Cooperstown NY / Niagara Falls / Toronto

[Hidden_Mickey]

TRIP REPORT - post 18!

We are going to do this trip on a long weekend in the fall. We will spend one full day at the Baseball Hall of Fame, staying at the Holiday Inn. Is one day enough?

Then we will drive to Niagara and spend 2 full days there before driving home on the 3rd day. We are staying at the Marriott Fallsview. Trip Advisor reviews are great, the views look great, but I just looked at the map, and while it looks directly on the falls, it looks to be far from the action (Maid of the Mist, etc.) How far is it really? Can we walk or will we have to drive? Is parking near the attractions a problem? Might there be a shuttle provided by the hotel?

We will do Maid of the Mist, etc. on the first full day. We would like to take the second day to drive north to Niagara on the Lake - I want to visit Inskillin winery so I can get a bottle of the ice wine I had at Le Cellier!!! DH wants to then go further north to Toronto, to the Hockey Hall of Fame. We have the entire day to do this. Will we have enough time?

Any suggestions would be appreciated, thanks!

 

[FireDancer]

Your hotel is very close to everything. I stayed about 1.5 miles further away from the falls then you are and still walked there without a problem. All you'll do is head down to the Parkway and the whole area is quite pedestrian friendly. I would much rather drive then deal with parking again.

Niagara-On-The-Lake is a short drive up the parkway. I would recommend taking the parkway the whole way because the scenery is really nice. Stop at the whirlpool and get some pictures, the view is great. It isn't the quickest way but I would still recommend it. NOTL is a nice small town with a lot of small shops. It is a bit like a small European town.

The drive from NOTL to Toronto is about 1 hour 45 minutes give or take. I have no idea if this will leave you enough time for what you want to do in Toronto but it should help you plan a bit.

 

[AnnR]

A full day at the Baseball Hall of Fame should be enough. But that area is beautiful! You may want to look on Trip Advisor again for recommendations. There are a lot of small bed and breakfast in the area, some right in Cooperstown so you can walk everywhere.

 

[Hidden_Mickey]

I think a quick stop in NOTL will suffice, and a half day in Toronto should be enough. The only thing we want to see there is the HOF. We could probably find other things to see/do, but I'm sure we will be eager to get back to the hotel and rest up for the 8 hour drive home the next day. This will be Toronto, commando style, lol!

 

[merryweather20]

One day is definitely enough for the hockey hall of fame. I'd try and get an early start Niagara Falls tends to get grid locked by 10:30 or so on holiday week-ends.

Fireworks schedule:

http://www.niagarafallstourism.com/fireworks.html

It is a bit of a hike from your hotel than out to Clifton hill, than down to the falls, but definitely doable, and no big deal, you can take a fun short-cut up if you get tired:

http://www.niagaraparks.com/attractions/falls-incline-railway.html

Parking will be a PITB around the falls, and costly to boot, you'll be fine walking if you want to see Clifton Hill, the Falls, Maid of the Mist and the Casino. If you want to hit some of the more far flung attractions like the Spanish Aero car and the Floral clock, there is a tourist bus with an all day pass, but the local stuff will be enough to occupy your time.

And may I recomend the Flying Saucer for breakfast:

http://www.fallscasino.com/saucer/index-2.html

Its nothing fancy, but it looks like a flying saucer inside and out, and the breakfast is crazy inexpensive

 

[devonsmommy]

I JUST got back last weekend from staying at the Marriott Fallsview. Let me upload some pictures to photobucket and I'll post them here for you!

 

[Hidden_Mickey]

I JUST got back last weekend from staying at the Marriott Fallsview. Let me upload some pictures to photobucket and I'll post them here for you!

Ooooo! Did you like it? How far was it from the action?

 

[Lifelong_Dreamer]

I found Niagara Falls to be very pedestrian friendly and very easy to walk. I was there in April and every morning I went for a walk along the falls. I was at the Sheraton Fallsview on Clifton Hill across from the American Falls and it was not a bad walk at all to get down to the Canadian Falls. As was posted by somebody else there is a shuttle you can catch if you don't want to walk.

 

[ColoradoMom!!]

Ahhh - all our favorite places - check out my siggy.

