Another PTR - Let's Make it a Half!

[PrincessInOz]

YAY for decisions. And Congrats on getting 'in'.

 

[zanzibar138]

YAY for decisions. And Congrats on getting 'in'.

Yes, decisions are good

I have to admit I feel like a bit of a dill having woken up at 3:30am yesterday to register. The half *still* has spots available! I was pretty concerned because it's the 10 year anniversary for the half and I thought it would be extra popular.

The 'Dumbo' challenge on the other hand (the 10k one day and half the next - for REALLY crazy people ) sold out in about 10 minutes.

 

[zanzibar138]

I have no new trip plans, but I had a bit of a breakthrough with my running on the weekend. I finally managed to run 10k with no walk breaks On track to submit a good time and get a decent corral for the half, just need to keep working on my speed!

 

[PrincessInOz]

Well done on your training! It sounds like you'll definitely get a decent corral.

 

[zanzibar138]

Well done on your training! It sounds like you'll definitely get a decent corral.

Ugh. To get the corral I want I still need to wipe 10 minutes off my 10k time before June. It will definitely be a challenge!

 

[zanzibar138]

Well, we have finally locked our flights in! I know I said we were going to stick with Plan A, but you probably know us well enough by now to realise that it wasn't going to happen lol!

The first part of our trip is the same of course, still flying into LAX via HK and spending about a week at DLR. However, we now leave DLR on the Tuesday, and head to Buffalo via Boston (on an overnight flight - yuck!). Our plan is to basically head straight into Canada and split that week between Niagara Falls and Toronto. For the homeward journey, we are now flying out of Boston to Seoul via Tokyo (yep, that's a lot of flights!). We were going to have our 23 hours in Tokyo, but I thought it might not be worth it having heard about the complexities of Tokyo. We'll have 23 hours in Seoul (our way of having a stopover without a stopover). I've already decided on an airport hotel and booked in 2 of the free airport layover tours. From there we head back to HK to meet up with our original flight home.

So, we will now definitely be going to HKDL on our way over, and staying at one of the Disney hotels on property. We won't get long at all in the park, so my priorities will be to ride Mystic Manor, see the Lion King, and watch the fireworks. Anything else will be a bonus. By that time, DLR will have their own version of the 'Paint the Night' parade, so it won't matter if we have to miss that in HK.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Sounds like you have a great trip planned! YAY for locking things in. Niagara and Toronto will be lovely.

 

[WanderlustNZ]

Your plans sound so exciting and you will be ticking off so many new places in the one trip.

I feel bad that I haven't been on the Dis much lately. After April this year, I've committed myself to no more overseas trips for years. While I'm surprisingly okay with that fact at present, I know it could take reading just one exciting TR and my saving willpower will go out the window. My track record is not great. Lol.

Despite this, I still like to share in my Dis friend's excitement, and your plans sound great. Will keep popping in every now and then to see how your plans are evolving.

On a separate note, I've been using the BitGym App this year to encourage me to use my stationary bike. A virtual bike isn't as good as the real thing, but I've still been enjoying exploring scenic places around the world. This morning I cycled around some Oregon waterfalls and it reminded me of your trip. It looks like such a lovely slice of the world.

 

[zanzibar138]

Your plans sound so exciting and you will be ticking off so many new places in the one trip.

I feel bad that I haven't been on the Dis much lately. After April this year, I've committed myself to no more overseas trips for years. While I'm surprisingly okay with that fact at present, I know it could take reading just one exciting TR and my saving willpower will go out the window. My track record is not great. Lol.

Despite this, I still like to share in my Dis friend's excitement, and your plans sound great. Will keep popping in every now and then to see how your plans are evolving.

On a separate note, I've been using the BitGym App this year to encourage me to use my stationary bike. A virtual bike isn't as good as the real thing, but I've still been enjoying exploring scenic places around the world. This morning I cycled around some Oregon waterfalls and it reminded me of your trip. It looks like such a lovely slice of the world.

Great to hear from you Wanderlust! I've missed seeing your friendly face around here!

This will definitely be our last big trip for a number of years. I know I've said it before, but this year we will be buying a new house (an upgrade from our old one), so we won't have a choice. We still plan to do a small trip every year for our anniversary, but apart from that, we'll really have to knuckle down. I know how you feel about reading TRs - part of me wants to do it so I can live vicariously through someone else, but part of me just doesn't want to know!

I haven't heard about the BitGym app. It sounds like fun!

 

[PrincessInOz]

Your plans sound so exciting and you will be ticking off so many new places in the one trip.

I feel bad that I haven't been on the Dis much lately. After April this year, I've committed myself to no more overseas trips for years. While I'm surprisingly okay with that fact at present, I know it could take reading just one exciting TR and my saving willpower will go out the window. My track record is not great. Lol.

Despite this, I still like to share in my Dis friend's excitement, and your plans sound great. Will keep popping in every now and then to see how your plans are evolving.

On a separate note, I've been using the BitGym App this year to encourage me to use my stationary bike. A virtual bike isn't as good as the real thing, but I've still been enjoying exploring scenic places around the world. This morning I cycled around some Oregon waterfalls and it reminded me of your trip. It looks like such a lovely slice of the world.

Glad to see you back here as well.

 

[lffam]

<snip>
I feel bad that I haven't been on the Dis much lately. After April this year, I've committed myself to no more overseas trips for years. While I'm surprisingly okay with that fact at present, I know it could take reading just one exciting TR and my saving willpower will go out the window. My track record is not great. Lol.
<snip>

Welcome back! It;s been a while since I've seen you around. I can speak from experience when you have the best intentions to not do something. but then something changes that!

 

[WanderlustNZ]

Thanks everyone. I will have to make sure I pop back more regularly

Zanzibar, the BitGym App is really cool for those of us who love travel. It's basically a set of videos taken from the perspective of someone walking or cycling through different locations around the world (mostly the USA). The camera on your tablet, assesses how fast you are cycling or walking from the bobbing of your head and speeds up or slows down the video accordingly. It is a monthly subscription app, but I've managed to get my money's worth so far.
Now, if I could just stop ruining all my good work with chocolate and ice cream...

 

[Aussie Wendy]

The BitGymApp sounds good - it might even motivate armchair lover me! Zanzibar looking forward to your trip too - next best thing living vicariously through you. Will have to make the most of it though I see. Pesky real estate and life interrupting our fun. I hope you post a pic of your new place when you buy it. Will you be staying in the same beautiful area?

 

[zanzibar138]

We've bought our new house! Sorry Wendy, but I wasn't planning to post pictures of it. I hope you'll understand me being wary of sharing too much personal information on a public forum.

We were aiming to get a bit closer to the city with this place. Couldn't get as far in as we wanted to, but I think this place is a nice compromise between being a bit closer (close to half an hour) and still within striking distance of our current beautiful area. Just means we will have to make a special trip up the hill if we want to rather than driving over/around it every day. The house we've bought is still on a big block, and has a great dog park just over the road and plenty of access to trails we can use for walking/running/cycling, so I don't think we'll feel too hemmed in.

We move in early May - can't wait!

 

[PrincessInOz]

We've bought our new house! Sorry Wendy, but I wasn't planning to post pictures of it. I hope you'll understand me being wary of sharing too much personal information on a public forum.

We were aiming to get a bit closer to the city with this place. Couldn't get as far in as we wanted to, but I think this place is a nice compromise between being a bit closer (close to half an hour) and still within striking distance of our current beautiful area. Just means we will have to make a special trip up the hill if we want to rather than driving over/around it every day. The house we've bought is still on a big block, and has a great dog park just over the road and plenty of access to trails we can use for walking/running/cycling, so I don't think we'll feel too hemmed in.

We move in early May - can't wait!

Wonderful news. I'm so happy for you! Congratulations.

Can't wait to hear all about it!

 

[zanzibar138]

Wonderful news. I'm so happy for you! Congratulations.

Can't wait to hear all about it!

Thanks PIO We're very excited!

 

[zanzibar138]

We've finally decided on an itinerary for our trip. We're going to do a grand circle tour of Lake Ontario! We've decided to go anti-clockwise so that we end our trip at Niagara Falls.

Since we arrive around lunch time, we're not planning to go too far that first day, only to Rochester. It's about a 1 1/2 hour drive direct, but we plan to go via Fort Niagara and along the lake parkway instead, which will add about an hour's driving time. DH is excited about visiting Rochester as it featured in a train computer game he used to play as a teenager lol! Personally I'm more excited about the scenery we'll see along the way.

The next day we'll continue our drive to the Thousand Islands region, which is right in the north east corner of the lake. It's about a 3 hour drive direct, but of course we'll be stopping along the way. We'll cross the border and stay on the Canada side. This area looks really beautiful, so I've allowed 2 nights here. I want to do a cruise around some of the islands, and take in the views from an observation deck in the area, as well as just explore the parkway.

I toyed with the idea of staying one night on Prince Albert Island, but decided our time would be better spent elsewhere. We will just visit on our way through to Toronto. The drive from Gananoque is only about 3 hours, and PAI is about halfway, so we should be able to stop for lunch with time to do some exploring. I've decided to only spend one night in Toronto, in favour of adding another one at Niagara Falls. It's only a (relatively) short drive between the two, so we should still have time in Toronto to see anything that looks appealing. Our trip to Oregon confirmed that we're both a bit awkward in cities.

Now for audience participation time... I'd rather stay on the Canada side of the falls, but part of me is nervous about getting stuck at border control on our way to the airport on our last morning. Is this a legitimate concern? If so, I'd probably be able to relax more on the US side. We can still see the Canada side on our way through. Also, I know there are a few of you who've been. We'll have a full day there (and possibly an afternoon). What are the must do activities?

As usual, our accommodation budget for this road trip is fairly low at $100 per night. I'm pretty excited that I've been able to find suitable places that come in under budget at all our stops. They are all no frills motels slightly out of town, but get decent reviews. We're planning to spend all our time sight-seeing anyway. However, since it is my birthday while we're at Niagara Falls, I'd love to treat myself to a falls view room. There are a couple available at around $200 a night, which I think is definitely a splurge, but reasonable. It will just be a matter of getting DH to agree!

From there, nothing has changed. We'll still fly out via Boston and Tokyo to Seoul for our little stopover.

And speaking of stopovers, we have decided that we just don't have the time in HK to justify Disneyland. I have found a teeny tiny hotel room in Central HK for about $85, and we'll probably watch the sunset at the peak, find somewhere good for dinner, and watch the light show on the harbour before crashing at the hotel.

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[PrincessInOz]

Are you worried about the border crossing at Niagara Falls? The best person to answer this might be @skier_pete . Hopefully, he'll see the tag and come along here and be kind enough to provide local intel.

I've been to Niagara Falls twice - once staying at the Buffalo side and the other staying at the Canada side. I've walked across the border on both trips multiple times and not had an issue with the border crossing. But driving might be a different proposition.

There used to be a discount ticket that you could buy at Niagara Falls. It bundled up the Maid of the Mist, Behind the Falls, the walk along the river down the gorge, and the butterfly enclosure. It also gave you tickets to ride the bus that took you to all the destinations. I don't know if they still offer it; but it was 30 - 40% off buying the tickets separately. There are also any number of 'touristy' attractions in the Clifton Hill area on the Canadian side. Unless you like Waxwork museums, Ripley's Believe it or not etc, I would stay clear. I think there was a (short) funicular near the Horseshoe Falls. I thought that was worth it for the view of the falls.
If you are celebrating a birthday there, I would definitely spring for a falls view room.

Niagara used to have fireworks on two nights of the week. If they are still running the fireworks, it might be worth checking out which nights so that you can work out if you can plan it into your dates?

There are canals with locks near Niagara. We had planned to go....but totally ran out of time. I believe they are worth a visit?
And we also spent a short time at Niagara-on-the-lake. Pretty little town, expensive looking shops and we didn't have enough time to do it justice.

 

[skier_pete]

Now for audience participation time... I'd rather stay on the Canada side of the falls, but part of me is nervous about getting stuck at border control on our way to the airport on our last morning. Is this a legitimate concern? If so, I'd probably be able to relax more on the US side. We can still see the Canada side on our way through. Also, I know there are a few of you who've been. We'll have a full day there (and possibly an afternoon). What are the must do activities?

Are you worried about the border crossing at Niagara Falls? The best person to answer this might be @skier_pete . Hopefully, he'll see the tag and come along here and be kind enough to provide local intel.

Hey there! I DID spot her tag. Happy to help when any fellow DISers come from down under to our area. SO many people were so helpful to us when we planned our trip to Australia.

I live in Buffalo area, but about 20 minutes from Niagara Falls, so am pretty authoritative on the area. (Not quite an expert.)

The only thing is I guess I would ask you about the timing. I can tell from the post that you are going to be here in September, but exactly what is the date that you are flying out, and the time. Generally getting across the border from Niagara Falls Canada is not all that difficult, especially if you are coming first thing in the morning. I don't think there is much issue with "rush hour" traffic. I just checked for right now which is 8 AM in US, and there is no wait at any of the borders. You can look for yourself at http://www.niagarafallsbridges.com/index.php/services/traffic-conditions. You would come over the rainbow bridge. I would expect a typically morning crossing to be no more than 20 minutes.

The drive from the Falls to the Buffalo airport is maybe 30 minutes, it's not a real big airport, so giving yourself 90 minutes at the airport is probably sufficient as well.

As far as what to do, you mentioned driving up to Fort Niagara before going to Rochester. Fort Niagara is pretty nice, though you don't need more than 1-2 hours there to see it. It's about 45 minutes from the airport to get up there. The drive along the lake to Rochester has it's scenic parts and not so scenic parts, but if you are going up to Fort Niagara anyways, it's probably actually faster than going back down to the the thruway.

The 1000 islands are really beautiful. Definitely you want to take an island cruise as the best opportunity to see the area in a short time. Make sure to take one that also combines a stop at Boldt Castle. (You can look it up, it's pretty interesting.)

Toronto there of course is lots of stuff to do there - all depends on your tastes.

Niagara Falls you are definitely better off on the Canadian side. Your call as far as the Fallsview hotel room. We've stayed there, and the one time we had a Fallsview room it was like "OOOOHH!" for 20 seconds and then we never looked out there again (it was winter). However, we are more Jaded towards the falls as we can see it anytime we want. I agree with PIOs comment about the multi-pass that includes the bus. You can see quite a few things. In September the tourist season is pretty much over but the weather should still be nice, so you'll be able to see lots.

Another nice thing to do is to check out Niagara on the Lake - it's actually on the Canadian side of Lake Ontario, on the opposite side of the Niagara river from Fort Niagara, but its a small village with nice shops and restaurants and again if the weathers nice its nice to walk around and not quite as tacky/touristy as Niagara Falls. It's only about a 20 minute drive down (up) the river.

Any other questions - feel free to tag me again. I'll probably follow along, but I'm not always consistent in reading PTR/TRs.

 

[zanzibar138]

Thanks so much for your help PIO and skier_pete - I knew the DISers would come to my rescue

I think our flight leaves from Buffalo at about 11am on Tuesday the 15th of September, so it sounds like border control shouldn't be a problem. The only overland border I've ever crossed was Zimbabwe - Botswana and back, and that was a huge ordeal that took a long time! Living in Australia, we don't have much opportunity to drive over country borders Sounds like it shouldn't be a problem to stay on the Canada side.

I actually looked at staying a night at Niagara on the Lake, but it was too expensive. We'll probably drive through on our way to the falls. Sounds like a pretty place to visit. The canals with locks sound like they're worth checking out too. I'm sure that would interest DH - maybe we'll try to drive through that area on our way too.

I did wonder about the activity packages - any idea where we can purchase them? I did read somewhere about fireworks too, but am guessing they're not on Sunday or Monday nights, and I don't think it's important enough to try to change our itinerary. I've read that they have special lighting effects on Horseshoe Falls, so hoping that's on every night at least. Sounds like it will be worth the effort to try to convince DH to get a falls view room.