Things to Do in Niagara Falls: Tours, Tickets & Day Trips

Ranked by traveller reviews: 1) the boat ride to the base of the Horseshoe Falls (Maid of the Mist or Niagara City Cruises), 2) a Niagara Falls day tour from Toronto, 3) the Cave of the Winds Hurricane Deck on the US side, 4) Journey Behind the Falls on the Canadian side, 5) the zipline to the falls, 6) the Skylon Tower observation deck, 7) a helicopter flight over the falls and gorge, 8) the Whirlpool Aero Car and Niagara Glen, 9) the Niagara Parks Power Station and its tunnel to the river and 10) the night illumination and fireworks.

Plan one to two days. Day one: the boat ride first thing before the coaches arrive, then Cave of the Winds and Goat Island on the US side or Journey Behind the Falls and Table Rock on the Canadian side, cross the Rainbow Bridge on foot for the other view, the Skylon or a helicopter in the afternoon, and the illumination and fireworks after dark. Day two: the Whirlpool Aero Car, the Niagara Glen trails, the power-station tunnel, the Butterfly Conservatory, then wine tasting and the old town of Niagara-on-the-Lake. Clifton Hill fills an evening with children.

Niagara Falls State Park — the oldest state park in the US — with Prospect Point, the Goat Island paths, Terrapin Point over the Horseshoe and the Three Sisters Islands in the rapids; the Canadian promenade from Table Rock to the Rainbow Bridge; the nightly illumination and the summer fireworks at 10pm; the Niagara Glen’s gorge trails; Whirlpool State Park and Devil’s Hole; the Floral Clock and the Niagara Parkway’s Botanical Gardens grounds; Queen Street in Niagara-on-the-Lake; and the Old Fort Niagara grounds in Youngstown. Parking is the main cost on both sides.

Niagara-on-the-Lake and its icewine estates (20 minutes; wine tours from about $66 with the falls from Toronto), Toronto (90 minutes; the CN Tower and the islands), Buffalo for Frank Lloyd Wright’s Martin House and the original chicken wings (30 minutes), Old Fort Niagara and the village of Lewiston (20 minutes), the Welland Canal locks at St. Catharines (30 minutes), the Erie Canal locks at Lockport (40 minutes) and the waterfalls of Hamilton (one hour).

The falls are lit in changing colours every night from dusk, and fireworks burst over the Horseshoe at 10pm nightly in summer and on weekends in spring and autumn — watch from Table Rock, Queen Victoria Park or Prospect Point. Then the neon of Clifton Hill, the Skylon revolving restaurant, Fallsview Casino or the Seneca Niagara Casino on the US side, the Oh Canada Eh? dinner show, a night-time illumination tour and, in winter, the Winter Festival of Lights along the parkway. Ghost walks run at Fort George in Niagara-on-the-Lake.

The falls never fully freeze, but the spray builds ice mountains at the base and coats the trees and railings — a spectacular, quiet sight. The boats stop from late November to April and the Cave of the Winds runs a reduced walk, but Journey Behind the Falls, the Skylon Tower, the Butterfly Conservatory, the power-station tunnel, Niagara’s Fury and the casinos stay open. The Winter Festival of Lights runs from mid-November to early January along the parkway, and Niagara-on-the-Lake holds its Icewine Festival in January.

The boat ride in the yellow or blue ponchos, the Cave of the Winds Hurricane Deck (bring a change of clothes), Journey Behind the Falls, the Niagara SkyWheel and the arcades and dinosaur mini-golf of Clifton Hill, the Butterfly Conservatory, Bird Kingdom, the Aquarium of Niagara on the US side, the Whirlpool Aero Car, the zipline for children over seven, WildPlay’s adventure course and the fireworks. The Niagara Falls State Park trolley saves small legs between the viewpoints.

May to October, when the boats, Cave of the Winds and fireworks run — June to August is peak season with the biggest crowds, September and early October bring warm days, autumn colour and quieter paths. Late November to March offers frozen scenery, the Festival of Lights and low prices, but no boat rides.

Yes — sailing to the foot of the Horseshoe Falls in the roar and spray is the single experience everyone remembers, and both boats (Maid of the Mist on the US side, Niagara City Cruises on the Canadian side) are the most-reviewed attractions at the falls. Book the first departure of the morning or a sunset sailing to avoid the midday queues; the falls-view packages that add Cave of the Winds or Journey Behind the Falls are the best value.