults and $34.95 ($45.02 value) for children 6-12 (FREE for younger children).

Maid of the Mist* 

Ready to board Maid of the Mist

We started with the Maid of the Mist boat tour of the falls. When we purchased our Adventure Pass, we received timed tickets for Maid of the Mist. Since the day we were there was a Canadian Holiday (poor planning), the line was quite long but moved fairly well. The initial bottleneck was at the elevators to descend from the plaza level to the boat/river level. Then they took our picture (in front of a green screen) and we were handed our ponchos. When we arrived at the boat level, we were handed blue plastic rain ponchos (quite an improvement from the heavy black raincoats I remember from the 80s). I remember the old raincoats being heavy - and wet from previous users. These are disposable (recyclable) ponchos. I actually recommend saving these ponchos for use at Journey Behind the Falls and Niagara's Fury since the Maid of the Mist ponchos provided more coverage.

We definitely recommend doing the Maid of the Mist boat tour. They have been operating since 1846 and run boats from both the Canadian and American side of the river. The boat first travels past the American Falls before proceeding to the Horseshoe Falls and turning to return. The Maid of the Mist is a double decker boat. We rode on the top deck and we definitely got wet at different points. However, there were many points where I felt comfortable having my phone out to take pictures. Since it was warm, we wore shorts and sandals or flip-flops. However, our feet didn't get soaked, so you would probably not get soaked if you had on long pants in colder months.

Horseshoe Falls from Maid of the Mist

Journey Behind the Falls

Journey Behind the Falls starts in the building at Table Rock near the top of the Horseshoe Falls and descends 150'. There are two portals that look out behind the falls and an observation deck. When we saw the observation deck from the Maid of the Mist, I was surprised to see the people in ponchos because it didn't seem to be that close to the falls.

Journey Behind the Falls Observation Deck -
taken from Maid of the Mist

Boy was I wrong! Below, you can see my daughter huddled from the mist behind her. The mist was so bad that I could barely keep my phone out for a picture. 

Getting Soaked on the Upper Deck

This picture above was taken on the upper deck - the lower deck had even more spray, so I left my phone under my poncho and have no pictures. The mist was so heavy that we barely stayed on the platform. Unsurprisingly, the lower deck is closed in the winter months due to ice formation. 

You can also follow a tunnel behind the falls to two different cataracts that look out into the falls. As you walked down the hall there were lots of informational posters. My daughter loved learning about the falls. She was particularly fascinated by the daredevils who went over the Falls in barrels.

Looking out at the Falls

The tunnels were slippery, so be sure to walk carefully. Also, the disposable ponchos provided here were not as good as the Maid of the Mist ponchos. The sleeves were shorter, and had a larger under arm gap that did not keep your arms as dry. I recommend keeping your Maid of the Mist poncho and reusing it here.

Niagara's Fury
Niagara's Fury is also located in the Table Rock Welcome Center. We were pretty disappointed by Niagara's Fury. It started with an animated pre-show movie featuring woodland creatures learning how Niagara Falls was formed. Then, you are led into the main attraction, the creation of Niagara Falls with swirling winds, thunderstorms, rain, rumbling floor and surging water. Niagara's Fury uses the same poncho style as Journey Behind the Falls, so again I recommend the poncho from Maid of the Mist.

We do not recommend Niagara's Fury as a must see. The show seemed completely disjointed. The pre-show was geared towards younger children - many of whom were scared of the thunder and pounding water in the main attraction. You could definitely skip this and not miss much.

White Water Walk
Downriver from Niagara Falls is a Class 6 rapids. Class 6 rapids are considered un-navigable. White Water Walk is an observation board walk along side the rapids. It is located 4 km downriver from Table Rock Welcome Center. The WeGo bus will take you between the falls area and White Water Walk. One of the things that my daughter liked the best about White Water Walk is that it featured placards describing the various Niagara Falls daredevils - from those who traveled over the falls or through the rapids in barrels to tightrope walkers who walked across the gorge.

One warning is that there are no bathrooms on the trail. You need to go across the street from the gift shop to find a restroom.

Overall, I recommend doing the Adventure Pass. Even if you skip Niagara's Fury, you will save money over buying each of the other three attractions - plus you get the use of the bus transportation. Depending on where your hotel is located, WeGo can be very useful in transporting you from your hotel to the Falls area.

