alcat2010

Ha. Aye i can just imagine my wifes reaction when i suggest that little day hike!

JonboyE

Junior used to travel by Greyhound. Apparently you get to see a whole new aspect of North American life.

merylbaz

We have just come back from Ontario to the Uk, my OH landed at Toronto Pearson. After initially staying in Barrie/ Wasaga beach,
Drove to Niagara Falls, stayed 2 nights, went to my aunt's in Hamilton from there, took 50mins in the car. Went in to Toronto on the Go train from nearby Aldershot which took an hour. Just wish we never had to come back.

Siouxie

It depends on the time of day.

I can recommend the GO bus from Union Station to Hamilton GO station (rather than the train, which you will have to get off at Aldershot and get a bus from anyway!). It takes about an hour from Toronto to Hamilton by bus, again depending on traffic conditions, you can choose the 407 route or Lakeshore .

Hamilton to NF will take you about 45 minutes by way of the QEW highway, it's an easy route.

http://www.mto.gov.on.ca/english/tra...79.604149&z=10

MarylandNed

Driving is pretty easy even into Toronto. Just try to avoid the worst of the rush hours...yes hours, plural. I wouldn't be afraid of it at all. Look upon it as part of the adventure. It also adds greatly to your freedom. Use a GPS (SatNav).

By the way, I stay at Country Inn & Suites in Niagara Falls, Ontario. It's on Victoria Ave within walking distance of the Clifton Hill tourist trap and the Falls. Free breakfast and parking is $8 a day. Very easy to drive to. Take 427 off the QEW towards Niagara Falls, exit right onto Victoria Ave and the hotel is on your right almost immediately.
http://www.countryinns.com/niagara-f...2g3l3/onniafal

Check out this place while in Hamilton. Good Guinness.
http://www.slainteirishpub.ca/

BristolUK

Parking a car at the hotel at which one stays is charged for?

MarylandNed

Yes...sometimes that is the case. Particularly true at downtown hotels in Canada and the US. The ones that really annoy me are those that charge for wifi.

bgpz

But if you're getting the GO bus to downtown, it'd be a hassle to get up there with cases, etc. There are a handful on Main St East that would be very close to the GO station (map: http://goo.gl/maps/oePzH), and then straight down Main to the Red Hill, and join the QEW to Niagara.

Enterprise will pick you up/drop you off (as their ads say) -

I'd recommend checking your credit card small print, and bringing a copy of it with you. Not all cards offer the same CDW/LD coverage. You usually have to put *all* costs associated with the rental on the card in question, too.

bgpz

Hotel parking (particularly in Niagara Falls) is extortionate. If you have status with any hotel groups, it *might* help - but don't count on it. Might be worth seeing if there are any packages on the hotel websites that include this along with anything else you would anticipate paying for anyway...

As for restaurants - there's a very good Japanese place that is a wonderful oasis from the Blackpool-eqsue hell that is Clifton Hill and the NF area in general: http://www.niagaratakirestaurant.com/

Kid-friendly, free parking, and good food that's very well priced (particularly compared to the ripoff options that seem to make up the rest of NF)

alcat2010

Im finding this a strange set up...

Greyhound DO go to hamilton form NF.. But it seems to by-pass it on the way 'up', stop off at several locations.. via toronto then arrives in Hamilton 4/5hrs later???

Im confused as my wife and I DID this very journey i.e. NIA to Ham BACK IN 2008...

Emailed them twice now with no reply ... :-(

Novocastrian

I suppose they cancelled the service when they found out that Scottish people were using it.

Happens all the time here.

Jerseygirl

Driving out of Toronto to the west...avoid late afternoon/early evening commuter trafffic. Also the traffic can be bad between 8 and 9.30 am. Other than that it's not too bad...unless there is major road construction.

Driving into Toronto from the west...avoid the morning commuters...say 7 till 10 am and any early evening when there is either a game or a concert on.

alcat2010

Cant say I blame them.. all we do is swig whiskey and buckfast...

orly

My father found it a harrowing experience mostly because he was more used to even slightly courteous and considerate drivers back home.

Here if you dither or take a second too long someone will just undertake you (as it's legal), pressure you by driving about a foot from your back bumper or do a canadian favourite...blow the horn for a full 20 seconds (just to make sure you know you've committed a terrible sin for which you must burn in hell)

After a few goes and once you learn to just drive like a nutcase you'll be fine. I quite enjoy it myself...it's usually a never ending parade of absolutely farcical driving skills that belong on youtube for everyone to gawk at.

BristolUK

I remember looking at the Montreal-Niagara Falls route.

It was cheaper to do Montreal-Toronto as one ticket and then Toronto-NF as another ticket than the whole route.

We did that in 2005 - we were stopping over in Toronto anyway - and the company told me it was an error that they'd fix.

We did it again in 2007 and it was still cheaper to have two tickets than one.

Can't speak for a return journey (other than noticing the same odd fare structure) as we flew home from Hamilton.