Archive for the 'Niagara Falls Attractions' Category

Butterfly Conservatory in Winter 2007

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Graham
on August 5, 2008
in Niagara Falls Attractions
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No, this is still not a typo… I’m just getting caught up with some pictures.

Last December I used some passes I had to the Niagara Parks Butterfly Conservatory and took my family. It was the first time I had ever been and I was very impressed. Since it was winter, it was particularly nice as we walked around the place without our coats on. From the second that you walk in, butterflies are everywhere! They are flying around the trees, sitting on ledges and railing, and eating. It was just such a peaceful place with beautiful surrounds. I have some more passes for this year, and I’ll definitely be using them.

I took some pictures and posted them in the Butterfly Conservatory in Winter 2007 gallery. As is usually the case, you can see some thumbnails below, and the larger versions in the gallery.



Note: There are now 2,549 images in Niagara Falls Image Gallery.

Electric Chair on Clifton Hill?!

Published
by
Graham
on August 5, 2008
in Niagara Falls Attractions
. 15 Comments

I generally don’t like reading blogs or articles that talk about how tacky Niagara Falls is. It may have been like that before, but companies are spending a lot of money to build beautiful attractions and hotels and to clean the place up. Sure, there are still places that aren’t great, but it has improved a lot.

I don’t usually express too many opinions on the blog, but I’m going to depart from that for a moment…

Recently, between the Dairy Queen and the restaurant beside it on Clifton Hill, an “electric chair” was put in. The chair, of course, is fake. The body, of course, is a dummy. It just sits there until someone puts $2 in. Then the body shakes about violently, smoke starts to come out, and a voice is there screaming. Apparently it is going all day. It’s only $2, so it’s almost throw away money, especially for the Americans who can’t really get anything back for their change. If you catch the tail end of it and want to take a picture or video, then you’ll put the money in. But I just don’t like this out on the street. If you want to put something like that inside a haunted house attraction, go for it. But keep it off the street. I don’t like this! I think it is a step backwards, and makes all of the improvements on Clifton Hill look bad.

News from Whirlpool Jet Boat Tours - July 31, 2008

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Graham
on August 4, 2008
in Niagara Falls Attractions
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Last Thursday I received the latest newsletter from Whirlpool Jet Boat Tours

For now, the only way I am aware of signing up for the newsletter is by visiting the web site of the company that provides the newsletter service.

Guinness World Records Museum in Summer 2007

Published
by
Graham
on August 1, 2008
in Niagara Falls Attractions
. 1 Comment

No, that’s not a typo! I am truly posting about a trip from last year. To be precise, it was a trip from the end of August 2007. I know, I know, I’m a little slow, but better late than never.

About a year ago my family and I went to the Guinness World Records Museum on Clifton Hill. I had been many years before, and as was expected, some things had changed, and some things hadn’t. The two things in the entrance are a great attention grabber. I’ve got pictures of my 3 & 5 year-old sons as if they are the world’s heaviest man, and they loved trying to push the big rock. Once you get inside, there are lots of other interactive exhibits. Some are quite dated, but others are new. It’s been a while since we went, so I don’t remember everything, but I do remember that it was an enjoyable trip.

I took some pictures and posted them in the Guinness World Records Museum in Summer 2007 gallery. As is usually the case, you can see some thumbnails below, and the larger versions in the gallery.



Note: There are now 2,509 images in Niagara Falls Image Gallery.

Rises in the Falls: A guide to Niagara Falls, Ont., attractions

Published
by
Graham
on July 28, 2008
in Niagara Falls Attractions, Niagara Falls Dining, Niagara Falls New York and Niagara Falls News
. 0 Comments

From the Buffalo News:

As Western New Yorkers, we’ve all been to the falls a million times. But although the cataracts’ natural beauty is the draw for us — and our out-of-town visitors — there’s no avoiding the bustling strips of tourist-centric attractions.

Yes, these places are hokey. Yes, many are overpriced. And no, the booming neon palaces will never be confused with the rich cultural institutions we have throughout our region. But sometimes these morsels of escapist entertainment, though aimed at entertaining tourists, satisfy the cravings of us locals.

There’s little doubt that the Canadian side of the falls — for better or worse — outdoes its American counterpart when it comes to shear numbers of flashy entertainment options. But as the Niagara Falls, Ont., landscape gets more and more crowded, it’s increasingly difficult to uncover the gems worth visiting. Here, we highlight a variety of attractions, events, restaurants and bars that should be on your radar when you travel across the border.

Recent Marineland trip observations (including new baby Beluga whale)

Published
by
Graham
on July 24, 2008
in Niagara Falls Attractions
. 1 Comment

This past Monday we went to Marineland. While we were there, I picked up my season’s pass, and we will definitely be going back.