Update: 12/2/2013
* I just discovered that Maid of the Mist is no longer operating from Canada. They will still operate tours from the American side. Boat tours from Canada will be provided by Hornblower Niagara Cruises. Hornblower currently provides boat tour experiences for US National Parks at Alcatraz Island in San Francisco and the Statue of Liberty from both New York and New Jersey.

Cedar Point Ride Reviews

My daughter has loved rides from a young age starting with local fairs and then at amusement and theme parks for years - Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Sesame Place (Langhorne, PA), Knoebels (Elysburg, PA), Hershey Park (Hershey, PA), Dutch Wonderland (Lancaster, PA), and Universal Studios Orlando & Islands of Adventure.

Even though Cedar Point is only 2 hours from our home in Michigan, we were waiting until our daughter was tall enough for most of the roller coasters since it is the self-proclaimed Roller Coaster Capital. After a successful spring break trip to Orlando where she rode Rock 'n' Roller Coaster and loved it, we knew she was ready for a trip to Cedar Point. At just over 50", she was tall enough for all of the 48" coasters and, with her tallest sneakers, about 1/2" too short for the 52" rides.

Along with our tickets, we had purchased Fast Lane which allowed us to skip the regular line on more than 20 rides and attractions. As Disney World regulars, we are used to their Fast Pass system and had utilized Universal Express at Universal Studios Orlando and Islands of Adventure over Spring Break. We liked the convenience of

When we arrived, my husband and I tried to steer our daughter to the roller coasters, but she started pointing out smaller rides. We started small with Ocean Motion, a pirate ship ride. She really wanted to ride MaXair since she had been on a similar ride in June at Knoebel's. Unfortunately MaXair had a 52" height limit that she just missed. So, we dragged her off to start the roller coaster adventures.

Our first coaster of the day was Corkscrew. Our Fast Lane allowed us to board in a matter of minutes. Corkscrew features 3 inversions including one over the midway - the first coaster to invert over a midway. Rock 'n' Roller Coaster was the only other upside-down coaster that my daughter had ridden and it was in the dark, so we weren't sure how she would feel about Corkscrew. Of course she loved the ride and was ready to dash off to more coasters as soon as it was over. Personally, I found the ride a bit jerky and left with a slight headache. We returned to ride it again after lunch and a third time as our last ride of the night. I skipped the third ride with the excuse of capturing a picture or video from the midway as she crossed it.

After Corkscrew we headed for Iron Dragon, a suspended coaster that sweeps over the Lagoon. Unfortunately this was not on the Fast Lane, so we had to wait for it - only about 20 minutes. The ride was not as fast and had no inversions, but my daughter still liked it. I also found it a lot smoother of a ride than Corkscrew.

Our next mission was to get her on Millennium Force. While it does not have a complete inversion, it is far from a mild ride. When it opened in 2000, it broke records at 310' and 93 MPH. The 310' climb is hastened with the use of an elevator cable lift system instead of they typical roller coaster chain climb. You also have a great view of Lake Erie as you climb the first hill - a great distraction from the upcoming 80º drop. While it does not complete an inversion, there are several overbanked turns where you are just past 90º rotation. Despite the quickened climb and high speeds, Millennium Force is a long ride at 2 min 20 seconds. It features tunnels to and from the parks Adventure Island where we caught quick glimpses of the Dinosaurs Alive exhibit. I enjoyed Millennium Force more than Corkscrew as I felt that it was a smoother ride. Unlike the other coasters that we rode at Cedar Point, you had to place your bags in a locker since it utilizes different loading and unloading zones.


Since it was not a very hot day, we decided to bypass the water rides. In the future if we were staying overnight and also visiting the Soak City water park, I might do the water rides on a day we are planning to visit Soak City and have swimsuits on under our clothes.


We continued our thrill ride exploration before lunch with SkyHawk. SkyHawk is an awesome giant swing ride. It seats 10 people on either side of one of two giant swings that move at speeds up to 60 mph. The day we were there, only one side was operational, but when both sides are operational they move in opposing directions producing a scissor motion. You have the feeling of weightless at the highest points of your arc as you stare down at the ground, almost 125' below. As we waited in line, I captured the video below to give a perspective of the ride.

Again, we all enjoyed it and rode it two different times.

Before lunch we also rode the Cedar Creek Mine Ride which is a mild roller coaster and is the second oldest coaster in the park. It features a helix at the end of the ride. The ride would be a good introduction to thrill coasters.

