I Must Have Done Something Right: Niagara Falls and Great Wolf Lodge

As soon as we found out we were coming to Canada I stopped off by the book store and picked up a copy Frommer's Canada to browse. That's when I realized that Niagara Falls was only about a three hour drive from Sarnia. I came home and told Jacob that we had to go! For one reason or another, it took us two and half years to get there. Jacob's time has been limited this summer due to work commitments, so we tried to squeeze in a short two-night trip over the July holiday weekend.

We drove down on Sunday to avoid the Canada Day crowds. We got an early start and were in Niagara before noon. We decided to stop off by the hotel to see if they could hold our luggage until check-in while we toured the Niagara Falls area. We were surprised to hear that they already had a room available so we checked-in and got settled into our room. Another benefit to the trip was this was our first stay at Great Wolf Lodge. It definitely lived up to all it's rave reviews from friends and the trip turned out to be more about Great Wolf than Niagara. She was so excited with the whole place and loved having her own separated little space with TV and bunk bed. After promising that we would have time to try everything at the hotel, we convinced her to leave so we could go tour Niagara Falls.

Niagara Falls is less than a five-minute drive from Great Wolf. Immediately upon entering the falls area on Niagara Parkway two things were very apparent. One - The falls are beautiful and it is a ridiculously immense amount of water. Even high above the falls, along the parkway there is a constant mist that sprinkled the windshield. Two - The crowds had not dispersed! I underestimated how many Americans would cross over for the 4th of July holiday weekend. We parked on Clifton Hill and made our descent with the masses down to the falls. I was told the tourist area is similar to a mini-Las Vegas. We've never been to Vegas, but Niagara definitely had it's fair share of tourist traps. There were carnival rides, fun houses, mini-golf, casinos, souvenir shops, and novelty stores. After seeing how crowded things were (and crowds aren't our thing) we decided to head straight to the Horn Blower to do the falls cruise, since that was the #1 priority for the visit. Of course, the line was crazy-long, but it turned out not to matter. Within 10 minutes of getting in line for tickets, they announced that they had sold out for the entire day. It was only 1 pm and they cruise every 20 minutes until 10:30 that night. This was an indicator of how crowded it was. We decided to scrap the idea of touring the falls for the day and head back to hotel and enjoy the rest of the day there. We made our way back up Clifton Hill stopping off for a hot-dog snack and a trip to the Hersey's Store for some sweet treats.

First view of the falls.

We spent the rest of that day and all of the next enjoying everything that Great Wolf Lodge had to offer. A friend recommended that I purchase a Paw Pass in advance and that it would provide a great way to make our way around the resort. Brenna loved the indoor water park so much that we never bothered with the outdoor pool, even though the weather was perfect. Another huge success was MagiQuest, which is a massive scavenger hunt that spans three floors of the resort and is activated by a computerized wand. We dedicated at least six hours to completing all 15 quests! Brenna named her wand Shimmer and Shine and her diligence with the game paid off. She was excited to see her wand's name scroll across the resort TV since she managed to make it to the top of several of the score boards. When we weren't in the water or playing MagiQuest, we were playing mini-golf, enjoying the kids spa, or doing activities in the Cub Club. There was plenty to keep us busy and we had to drag her back to the room each night for bed.

She loved the bucket dump and since there were racing slides underneath it, we got caught in it several times!

Defeating the dragon in the final adventure of MagiQuest

We woke up bright and early Tuesday morning and made our way back to Niagara Falls. We walked right up to the ticket booth and purchased three tickets for the Horn Blower and proceeded down to the boat landing. What a difference a day made! Up until last year, both the USA and Canada sides had the Maid of the Mist. Last year they renamed the Canadian vessels Horn Blower. Boats departing on the Maid of the Mist from the US side provide passengers with blue ponchos, while boats departing from the Canadian side provide red ponchos. If you ever visit Niagara Falls, make sure and take your passport, because the Canadian side is the side to visit. They have the best views, the best entertainment, and the best tours.

The cruise was well worth the wait. The boat takes you right up to the edges of both falls. You will be drenched! It's truly incredibly how much water flows over the falls. It was amazing to see so up-close. I did take my adventure camera along for the ride. Unfortunately, once we were near the falls there was so much mist that even with a waterproof camera it was impossible to get a shot of anything other than a cloud of white mist.

The view as we began our descendant to the river.