I thought I’d fill everyone in on how the trip went. First, thanks for all the help. And don’t worry; I won’t mention every place we went to. But you’ll note one of the pictures below I included just for Scott. 
We did not run into any heavy snow or ice during the trip. We had a bit of snow on the way back. We would have done fine if we took the Accord, but the weather was such a risk we had to take the 4WD pickup. Traffic, for the most part, was light. I’d say it would take a bit over 8 hours, maybe 8 and a half, to drive there directly. We had some side trips so I can’t say for sure. Interstates all the way.
When we arrived in Niagara Falls, Canada, we went to “Bird Kingdom” first. This is just over the Rainbow Bridge. It was great, and I’m not a birder. They have set up much of the interior like old Mayan temple ruins. Nice waterfalls. Pretty birds, bats & other creatures.
We pulled up to the hotel and had our first surprise. We thought we’d be parking next to the hotel and had not kept our stuff compactly packed (we’d spent the night before at another hotel just outside of Erie). We figured we could take our time to carry it all inside. However, we were informed that we could park ourselves, if we wished, in a lot 2 or 3 blocks away. Or use their valet service. $20 per day, either way. So we pulled out of the way, hurriedly tried to pull it all together, and let the bellman cart it all up to our room. Then I handed my keys to the valet and never saw the truck again until we left.
They provide a shuttle bus to the area attractions on a 30 minute loop. Very useful, and we certainly did not need any other form of transportation. There was a gift shop across from the hotel- not a great one, just an OK one. In fact, that’s its name: “OK Gift Shop.” I kid you not. Lots of Korean writing on the building. We went inside and discovered the usual tourist knick knacks, plenty of not inexpensive jewelry, clothes and Pepto-Bismol. Strange assortment. And bongs. Many stores we passed were selling bongs! The other things we found in there were beaver and reindeer pelts. The reindeer pelts looked quite nice and they wanted $190 Canadian for them. My wife and I discussed getting one to put before the fireplace. But they were a bit small, and we thought we’d see what others charged for them. After all, where but a tourist trap are you going to find a reindeer skin? So we hopped the shuttle and went to another gift shop, right on the water. We asked a lady inside if they had any reindeer skins for sale. Boy, we sure asked the wrong person the wrong question. She lit off and started talking rapidly “Who would possibly sell such a thing” (we told her), “You can’t take that out of the country” “Customs won’t let you take such a thing into the States” “Such items must remain preserved in Canada” “What else would you be looking for, beavers” (we kept our mouths shut on that one).
She just couldn’t let it go; we had to just walk away as soon as we could without being too rude. We hadn’t considered any restrictions on such material and thanked her for letting us know.
The hotel is the Marriott Fallsview. There is another Marriott there, not nearly as nice or as well situated for the view. All the rooms are on one side of the hotel, toward the water. We paid the premium for the “falls view” over the “river view.” That was money very well spent. We spent a lot of time just looking at the falls. I think one room on each floor looks out away from the falls, down the river. These rooms all end in “30.” We were in room 1201, at the opposite end.
The view was spectacular (see thumbnails). We could see both falls. The room was quite large, as you can see from the thumbnails. The bathroom was large, too. Both wired and wireless internet was available, for $20 per day. There was a large basket of convenience items- toiletries, snacks, wine, etc- all quite pricey. The refrigerator was enclosed in an armoire with the TV. It also was stocked and the pricing followed the same trend. IIRC, a 375ml bottle of wine was $25, a beer was $5 and soda was $4. Or you could go down the hall and use a $3 token to get a soda. Video games took two of these tokens per game.
The amenities were outstanding. They had a pool, sauna, steam room and whirlpool spa. We certainly made good use of these. If you’ve never been in a real steam room, jump at the chance if the opportunity arises. They also had a fully equipped exercise room.
The only weak point about the hotel is the thin walls. We heard people in the room next door speaking in a normal tone of voice. We heard them again later, when they were having a more intimate moment. Well, actually, a more intimate several minutes. I won’t go into details; I’ll just say they were expressive people with great stamina.
The breakfast buffet was very nice- everything you’d want and more. We ate supper there once, using the $75 discount coupon which somehow became a $76 and some change coupon. Most entrée’s were in the $40-$60 range. The food was good, but not great, and service was slow. For the prices charged, we expected superb food. Our bill was something like $135 before applying the coupon, and we did not have any wine or drinks. I had rack of lamb and my wife had Tiger Prawns.