On Magnum XL-200, we enjoyed a great view of Soak City as the ride travels beyond the bounds of Cedar Point into the area occupied by Soak City. The ride features a 195' drop and a series of camel-back hills. As the first hypercoaster (over 200' in height, complete circuit), it ignited the roller coaster wars with its debut in 1989. We enjoyed this ride, but it was no Millennium Force.

Our next mission was to ride Gemini. We paused to ride Monster which sits below Gemini. While we waited, we noticed that the Gemini train was stopped and witnessed a park employee climb up the stairs to the train. Later I overheard someone say that they had to climb down from the ride. I was afraid that we were going to be out of luck on riding Gemini which upset my daughter because one of her friends had told her all about it.

My daughter really wanted to ride the Kids Bumper Boats and Frog Hopper. She enjoyed it, but she is really outgrowing them as you can see from this bumper boats picture.

Outgrowing Kiddie Rides

The ride we actually waited for the longest was Woodstock Express with over a 30 minute wait since it did not offer FastLane. Woodstock Express is located in Camp Snoopy and is a junior coaster with heights of only 43' and a top speed under 30 miles an hour. The ride has a fairly slow throughput, so while the line did not look that long, it took longer than we expected (especially after sending the 7 year old into line by herself). She said the ride was ok, but was not lining up to ride it again.

By this time, Gemini was operational so we decided to give it a try. As indicated by the Gemini name, it is a twin track coaster. Since the Fast Lane entrance was at the front of the load platform, we were able to secure seats in the first row in opposite trains (my daughter and I in the train on the right and my husband in the train on the left). The row behind us was similarly split across the trains, so there was some "trash-talk" between the trains going on. As we waited, when the trains departed, they were pulling out of the station, coming to a stop and then proceeding together. When we left, our train stopped and my husband's kept going. My daughter was so upset that they were "cheating" and were going to beat us. We had the (tentative) last laugh though, because they stopped as the first few cars started ascending the lift hill. We came around the corner and just kept going all the way through the ride. We were probably 75% done with the ride before my husband's train started moving again. I was beginning to think the ride had broken down again. Fortunately, all was well and we had the last laugh as victors even though they tried to cheat as my daughter said.

We rode Mean Streak which is a wooden coaster. I am not usually a fan of wooden coaster because they are so rough. While Mean Streak had a lot of vibration to it from the wooden coaster, I was surprised that it was not an overly negative experience.

Winning K'nex Roller Coaster

We made a stop at the Town Hall Museum (I think that is what it was called). In the museum they had information on various awards and records that their rides had set. They also had some winning K'nex rides designed and built by students on display. My daughter is fascinated with history and record breaking, so she loved this exhibit. After hearing about all of the record-breaking Cedar Point roller coasters, my daughter wants to research the history of roller coasters to learn more about them. Her first question is "What was the first roller coaster to go upside down and was it an accident?" We have not yet started this research project, but she has some time next week before school returns, so maybe we will do some research.

We ran out of time to ride Blue Streak and a few of the other smaller rides. We also skipped the rides with 52" or 54" height requirements since my daughter could not ride them with us. She was close to the 52", so hopefully next summer she'll be tall enough for the 54" rides. As we left, she insisted on the picture below:

I foresee many years of visiting Cedar Point and also incorporating amusement parks into our vacation plans for my roller coaster fanatic.

Enter to Win an Albuquerque Trip

The 2013 American Girl Girl of the Year is Saige Copeland from Albuquerque.

To celebrate, the Albuquerque Convention & Visitors Bureau is giving away a trip to Albuquerque that  includes a Saige doll. Your package includes 2 nights at the Hyatt Regency Tamaya Resort & Spa, an American Girl Saige doll with books signed by the author, Watercolor class at the resort to paint the mountains and forest surrounding the resort, a visit to the Tamaya Horse Rehabilitation Proogram and horseback riding at The Stables at Tamaya, and a chance to groom the resort's Picasso horse, a Tamaya Mist salon experience for your daughter and her Saige doll, a geogaching scavenger hunt, amking S'mores, Saige will have her own bed, a visit to Albuquerque including admission for 4 to Sandai Peak Aerial Tramway, ABQ BioPark and the Anderson-Abruzzo Albuquerque Internation Balloon Museum, and a $40 VISA gift card for travel expenses.