Just got back from Cooperstown last week. Fall is a great time because you will avoid the 1,000+ boys and their families there for baseball tournaments.

Sure the HI will be fine for one night. Loved eating at the Yum Yum Shack - great Italian. Be sure to just a bit north (like three blocks)of the HOF to see Ostego Lake. My hubby has spent hours in the HOF over three different visits, but yes, one day is fine. Oh, if you want to eat on the same street as the HOF, we liked this little basement pub at the Tunnicliff Inn - good food!http://www.cooperstownchamber.org/tunnicliff/thepit.html

We loved Niagara Falls! We stayed on the Canadian side, had fun at Clifton Hill.
Maid of the Mist was our fav - actually did that on the US side. Wish we had make it to Niagara on the Lake.

Have fun - sounds like an awesome time.

 

[Tiana]

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[Hidden_Mickey]

OK, DIS experts.... This trip will happen in a few weeks and I have some last minute questions...

Does anyone know what kind of ice wine they serve at Le Cellier? I know the brand is Inskillin, and I want to visit their winery. But, do they have different types? I want the one I had at Le Cellier! I'm not much into wine but I really liked it. Yes, it was more like grape juice, lol!

Should we eat dinner in Toronto? Are there any decent restaurants near the HOF? We don't want anything gourmet and don't want to spend too much. We are looking for something family friendly, good, and inexpensive.

If you can recommend the same type of place in Niagara Falls, that would be helpful also... thanks!

Thanks!

 

[autumnpalm]

Hi there!

I live in Toronto so hopefully I can help you out a little.

For food, I would go with Richtree Market. It is right by the HHOF in the BCE building and they have tons of little stations with all sorts of foods from all different ethnicities- fresh juices, delicious desserts... their belgian waffles are DELICIOUS!

http://www.richtree.ca/

Also, if you're going to be at the HOF on Front Street, I would recommend taking a quick trip down to the Harbourfront. It's literally 5 min away and there are some neat festivals there all year round, plus it has some beautiful views.

http://www.harbourfrontcentre.com/

Enjoy your trip!

 

[Hidden_Mickey]

Hi there!

I live in Toronto so hopefully I can help you out a little.

For food, I would go with Richtree Market. It is right by the HHOF in the BCE building and they have tons of little stations with all sorts of foods from all different ethnicities- fresh juices, delicious desserts... their belgian waffles are DELICIOUS!

http://www.richtree.ca/

Also, if you're going to be at the HOF on Front Street, I would recommend taking a quick trip down to the Harbourfront. It's literally 5 min away and there are some neat festivals there all year round, plus it has some beautiful views.

http://www.harbourfrontcentre.com/

Enjoy your trip!

Ooo, thanks! I was just looking at the Harbourfront. Looks fun!

How is the CN Tower?

 

[rkrivas]

In keeping with the hockey theme, you could eat at Wayne Gretzky's restaurant. We were there last summer and the food was pretty good. I'm not sure where the HOF is, but the restaurant is a few blocks from the CN Tower and the baseball stadium.

My kids loved the CN Tower. We arrived first thing in the a.m. because the crowds get heavier as the day goes on. I'm not sure if it's possible to buy tickets ahead of time for a specific time.

 

[abdmom]

On your way home, try and get across the border very early, like 7-7:30 a.m.. It can get a 2 hour backup later on, around 9 or 10 a.m. If you're going on a holiday weekend, it will be worse.

Here's a link describing Inniskillin's three ice wines Inniskillin

 

[autumnpalm]

Ooo, thanks! I was just looking at the Harbourfront. Looks fun!

How is the CN Tower?

It's expensive, but it really is pretty cool. If you are there on a clear day, I would go for it. There are often coupons and discounts available, so try Googling and searching around before you go.

 

[Hidden_Mickey]

Question about the Maid of the Mist: how wet does it get? Can you bring a camera/video camera, or will it get ruined?

 

[Hidden_Mickey]

Trip report!!!

We left on Wednesday at 6:15 pm. Ate dinner in the car. Got to Cooperstown just before 10:00. We stayed at the Holiday Inn, a few miles from downtown. It was a nice hotel, with free breakfast.

