The Secret Gems of Niagara

08/09/2024 | You Choose Niagara | Uncategorized

Being a tour guide in Niagara Falls and Niagara-in-the-Lake, I know some secret gems that are so great.

The Garden at The Pillar and Post Hotel. This is where I start my Niagara-on-the-Lake walking tour because this garden is such a special place. Inspired by the Monet Gardens in France, these gardens feature a bridge over a pond, a farmhouse reception hall, a waterfall, The Outpost bar, and beautiful flowers that change with each season. In the summer, there is bocce and cornhole. In the winter, they have warm fire pits, a skating rink (weather dependent) and hot chocolate. It also hosts events and you may catch a wedding. We love the gardens so much, we call the gardens “our gardens”. It is open daily for the public.

Two of my friends enjoying the Monet Inspired Gardens.

How “The Notebook” is that?

The Floral Showhouse.

This little gem of a greenhouse is just past the Power Station in Niagara Falls. In the spring, the magnolia trees are in full bloom and the tulips are divine. Inside, they do a different floral garden 8 times a year for all to enjoy. Right now they have a Whimsical creatures topiary display with dragons and bees. It’s not expensive but it’s beautiful and great for insta photos.

Floral Showhouse. This was before Easter.

If you happen to be in the Niagara Region in the spring, you must check out a tulip farm. It is rows upon rows of tulips that make up a giant quilt of colourful stripes that is an Instagram photo paradise. There are more than one farm to choose from. Shown below is TASC Tulip Farm. When you go, you can also pick your own tulips making a bouquet of your favourites. I thoroughly enjoyed my time there but wished I didn’t go alone. It’s better to go with a friend so you can take great photos of each other.

The Niagara Parks Power Station. This is a relatively new attraction put on by Niagara Parks and they have done it right. Step back in time and learn about how electricity was harnessed by the power of the falls in this decommissioned Canadian Powerplant. When you walk into the attraction, you are handed a device. It looks something like a small tv remote. As you walk through the historical exhibits, you scan your device on a QR type code to activate the audio. The display is explained to you in a guided audio tour. How cool is that? There were also some live demonstrations by museum staff. Then you plunge down an elevator, showing the different floors of the now decommissioned power plant. When you get to the bottom you enter a huge 2200 ft tunnel. It is cold down there! The tunnel once served as the exit point for water that had been through the plant and used for hydroelectricity for over a century. The tunnel takes you to a viewing point at the base of the Niagara gorge where you can see all three waterfalls from a new and different perspective. I haven’t had a chance to do this yet but the Power Sation also has a light up evening display called Currents. I hear it’s unbelievably beautiful.