We briefly visited Albuquerque just last summer as part of a wedding we attended in Santa Fe, I entered to win a trip for my daughter. She is very excited to win and have her own Saige doll.

I think this was a brilliant marketing strategy for Albuquerque Convention & Visitors Bureau. I know my daughter's interest in Saige was increased because she had just been to New Mexico. Last year, when we were in Santa Fe, every time we were in a store with a book section, I had looked for a Josefina book since she is from Santa Fe. I found other American Girl books, but never a Josefina.

They even have a page setup to help families plan a Saige-inspired trip. If we were going this year instead of last year, we definitely would have read the Saige book and considered some of these options.

Tall Ships Chicago Savings

Are you planning a trip to Chicago for Tall Ships Chicago? If so, check out the deal below.

Tall Ships Chicago 2013 is August 8-11 at Navy Pier. A Tall ship is a large, traditionally rigged sailing vessel such as a schooner, sloop, and more. There will be 14 tall ships at Navy Pier for Tall Ships Chicago 2013. The event kicks off one day early, Wednesday, August 7 with a Parade of Sail ofrom 2-5p as the ships sail into the dock at Navy Pier.

Disclaimer: I am a Groupon Affiliate and am compensated for sales through Groupon links. I appreciate your support of my blog by shopping through my links. Please read terms and conditions before purchase as they are only summarized here.

Through June 30 or while supplies last, Groupon is offering your choice of three deals for Tall Ships Chicago:

• $11 for one adult dockside boarding ticket on Thursday, August 8 or Friday, August 9 ($25 value)
• $13 for one adult dockside boarding ticket on Saturday, August 10 ($25 value)
• $12 for one adult dockside boarding ticket on Sunday, August 11 ($25 value)

Navy Pier

Tall Ships Chicago 2013 at Navy Pier on August 8–11 (Up to 56% Off). Three Options Available.

More details at Groupon

Children's (age 3-12) dockside boarding tickets are $11 when purchased directly from Tall Ships Chicago, so you would only need to purchase the Groupon deal for the adults in your party.

The dockside boarding tickets allow you to board and tour participating boats. There is also a general admission ticket for $5 (adult or child) which does not allow you to board/tour the boats that can be purchased from Tall Ships Chicago.

If you are planning to head to Navy Pier, you can also pre-purchase ride tickets for attractions like the Ferris Wheel, Web Wave Swinger, Miniature Golf, and the Light Tower Ride.

While you are at Navy Pier, check out this deal for the Navy Pier Maze and Time Freak Game.

Amazing Chicago's Funhouse Maze

Maze Visit and Time Freak Game for Two or Four at Amazing Chicago's Funhouse Maze on Navy Pier (Up to 60% Off)

More details at Groupon

Museum of Broadcast Communications

Visit for Two or Four, or Individual or Family Membership to Museum of Broadcast Communications (Up to Half Off)

More details at Groupon

Bike and Roll Chicago

$29 for a Half-Day Bike Rental for Two from Bike and Roll Chicago (Up to $70 Value)

More details at Groupon

While in Chicago, it would also be a good time to check out the American Girl Store especially if your daughter likes Molly, the WWII doll who is being discontinued soon.

North of Chicago is also Six Flags Great America in Gurnee which I shared a coupon for on my Ann Arbor with Kids blog.

If you are planning to visit Chicago this summer (for Tall Ships, or another time), I suggest joining a local museum that offers reciprocal museum admissions. If you are in Michigan like me, may I suggest this deal for the University of Michigan Natural History Museum.

Summer Vacation to Chicago? Check out these deals!

Are you considering a family vacation to Chicago this summer? A few years ago my husband attended a conference in Chicago and my daughter and I met him in Chicago after the conference to vacation for a few days.


Chicago is about 4 hours from our home and is also easily accessible via Amtrak. We took Amtrak to get there so we would not have to worry about parking our car in the city.

There are lots of fun activities in Chicago. We enjoyed visiting the museums, the LEGO Store, and the parks/lake shore.

Disclaimer: I am an Affiliate of Groupon and LivingSocial and am compensated for sales through Groupon and LivingSocial links. I appreciate your support of my blog by shopping through my links.

If you are considering a trip to Chicago, I wanted to share a few Groupon deals that would be great for tourists:

• $9 for a 3 day CTA Pass ($20 value). We used the buses to travel around Chicago particularly to visit the Museum of Science and Industry.
• Amazing Chicago's Funhouse Maze at Navy Pier. I have not been to the maze, but it sounds like it might be fun. $11 admission for 2 ($23.98 value) or $19 admission for 4 (a $47.96 value). Children 4 & Under are free.
• Baseball Deals
• $79 or $99 for a Rooftop Chicago Cubs Game (all-you-can eat and drink)
• or $89 from LivingSocial
• $40, $42, or $50 Chicago White Sox Game & Pre-Party on Patio
• Stray Boots Interactive Walking Tours

There are frequently Groupon Getaways or LivingSocial Escape deals for Chicago, but there are currently none available.  We stayed at the Hampton Inn in Chicago and overall would recommend the hotel.

Universal Orlando: Universal Express℠ Passes

This spring break, my family visited Universal Orlando. While we have been to Disney many times as a family it was my daughter's first visit to Universal and the first trip since 2000 for my husband and I.

The last time my husband and I had been to Universal Orlando was when they were testing the idea of how to expedite the lines. At the time of our visit, they were giving out handwritten paper passes similar to Disney's Fast Passes to return at a specified time to ride the ride. Basically the passes were distributed from a folding table across from the line entrance and they were logging them in a paper notebook.  I remember we were able to sign-up for a pass for Jurassic Park and use the expedited line 15 minutes after getting our pass despite the 40 minute line at the time.

Since that time, Universal Orlando has adopted the Universal Express℠ system which provides "front of the line" access for most rides (only Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey™ and Jurassic Park Pteranodon Flyers® are currently excluded). They have two varieties of Universal Express - Standard which is valid for once per ride and can be purchased for either park or both parks and Universal Express - Unlimited which is valid for unlimited times per ride across both parks. Currently unlimited Universal Express℠ is free to Universal Orlando Resort guests*.

Universal Express℠ is an additional cost if you do not stay on site. The cost varies based on projected crowd levels that day. So if you are visiting at a crowded time of year when the pass will be more. We were there the Thursday/Friday before Easter and a one time use pass would have been $89.99/person each day. Since we were visiting at a busy time of year, we felt that Universal Express℠ was going to be a requirement and decided to stay on site since it was less expensive than staying off-site and buying a one-day front of the line pass for three people. We stayed two nights at the Loews Royal Pacific hotel. Hotel guests also receive one hour early admission to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. This was key for us as we arrived 30 minutes prior to regular opening and waited 45 minutes to ride. When we exited the ride the line was 90 minutes long and quickly rose to over 2 hours where it stayed most of the day. We did get in line at 11p with another 45 minute wait to ride it again (we rested mid-day).

Look for this
Symbol

With Universal Express℠, you use a separate ride entrance that has a shorter queue. On some rides the Express entrance has its own loading area, on others it merges with the regular line near the loading area. We are very glad that we stayed onsite. While we still waited 15-30 minutes for many rides with the Express pass, some had upwards of 2 hour waits without the pass. We probably saved an average of one hour per ride. It definitely helped us finish both parks in 1.5 days.

Disclaimer: I am an iTunes affiliate and am compensated for sales through iTunes links. I appreciate your support of my blog by shopping through my links. Please verify app prices as they can change frequently.

A good way to judge predicted crowd levels is to look at the daily pricing of Universal Express℠. While we were at Universal Orlando, we used Universal Orlando Maps Free by VersaEdge Software, LLC for our iPhones to find ride wait times. We found it to be reasonably accurate in wait times (The wait times are user submitted, so I would submit wait times as well.). The paid version ($1.99 currently), Universal Orlando Maps, is the same app but without ads which leads to more visible space on the map. They also offer the Universal Orlando Magic Guide (currently $3.99) which adds food and dining information to the paid program. You do not need to be in the parks to see wait times, so you could download the program before your trip to see what typical wait times are like and decide if you want Universal Express℠.



*Currently Universal Orlando has three resorts - Loews Portofino Bay, Hard Rock Hotel®, and Loews Royal Pacific which are all deluxe resorts. In 2014, they are opening a moderate resort, Universal's Cabana Bay Beach Resort. Universal Express℠ will only be provided free to the deluxe resort guests. Guests at all resort levels will receive one hour early admission to Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

Universal Orlando: Lockers

Universal Orlando Lockers - by ffg on Flickr -
Used under Creative Commons Attribution License

Many rides at the Universal Orlando parks do not allow you to bring any loose objects on board (purses, water bottles, backpacks,hats, sunglasses, souvenir bags, etc). Fortunately, Universal provides complimentary lockers at these rides so you do not have to try to spend a day in the parks without any of these items.