Also across the street from the hotel was the Copacabana Brazilian Steak house, with an outside grill where all the meat is prepared. Absolutely wonderful! :up :up :up Their “salad bar” had the expected huge selection of salad items, plus spaghetti and meat sauce, chicken, vegetables, and other hot items. They called it the “warm bar” I think. You could easily make a full meal there. “But wait” as they say on TV, “There’s more!” They have a staff of waiters that come by with meat on large skewers. You have a card that you flip over to say “bring more meat” or “satisfied right now.” They tend to push the meat regardless of how the card is flipped. Lamb, sirloin, prime rib, sausage, chicken, pork, more cow marinated different ways- and did I mention the lamb? Some was in chunks they slid off onto your plate, some was sliced in front of you and you used some tongs to hold the meat being cut and then move it to your plate. They also brought by baked stuffed potatoes and fried bananas. And the lamb! Perhaps I should mention, I’m partial to lamb. :lick
:
We went to the Casino Fallsview, located in a shopping mall (consisting mostly of the casino). Absolutely gorgeous! One of the pictures below is of a machine just outside the main entrance. You’d really have to see it to appreciate it. We went back later and took video of it. There is another casino, but not as nice. We’re not gamblers, so we only dropped around $20 or so in the machines. They also had gaming tables and games we’d never heard of. At one spot in the casino, still within a few feet of the slot machines, there was a bar and live entertainment- a female vocalist and male accompanist. No one paid them the slightest notice. There was another bar not so close to the gaming machines where they had a band playing stuff from the 70s and 80s. My kind of music. Drinks in the casino were almost cheap. They also had a restaurant, but we did not eat there. Looked good, though. In that shopping mall is the “Firkin Pub.” Avoid them. We were quite disappointed and later learned they have a poor reputation for quality and service. Food was so-so.
The experience was wonderful, a great vacation for us. :clap The falls in winter have a great appeal. The spray coated street lamps with interesting ice forms. We came back with lots of chocolate we can’t eat yet because we’re dieting. And of course, everyone was very polite.
:
We did not run into any heavy snow or ice during the trip. We had a bit of snow on the way back. We would have done fine if we took the Accord, but the weather was such a risk we had to take the 4WD pickup. Traffic, for the most part, was light. I’d say it would take a bit over 8 hours, maybe 8 and a half, to drive there directly. We had some side trips so I can’t say for sure. Interstates all the way.
When we arrived in Niagara Falls, Canada, we went to “Bird Kingdom” first. This is just over the Rainbow Bridge. It was great, and I’m not a birder. They have set up much of the interior like old Mayan temple ruins. Nice waterfalls. Pretty birds, bats & other creatures.
We pulled up to the hotel and had our first surprise. We thought we’d be parking next to the hotel and had not kept our stuff compactly packed (we’d spent the night before at another hotel just outside of Erie). We figured we could take our time to carry it all inside. However, we were informed that we could park ourselves, if we wished, in a lot 2 or 3 blocks away. Or use their valet service. $20 per day, either way. So we pulled out of the way, hurriedly tried to pull it all together, and let the bellman cart it all up to our room. Then I handed my keys to the valet and never saw the truck again until we left.
They provide a shuttle bus to the area attractions on a 30 minute loop. Very useful, and we certainly did not need any other form of transportation. There was a gift shop across from the hotel- not a great one, just an OK one. In fact, that’s its name: “OK Gift Shop.” I kid you not. Lots of Korean writing on the building. We went inside and discovered the usual tourist knick knacks, plenty of not inexpensive jewelry, clothes and Pepto-Bismol. Strange assortment. And bongs. Many stores we passed were selling bongs! The other things we found in there were beaver and reindeer pelts. The reindeer pelts looked quite nice and they wanted $190 Canadian for them. My wife and I discussed getting one to put before the fireplace. But they were a bit small, and we thought we’d see what others charged for them. After all, where but a tourist trap are you going to find a reindeer skin? So we hopped the shuttle and went to another gift shop, right on the water. We asked a lady inside if they had any reindeer skins for sale. Boy, we sure asked the wrong person the wrong question. She lit off and started talking rapidly “Who would possibly sell such a thing” (we told her), “You can’t take that out of the country” “Customs won’t let you take such a thing into the States” “Such items must remain preserved in Canada” “What else would you be looking for, beavers” (we kept our mouths shut on that one).