Thursday, we checked out and headed to the Baseball Hall of Fame around 9:30 am. We parked in the lot at Doubleday Field for free (yay!) There were people there, but it wasn't crowded. The museum was cool, the actual hall of plaques... sorta boring, lol! I think the kids were kinda bored. DS 10 liked the "Who's on first" bit by Abbott & Costello the best. We took our time and left around 1:30 in search of lunch. We drove through Cooperstown a little bit. It looked like a cute town. We ended up at the Pizza Hut near the hotel. After lunch we headed to Niagara Falls. We got there around 7:00 and checked into the Marriott. They upgraded us to a room on the 17th floor! We went to TGI Friday's for dinner, as it was nearby. It was expensive though - sheesh! We went back to the room and watched the lights on the falls for a bit before turning in early. And watched the football game of course.

Friday, we checked out the falls up close, did the "Behind the Falls" attraction, where you can get up close, then walked to the Maid of the Mist. DH and I agreed that was the highlight of the trip. It was a nice day with a blue sky, and the falls were beautiful. Then we walked to the Hard Rock Cafe, which was nearby. That was also an expensive lunch, and DH thought his burger was overcooked, so not the best meal. Then we walked around the Clifton Hills area. The kids did a few of the attractions. There were haunted houses, play areas, & a LEGO display. It's basically a crazy expensive midway. DS and I rode the SkyWheel. It was $18 for both of us to ride a stinking ferris wheel! It was a cool view of the falls and the city, but holy cow! After that we walked back to the Marriott through Queen Victoria Park, which was scenic. The kids wanted to go in the pool and DH took a nap. We got take out from Friday's again... still ridiculously expensive, but we were too lazy to go elsewhere. We watched the fireworks over the falls from our room. The city looked a lot like Atlantic City to me.

Saturday, we headed out to Toronto around 9:00. We got there around 11:00. It is a nice city - looked very clean. I guess they all look clean next to NYC, lol. The Hockey Hall of Fame is in a mall complex in the heart of the city. The building is very light & airy, with a huge window on the roof - very cool architecture! We spent a few hours in the HOF - DS 10 played the new NHL video game and shot some pucks in the video area. We got to see the Stanley Cup on display and got to take our pictures with it and touch it - WAY cool! It looks like the area where the cup is on display used to be an old bank, with vaults, and it has a stained glass window in the roof. The room is beautiful. When we were done in the HOF, we ate lunch in the mall. For a Saturday, it was pretty quiet in there. It looks like it is in an office complex, so maybe they cater to employees during the week? When we were done with lunch, we got back into the car and headed out of the city. Next we went to Niagara on the Lake, just north of Niagara Falls. There are several wineries in the area - even Wayne Gretzky has one! As you drive down the streets, you can see the grapes hanging from the vines, which I thought was cool. We went to the Innskillin winery, and bought a bottle of regular wine, and a bottle of icewine. We were too late for the last tour of the day. I doubt the kids would have been into that, so it was OK. I just wanted to buy a bottle of the stuff I had at Le Cellier! DH thought I was nuts Then we drove back to the hotel. We had seen a restaurant called "My Cousin Vinny's" so decided to walk there to try something different. It turned out to be pretty good. One of the waitresses had a shirt on that said "Grab life by the falls", lol! We headed to bed early to prepare for the ride home the next day.

Sunday, we got up at 5:00, showered, packed up, and were on the road by 6:00. DH wanted to get home in time for the Giants kickoff. That was a tough ride. We literally pulled up to the house at 12:55!

We had a fun weekend but driving 1100 miles in 4 days is not for the faint of heart, lol.

Next year we are planning to go to Cedar Point, in Ohio, with a stop at the Rock Hall of Fame in Cleveland and the NFL Hall of Fame in Canton. Let the planning begin!

 

[FireDancer]

Next year we are planning to go to Cedar Point, in Ohio, with a stop at the Rock Hall of Fame in Cleveland and the NFL Hall of Fame in Canton. Let the planning begin!

Glad the trip went well. When it comes time to visit Cleveland, Canton, and Cedar Point feel free to ask for any restaurant/hotel/route/other things to do advice.