General Observations

  • All of the water was a lot cleaner than previous visits. This includes the water in the aquarium, the Orca tanks, and the Beluga tanks
  • The show in the aquarium are very short and are hardly worth doing. They had three pacific walruses (two females and one male). They were fed and did a couple of small tricks. The whole thing only lasted a couple of minutes. However, I did learn something. The announcer claimed that tusks are like wisdom teeth. Sometimes they are removed if they will cause a problem. Out of the three walruses, only one female had tusks
  • There used to be a gift shop right next to aquarium in the same building. Obviously the space is still there, but it isn’t a gift shop anymore. That is now the place where you rent strollers and things
  • We watched the 5:15 stadium show on a Monday. The crowd was very small, so there wasn’t much “electricity” in the air. It had rained a bit earlier in the day, so I’m sure the park cleared out.
  • During the part of the show where the dolphin’s perform, there are normally four of them together. All four came out, but one of the dolphins wouldn’t do anything. The trainer was very patient and touched the dolphin a lot (obviously trying to coax it into performing), but it just wouldn’t do anything. It just didn’t seem interested at all
  • There were 16 belugas in one tank, and only 6 in others. There was someone sitting there with a clipboard and you could see two smaller Belugas swimming. Apparently there was a baby born two weeks ago. The other baby is actually the one that was born last year.

Ride Observations

  • I was technically within the height limit of the Orca Screamer, but realistically I was too big to go on. I didn’t fit well into the seat and hurt my back a bit. My 5-year-old son just loved the right, though
  • We went on Orca Screamer, Viking Adventure, Lady Bug Coaster, and Space Avenger
  • There were spider webs everywhere! I’m sure all of the heat, moisture, humidity makes it difficult to control. My sons kept pointing them out
  • all sorts of languages, always one of the interesting things about Niagara Falls
  • Pretty well everything seemed to be in working order. The only thing I noticed was that one of the “spaceships” on the Space Avenger wasn’t working

I didn’t take enough good pictures to put up a new gallery, so I’ve just posted a few below. You can click on the picture to see a larger version


The Viking Adventure


An Orca Whale


A Dolphin


A Beluga whale mother with its new baby (only 2 weeks old)


A Pacfic Walrus

Impressions of new Table Rock Place development

Published
by
Graham
on July 23, 2008
in Niagara Falls Attractions, Niagara Falls Developments, Niagara Falls Dining and Niagara Falls Shopping
. 2 Comments

On Saturday I walked down to Table Rock Place to get my first good look at the completed construction and take some pictures (with my cellphone, so they pictures aren’t the best). I was very impressed. I started on the opposite side of the road so I could walk across the new walkway. As you can see by the picture, they are still doing some work, but it is essentially done.

You enter the building in a big room that has several kiosks selling various souvenirs.

On your left is Niagara’s Fury. When I first got there, the attraction was in progress, and you could faintly hear/feel the vibration. It’s obviously pretty loud in there! After it was done, a lot of people came out, and many of them were quite wet. Almost everyone was smiling. It must be a hit!

As you continue through that first big room, the next thing you come to is the Pop & Lolly candy store. I was surprised at how “dead” the store was. There were half a dozen people working, and very few customers in the store.

At the back of the building (the side closest to the Falls) there is a viewing area. The view is very nice, but the mist dries on the windows, and then leaves watermarks, so it isn’t exactly a clear view.

I didn’t get a picture of it, but beside the viewing area (and also with a great view of the Falls) is the Elements on the Falls restaurant. The food is very expensive, but even with the prices, it was packed!

Overall, the end result of the building is gorgeous. The Niagara Parks Commission and their contractors did an amazing job!

Marineland “Terrors of the Sea” shark exhibit update!

Published
by
Graham
on July 22, 2008
in Niagara Falls Attractions and Niagara Falls Developments
. 5 Comments

How was that for a headline?!

:-)

Well, yesterday I went to Marineland. Here is the update (click on the picture to see a larger version):

To no one’s great surprise, there has been no progress.

I’ll post a few more pictures and a video from our visit later in the week…

Travelodge At the Falls News (July 2008)

Published
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Graham
on July 22, 2008
in Niagara Falls Attractions and Niagara Falls Hotels
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On Sunday I received the latest newsletter from the Niagara Clifton Group (the Travelodge, Fun House, Brick City, etc group). They are promoting various packages and their fun pass.

To sign up for the newsletter, click on the Join our FREE Email Mailing List link on the side of any of the pages at Falls.com

Avaia Practice and off stage - a set on Flickr

Published
by
Graham
on July 21, 2008
in Niagara Falls Attractions
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I recently came across a Flickr gallery with some behind-the-scenes pictures of Avaia. I know it’s gone, but they are still interesting to see…