She just couldn’t let it go; we had to just walk away as soon as we could without being too rude. We hadn’t considered any restrictions on such material and thanked her for letting us know. The hotel is the Marriott Fallsview. There is another Marriott there, not nearly as nice or as well situated for the view. All the rooms are on one side of the hotel, toward the water. We paid the premium for the “falls view” over the “river view.” That was money very well spent. We spent a lot of time just looking at the falls. I think one room on each floor looks out away from the falls, down the river. These rooms all end in “30.” We were in room 1201, at the opposite end.
The view was spectacular (see thumbnails). We could see both falls. The room was quite large, as you can see from the thumbnails. The bathroom was large, too. Both wired and wireless internet was available, for $20 per day. There was a large basket of convenience items- toiletries, snacks, wine, etc- all quite pricey. The refrigerator was enclosed in an armoire with the TV. It also was stocked and the pricing followed the same trend. IIRC, a 375ml bottle of wine was $25, a beer was $5 and soda was $4. Or you could go down the hall and use a $3 token to get a soda. Video games took two of these tokens per game.
The amenities were outstanding. They had a pool, sauna, steam room and whirlpool spa. We certainly made good use of these. If you’ve never been in a real steam room, jump at the chance if the opportunity arises. They also had a fully equipped exercise room.
The only weak point about the hotel is the thin walls. We heard people in the room next door speaking in a normal tone of voice. We heard them again later, when they were having a more intimate moment. Well, actually, a more intimate several minutes. I won’t go into details; I’ll just say they were expressive people with great stamina.
The breakfast buffet was very nice- everything you’d want and more. We ate supper there once, using the $75 discount coupon which somehow became a $76 and some change coupon. Most entrée’s were in the $40-$60 range. The food was good, but not great, and service was slow. For the prices charged, we expected superb food. Our bill was something like $135 before applying the coupon, and we did not have any wine or drinks. I had rack of lamb and my wife had Tiger Prawns.
Also across the street from the hotel was the Copacabana Brazilian Steak house, with an outside grill where all the meat is prepared. Absolutely wonderful! :up :up :up Their “salad bar” had the expected huge selection of salad items, plus spaghetti and meat sauce, chicken, vegetables, and other hot items. They called it the “warm bar” I think. You could easily make a full meal there. “But wait” as they say on TV, “There’s more!” They have a staff of waiters that come by with meat on large skewers. You have a card that you flip over to say “bring more meat” or “satisfied right now.” They tend to push the meat regardless of how the card is flipped. Lamb, sirloin, prime rib, sausage, chicken, pork, more cow marinated different ways- and did I mention the lamb? Some was in chunks they slid off onto your plate, some was sliced in front of you and you used some tongs to hold the meat being cut and then move it to your plate. They also brought by baked stuffed potatoes and fried bananas. And the lamb! Perhaps I should mention, I’m partial to lamb. :lick
: We went to the Casino Fallsview, located in a shopping mall (consisting mostly of the casino). Absolutely gorgeous! One of the pictures below is of a machine just outside the main entrance. You’d really have to see it to appreciate it. We went back later and took video of it. There is another casino, but not as nice. We’re not gamblers, so we only dropped around $20 or so in the machines. They also had gaming tables and games we’d never heard of. At one spot in the casino, still within a few feet of the slot machines, there was a bar and live entertainment- a female vocalist and male accompanist. No one paid them the slightest notice. There was another bar not so close to the gaming machines where they had a band playing stuff from the 70s and 80s. My kind of music. Drinks in the casino were almost cheap. They also had a restaurant, but we did not eat there. Looked good, though. In that shopping mall is the “Firkin Pub.” Avoid them. We were quite disappointed and later learned they have a poor reputation for quality and service. Food was so-so.
The experience was wonderful, a great vacation for us. :clap The falls in winter have a great appeal. The spray coated street lamps with interesting ice forms. We came back with lots of chocolate we can’t eat yet because we’re dieting. And of course, everyone was very polite.
:
