Princess Kate and Prince William, Duchess and Duke of Cambridge will be in Canada this summer

Congratulations to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge

Prince William and Princess Kate have chosen Canada for their first official visit as a Royal Couple. They will be in Canada from June 30 to July 8 and will celebrate Canada Day in Ottawa on July 1st. They will visit Prince Edward Island, the Northwest Territories, Quebec and Alberta.

Niagara Falls' Fam Trip

It's been a week or so since my Fam trip to Niagara Falls, Ontario. I have been to Canada's playground many times, but I still haven't seen everything there is to see in the area. Not that I want to see everything, but there are lots of attractions I haven't experienced and many places I haven't visited. So it was a real treat to go on this Fam trip hosted by Niagara Falls Tourism and led by Laura Calaguiro, who was a fantastic hostess. If you are a tour operator, receptive or wholesaler contact Laurie, who can in turn put you in touch with the right people at several hotels and attractions in Niagara Falls.

Hotels - visited the Sheraton on the Falls (where I stayed - thank you Jorge and Wendy for your hospitality)), the Marriott Gateway (formerly Sheraton Fallsview), where we had an excellent breakfast.  Sheraton on the Falls is right around Clifton Hills and connected to a huge water park - great choice for families.  The Marriott Gateway is on the Fallsview side - the strip around the impressive Fallsview Casino.

Shoeless Joe's - had a welcome dinner at Shoeless with fellow Fam trip travellers and hosted by Andrea and Laurie of Niagara Falls Tourism. Shoeless is an excellent choice for informal dinners - in a sports bar kind of atmosphere. Food was very good.

Fallsview Casino Resort - the most impressive casino in Southern Ontario.  Not my first time visiting (and not my last). I had been there a few times before (to see shows at the Avalon Theatre), but I hadn't seen the 17 Noir restaurant, which I'm told is an excellent high-end resto (can't attest to that, since I haven't had dinner there yet). The Fallsview is a vegas style casino resort with all the games, tons of slot machines and a nice shopping galleria.

Elements - the restaurant by the Falls operated by Niagara Falls is one of the best spots to have a great meal with a view of the Horseshoe Falls. The food was excellent. Thanks to Jessica from Niagara Parks for having us.

The Fury - Niagara Falls.  The Fury is one of the newest attractions in Niagara Falls. I won't spoil the experience by telling you exactly what it is. Suffice it to say that it's a lot of fun for the whole family. I know I sound like a commercial, but if I hadn't like it, I would not be disrespectful to our Niagara Parks hosts by writing negatively about it, I just simply would not mention it at all. But I liked it! Felt like a kid again. The Fury is a multi senses experience. Another way to experience the great Niagara Falls.

The Bird Kingdom - Another great attraction for the whole family and for bird lovers everywhere. I had been there before when my daughter was younger. But the thing about the Bird Kingdom is that you may see new birds (or reptiles) if you go several months apart. This time the highlight for me was Star, the new talking parrot (I think she's a quaker parrot). She was the cutest thing (see video below). I'm sorry I don't remember the name of our guide, but she was fantastic, the kind of worker you want at any attraction: friendly, knowledgeable and very likable (I will find out her name and edit this post to include it).

The Skylon Tower - Always a great visit if you go on a sunny day. While it's half the height of the CN Tower, it's tall enough to get great views of the Falls, and both Niagara Falls (NY and Ontario).  Thanks to Lee and his staff for a great meal at the restaurant (I was pleasantly surprised at how good the steak was, accompanied by a delicious glass of Ontario red wine).

The Illumination Tower - another highlight of the fam trip. I knew about the illumination tower, but had never been there. It's not open to the public unless you go with an organized tour/group and arrangements have been made for the group to visit. The lights are operated by Peter. He's been doing this for decades and he's the nicest guy you can meet. He has great stories to tell and has welcomed all kinds of celebrities to the tower. An avid hockey fan (and player in his time) he's hosted many hockey greats at the tower.

The Imax Theatre.  Why go see a movie about the Falls in a theatre that's two blocks away from the Falls? It's a really good film and the screen is gigantic. Sound is great and the stories are engaging (the legend of the maiden indigenous woman who went over the falls instead of marrying the man her father wanted her to, the real stories - recreated - of dare devils who went over the Falls, etc.). I was skeptical about the film, but was very pleased with the experience. During some scenes in the film, I kept asking myself "how did they shoot that?" "how did the get so close?" Well, there's a DVD of the film that has a "making of" documentary where I hope to learn how they were able to make this movie. I haven't had time to watch it yet, but I will soon.

The new Niagara Falls ScotiaBank Convention Centre.  We had an unscheduled visit to the new convention centre. Quite impressive. This is a very good addition to Niagara Falls assets and is sure to bring in more visitors to the city.  The facility can accommodate many different events (from home shows, to sales meetings). It also has a multi purpose theatre that can house concerts and theatre productions.

Jackson Triggs winery.  Another highlight of the visit was the tour of the Jackson Triggs facility where thousands of gallons of wine are made.  The facility is housed in a striking modernist building, that was constructed around the massive tanks where the wine is kept. Our hostess Nina gave us a very interesting tour of the place, which also has an area with the more traditional oak barrels doing their patient wine making work. JT also has a beautiful amphitheater outdoors where they have their summer concerts series. Naturally, we had a wine tasting accompanied by excellent local cheeses - and I brought back a couple of excellent wines. 

Unfortunately I could not stay for the entire Fam trip. I missed some great attractions on the Friday. I really wanted to go the SkyWheel and get a view of the area from the top of the wheel. I also missed Niagara Helicopters - very good clients of mine. I love the helicopter ride over the Falls and I missed this one. I wanted to go the Nightmares Fear Factory because Laura said they were going to be especially scary for us. Next time...soon.

All in all, it was a productive (and fun) trip. Thank you to Niagara Falls Tourism and its participating members.

Jaime
www.cactusrock.com
http://ca.linkedin.com/in/jaimehorwitz 

Niagara Falls' newest Star

Meet Star, Niagara Falls, newest, well....Star

A couple of days in Niagara Falls hosted by Niagara Falls Tourism

I've been in Niagara Falls for the past day and a half and having a very good time. I'm here on a FAM trip hosted by Niagara Falls Tourism. It's been very great to see what's going on in Niagara Falls. Looks like it's going to be a very good summer (if the high dollar doesn't spoil the party).  Fallsview Casino - impressive as always; the new Convention Centre - excellent facility; the Bird Kingdom - hadn't been there in a while - they have a new bird, Star, who is really the star of the place (video coming); Imax Niagara - I had never seen the Imax film "The Falls" and I really liked it; The Fury - fun experience for the whole family; Jackson Triggs - I was very pleased with a couple of wines that Nina, our hostess, let us taste (and bought two bottles).  Food: very good so far - Shoeless Joe's, Elements, Skylon Tower.

Things are happening in Niagara Falls (stay tuned)

To be continued...

Jaime

PS - one issue I have with Niagara Falls - nightlife is limited if you like dance clubs

Live in Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa? Looking for a getaway spot this spring? The Laurentians

I've driven from Montreal to Mont-Tremblant a couple of times. The first time I didn't know I was travelling through the Laurentians. The second time, Tourism Laurentides had already become a client of mine (I've done campaigns promoting the Laurentians region to Hispanics in the Americas, Spain and Canada).  So I've gotten to know a little bit about the region. And I like it. A lot. I'm planning a trip back sometime this Spring or early summer. So I thought I'd do a shameless plug for the Laurentians on this blog as well. Yes (full disclosure), Tourisme Lauentides is my client, but that doesn't change the fact that the Laurentians is a beautiful region of Quebec, worth a visit (or more). You'll find picturesque towns, great agricultural tourism (cheese makers, Lavender growers, tree adventures, great golf courses... For cyclists, and outdoorsy people, check out the P'Tit Train du Nord Park.  Here's a little map with some recommendations:

View The Laurentians - Las Lorencianas in a larger map


Bon voyage,


Jaime
www.cactusrock.com