There are many great sites out there with information on Niagara Falls. There are many well-known sites that don’t have very good information (but are marketed well) and sites that aren’t so well known but have great information. One site that I think is particularly good is Niagara Frontier Info (not to be mistaken with Thunder Alley).
Admittedly, the site isn’t fancy looking, but it is a great resource (and not just because they link to me). Starting on the main page, you can see the following:
- Click on the Attractions link and find a listing of over 50+ places to visit in the area (both Canadian and American)
- On that same Attractions page is information about Marineland, Darien Lake, and Fantasy Island
- Click on the Events link and you’ll see a good listing of events in the area in September
- There is also a forum. No one has posted anything yet, but it’s there and I’m sure Philip, the owner will respond
- Click on the History link and you’ll read some information on Erie County and Buffalo (nothing for the Canadian side)
- Perhaps the most intriguing idea is the Trip Planner. If you fill out a short form and let Philip know how much many you have to spend and what season you are coming, he will give you ideas on what you can do
- There is also a newsletter. I just signed up for it, so I’m not sure what the content will be like.
There are two main problems with the site.
- The main page doesn’t display properly in Mozilla Firefox. I couldn’t scroll down, so I couldn’t follow the links at the bottom (I had to use Internet Explorer). I’m sure this will get fixed.
- The look of the site is pretty boring. I’d rather have good content than a nice design, but the look needs to be improved.
As with any site like this (an independent site, not for profit), I’m sure Philip would love feedback (there is a survey), ideas, suggestions, and help. Overall, I guess I’m kind of fed up with sites like InfoNiagara and others that look pretty but haven’t updated their content in ages. Companies pay to be listed and then have the standard marketing garbage posted. They are ranked well in the search engines but don’t really provide anything worthwhile to the visitors. I’ve struggled with my own site, and it helps to have a community of people there to encourage you. It’s nice to see someone else trying to reach out and help promote the area in a positive way.