Last fall I posted about an “art installation” on Robinson St that was a collaboration between the DoubleTree Fallsview Resort & Spa by Hilton Niagara Falls and local artists.
Well, the house, as well as the one beside it, have been torn down.
Another in my series on keycards…
I recently found this room keycard for the DoubleTree Fallsview Resort & Spa by Hilton – Niagara Falls. It’s different than the last one I found.
This is the first of my “Best of Access Niagara“. This series looks back on popular posts, highly commented posts, my favourite places, etc.
The DoubleTree Fallsview Resort & Spa by Hilton – Niagara Falls open in 2004, and it looks like my first post about them was in 2005. I had never heard of Doubletree before they came to Niagara Falls, but now see them all over the place. I’ve had the opportunity to stay there a couple of times, and it has always been a nice stay.
Strangely, one of my most popular posts ever was one I did back in 2008 that was about a Marineland package that they were offering. For the summer of 2008 it was by far the most visited page, and all of the traffic was coming from Google. I guess if you searched for Marineland package back then, my site was right up near the top. The Doubletree themselves told me that the hits to their website about the package “was [their] best result ever!”
Anyway, I’ve been hit hard by changes that Google has made over the years and I don’t get the traffic I got before. I still look back on those days in 2008 and wish that I could get such a high listing again. Maybe then I could actually make some money off this site 🙂
As a side note, the Doubletree does not have a Marineland package anymore. Apparently very few hotels do. However, the Doubletree does have a Summer Family Package that contains meals and Niagara Adventure Passes. You can read more about it here.
Here is the original page that I had about the Doubletree Marineland package
Another in my series on keycards…
I recently found this room keycard for the DoubleTree Fallsview Resort & Spa by Hilton – Niagara Falls. It’s rather plain, but obviously still serves its purpose.
I recently heard that the Doubletree Niagara Falls has added a sundial to one of their green spaces. Apparently it is a one where you stand in the right spot and your shadow tells the time. here is the information:
Sundials come in a wide range of different types, though by far one of the most interactive and fun is the Human Sundial which uses a person’s own shadow to show the correct time! DoubleTree Niagara Falls recently installed a Human Sun Dial Clock in it’s newly created green space with-in the city, on Fallsview Blvd. A great teaching tool for students and a curiosity teaser for young and old. DoubleTree Niagara Falls is a full service 224 room hotel located just two short blocks from the brink of the Falls, 400 yards to Fallsview Casino Resort.
I’ll definitely make time to check it out one day when I am on my walk.
I recently received the following information from the DoubleTree Fallsview Resort & Spa by Hilton – Niagara Falls related to the Buchanans Chophouse restaurant:
The recently launched drink local menu now includes $5 craft beers from local micro-breweries including Mill Street Organic Lager and Steam Whistle Pilsner. Also on the drink line up is a Niagara Region Wine flight with three wines, 2 oz. pour of each for $9. What better way to relax and enjoy good conversations!
A few weeks ago my family went to stay at the Doubletree Fallsview Resort & Spa by Hilton – Niagara Falls. We’ve stayed at the Doubletree a couple of times before (you can read my postings about our first visit and our second visit). Actually, the reason why we went was because my children see the hotel (you can see the Doubletree clearly as you drive down Stanley Ave) as we drive into Niagara Falls, and had been asking me when we could stay there again. If you’ve stayed at the hotel, this might seem a little odd. It isn’t a super kid-friendly hotel. However, it’s cozy, the views are great, and there is rarely anyone in the pool (when we’ve been there), so the kids love it.
We checked in on a Thursday night and went swimming first. The pool is a salt-water pool, and it’s beautiful. The pool area has two tiers. The lower level is where you find the shallow end and the hot tub. These two areas are where my kids spent most of their time. They floated around the shallow end, tried to do handstands, and just generally had fun. Then every once in a while they’d go into the hot tub with my wife and me to “relax”. The upper level of the pool area is where you find a separate deeper pool where adults can swim laps. If we were there alone, I let my kids swim in there as well. The edge of the pool that is above the shallow end forms a small waterfall. The kids liked to look over and stand under it.
After swimming we went to dinner at Buchanans. We started off with a couple of appetizers. We tried the stuffed mushroom caps and perogies. I thought both were great, but my kids devoured the perogies. For dinner I had an Angus ribeye steak; my wife had the California Chicken Salad, and my kids had things from the kids menu. We were all happy with our choices. My steak was amazing!
After dinner we swam for a bit more. We were going to go to Clifton Hill and do some of the attractions, but my daughter was exhausted.
As it got later, we were all back up in the room. We had a gorgeous room on the 18th floor. The view was spectacular (you can see some of the pictures below). We settled into our beds and fell asleep.
We were up bright and early Friday morning and went back to Buchanans for breakfast. This was the first time we’d had their buffet. I love to eat, and the food at the buffet was high quality stuff! The orange juice was probably the best I’ve ever had. There were sausages, bacon, pancakes, French toast, cereal (the kids loved the little cereal boxes), fruit, muffins, and much more. My wife joked with the kids to eat up so we didn’t have to buy lunch.
The buffet is generally around $16 for adults and less for children. It was busy the day we were there. There was some kind of a meeting in an adjoining room, and so the attendees came in for breakfast. During breakfast, there was a server that had a pink shirt on. My daughter had no idea who she was, but saw the pink shirt and said, “I like her!”
After breakfast we went swimming for a while longer, and then headed back up to our room to pack. It was just a one-night stay, but we had a great time. At one point my daughter asked if we could live there!
The hotel is beautiful, and the staff is great. I don’t really have much to complain about. You get what you pay for. The only thing that was a surprise was the charge for a local call when we checked out. I assumed all hotels offer free local calling, but apparently not. It was only a dollar, but I figured I’d let you know.
As always, I’ve taken a bunch of pictures. You can see some of the thumbnails below. You can see the rest of the thumbnails and the full versions of all of the pictures in the Doubletree Fallsview Resort & Spa by Hilton – Niagara Falls in Fall 2012 gallery. I’ve divided it into two sections. There are 24 pictures of pictures inside the hotel.
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There are also 15 pictures that show views from the hotel.
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Note: As of now there are now 3,650 images in 276 categories in the Niagara Falls Image Gallery
I’ve also recorded a video. It is a minute long and shows the building from the outside, as well as the pool area. You can watch it on YouTube or view the video below.
Note: As of now there are now 58 videos (with 598,522 video views) on the NiagaraFallsBlog YouTube Channel
Last week I received the following email from the Doubletree Fallsview Resort & Spa by Hilton – Niagara Falls:
Lobster Fest returns to Buchanans Chophouse – located atrium level inside Doubletree Fallsview Resort & Spa by Hilton on Fallsview Boulevard. Add a 6 oz. Lobster Tail to any dinner entree for only $7.95. Offer valid for a limited time only. Buchanans offers complimentary parking to non-hotel guests for up to six hours. Dine and then walk to Fallsview Casino Complex, just 400 yards away.
Doubletree Fallsview Resort & Spa by Hilton – Niagara Falls
6039 Fallsview Boulevard, Niagara Falls, Ontario L2G 3V6
Tel: 905-358-3817 Fax: 905-358-3680
http://www.niagarafallsdoubletree.com/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/doubletree.niagara“the Majestic Falls & Exciting Attractions at your doorstep”
I wrote earlier this week about our nice stay at the Doubletree Fallsview Resort & Spa by Hilton – Niagara Falls. We had dinner at Buchanans, and we thought some of the jokes on the kids menu were funny. Here are all of the jokes:
Q: What did the tree where to the pool party?
A: Swimming trunksQ: What did the beaver say to the tree?
A: It’s been nice gnawing youQ: Why did the leaf go to the doctor?
A: It was feeling greenQ: What is a tree’s least favorite month?
A: Sep-timber!Q: What kind of tree can fit into your hand?
A: A palm treeQ: How do trees get on the internet?
A: They “log” inQ: What’s a tree’s favorite drink?
A: RootbeerQ: Why is it better to have a tree in your house than a dog?
A: It’s bark won’t bother the neighbours
In the middle of April, I had the opportunity to stay at the Doubletree Fallsview Resort & Spa by Hilton – Niagara Falls with my family. We had stayed there about 2 1/2 years ago (see here, here, and here), and enjoyed it quite a bit. It seemed that almost every time we drove into Niagara Falls and we saw the Doubletree, my kids would always ask when we could stay again. Our stay this time was just as enjoyable as before.
We checked in around 4 pm and were greeted by friendly staff. My kids loved the warm chocolate chip cookies. They also each got a very nice kids backpack (the kind that only has one strap), a Frisbee, a hacky sack, binoculars and more. The binoculars were just these little plastic things, but they worked, and the kids loved them. In fact, they had them out yesterday playing with them. The backpack had the Doubletree name on it, but I’m not sure if all kids get them or if you only get it with certain rooms/packages.
As indicated before (it was the same room as last time… 1901), the room was huge, and beautiful. All of the features that were there before, were still there. There were 2 king-size beds, as well as a pull-out couch. The WiFi Internet worked well. The rooms were quiet, and provided a great view of both the Falls and the city.
After checking out our room, we got changed and headed down to the pool. We were the only ones there, which is probably good since my kids are pretty loud! The pool is a saltwater pool, which I thought might be a problem for the kids (not used to it), but I think they liked it better as there was no complaining afterward of stinging eyes or itchy skin. We same for around an hour, and then headed to Buchanans for dinner.
My wife had the Panko Crusted Chicken and I had a beautiful T-Bone Steak. I wasn’t much of a steak connoisseur before going to Buchanans last time. However, my steak last time was so good, that now I love a good steak. The kids meal menu is pretty good as well. One of my children had the cheeseburger and complained that it was too big. The macaroni and cheese was a big hit with another, and the chicken tenders were enjoyed by our youngest. We all had pop or juice to drink. The kids each got an ice cream sundae with their dinner. My wife and I opted not to have anything.
After dinner we headed down to Clifton Hill. We went to a couple of attractions and got some more ice cream. We then stopped at 7-11 on the way back to the hotel for the kids to get a couple of treats.
After a wonderful night sleep, we got up and went back to Buchanans for breakfast. I’ve been told that their breakfast buffet is incredible, but at this time of year it is only available on weekends, so we missed out again. The regular breakfast menu is still excellent, and comes with huge portions. My 7-year-old son usually has 2 eggs when he has breakfast at home. We were going to order him one of the meals that came with one egg. We were worried that it wouldn’t be enough, so we asked for a second scrambled egg. When the meal came, once again my son complained about getting too much. The plate was half full of eggs. We joked that if that was 2 eggs, they must be ostrich eggs! Between us, we had eggs, toast, bagels, and juice. We were all quite full, but ready to go swimming again.
Since the pool is such a big hit with the kids, that is what we finished off with. We swam for another hour or so, and then went up to the room to shower, change, and get our things together.
As always, I took some pictures. You can see thumbnails below, and then view the entire collection and full versions in the Doubletree Fallsview Resort & Spa by Hilton – Niagara Falls in Spring 2010 image gallery.
Note: there are now 2,950 total images in the Niagara Falls Image Gallery.
I had intended to take several videos, but was having too much fun. I did get an HD video of the pool area which you can see on YouTube or below.