Lockers are located near the start of the line queue and provide a limited time for FREE. Since we stayed on site and had the Universal Express front of the line pass, the complimentary time was sufficient. Lockers are locked and unlocked by fingerprint at touch screen kiosks located in the locker bays. Be sure to remember your locker number for when you return.

We visited at one of the busiest times of year (the Thursday/Friday before Easter). There were sufficient lockers at each ride, although once or twice we had to find which section of lockers still had them available. With the crowds, there was often a line of 2-3 people at the kiosk to rent or open your locker

Now for the two downsides of the locker rental:

Be the Mean Mom/Dad
If your child is anything like mine, they will think the locker fingerprint is cool and beg to be the one to do the locker. I'm warning you now, don't give in like I did. Stay strong, be the Mean Mom (or dad) and don't let them. Why do you have to be the mean parent? Because it won't work with a kids fingerprint. It will let you think it has worked by processing the fingerprint and unlocking your locker. But, when you return it will not open. You will have to search out an attendant and have them unlock your locker through their touch screen. We had this problem with my daughter and when we found the attendant another family had the same problem. My original thought was that maybe the kids fingerprints were too small so the reader was confused. But, upon more thought I am wondering if it is a children's privacy issue and they don't save fingerprints under a certain size.

Paid Lockers when you want them
Interestingly the lockers were free when you were not allowed to bring items on rides such as for The Mummy, Men in Black, Spiderman, Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, etc. However on the water rides such as Jurassic Park where you want to protect your items, you had to pay for the lockers. (And don't let your locker close as it will lock itself as opposed to the free lockers that waited for you to push the button. Yes, I had to pay for a locker twice.

LEGO Architecture: Towering Ambition Exhibit

In the spring of 2011 our family visited Washington, D.C. I had lived in the area for 3 years growing up and my husband and I had lived there from 2000-2003. We were excited to take our daughter to see D.C. and to revisit some of the museums. In the course of planning our trip, I read about the LEGO Architecture: Towering Ambition exhibit at the National Building Museum. With my family being huge LEGO fans, we knew this was a must-do event and worked it into our schedule.

Several of the buildings that are included in the exhibit were in Chicago where we had visited the previous summer, so my daughter was excited to see models of buildings that she recognized. We had timed admission tickets as they were only letting a certain number of guests in at a time. There were 15 models in total, several of which are available as LEGO Architecture sets. The models included several conceptual skyscrapers that were not actually built. The room had a lot of natural light, which unfortunately made it difficult to take pictures of some of the displays. I had been expecting more models than there were in the display. I was also a bit disappointed that the exhibit was designed to go through once and then finish. My 5 year old wen through at a quicker pace than we would have preferred. We would have liked the opportunity to return to the models as she was building (one stay with her, the other go to the models and then change places).

Sears Tower*

John Hancock & Empire State Buildings

The exhibit also included a LEGO building area where kids (and adults) could build structures and then add them to a city mat. My daughter and husband enjoyed building their creation and seeing the other creations that were there.

Building with LEGOs

Her Creation on the City Mat

The day that we attended, a master architect was building a scale model of the White House. It was definitely interesting to see the level of detail that went into the model. We could see the progress between when we entered the exhibit and when we left.

White House Build

The LEGO Architecture: Towering Ambition Tour closed at the National Building Museum on September 2, 2012. It has moved to the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, MI where it opened on November 3, 2012 and will remain until February 24, 2013.

Admission to the National Building Museum was free, but admission to the event cost $8/adults and $5/child. I did feel that the admission price was steep for the size of the exhibit. We were also not that impressed with the National Building Museum other than this exhibit. However, we were glad that we went.

At the Henry Ford Museum, admission to LEGO Architecture: Towering Ambition is included with your museum membership. As members of the Henry Ford Museum, we plan to visit the exhibit at least once, perhaps the afternoon that we attend Holiday Nights at Greenfield Village. Based on previous experiences with exhibits at the Henry Ford, I believe their exhibit space is larger than the National Building Museum, so hopefully you will be able to wander between models and building areas.

* I know it is now the Willis Tower. But I grew up in Chicago with my Dad working at the Sears Tower. It will always be the Sears Tower to me.