Why You Should Visit Niagara Falls In Autumn

Why You Should Visit Niagara Falls In Autumn

Niagara Falls attracts the majority of it’s visitors during the summer months for several reasons. With beautiful weather, an endless array of attractions to choose from and spectacular festivals to take part in, summer is understandably the favorite time of year for most Niagara Falls visitors.

With so many visitors flocking to Niagara Falls in the summer, the atmosphere that is created is unbeatable as well. The main downside to having so many visitors, however, is the inflated price of hotel rooms and attractions due to increased competition for a limited amount of spaces.

Visiting Niagara Falls in the Autumn is a much less popular choice for most visitors, but in reality there are numerous great reasons to visit during this time of year as well.

Niagara Falls Autumn Events

Autumn is a great season for festivals and events taking place in Niagara Falls. One of these events, that usually takes place on the first weekend of fall, is the Grande Parade, which is one of Canada’s largest street parades. The Grande Parade marks the end of the Niagara Falls Wine Festival, taking part in St Catharines ON. It includes all the major themes you would normally encounter in a parade such as magnificent floats, marching bands and outstanding performances, attracting close to 100,000 visitors every year.

marching band at Grande Parade

Another amazing festival that begins in autumn is the Niagara Falls Festival Of Lights. This festival runs from late November until late January attracting over one and a half million visitors throughout it’s duration. It is Canada’s largest festival of lights with magnificent illuminated displays of art spanning a 6 km route for everyone to enjoy.

For the active type, look into taking part in the Niagara Falls International Marathon which follows the scenic Niagara Parkways. This marathon starts in the USA, crosses the Peace Bridge and ends at the brink of the Horseshoe Falls. With the surrounding beauty, and the fact that you are crossing an international border, this is a one-of-a-kind marathon not to miss.

Stunning Autumn Landscape In Niagara Falls

Niagara Falls is already a world renowned site due to its stunning natural beauty and enormous force of the Horseshoe Falls. Add the magnificent colors of foliage in autumn to that equation and you get breathtaking sights that you will remember for the rest of your life.

view of niagara falls in autumn

There are several ways you can enjoy the changing colors of the leaves in fall, but the best is without a doubt taking a helicopter tour over Niagara Falls. There are various tour operators you can choose from, allowing you to get a birds eye view of the beautifully colored foliage combined with the magnificent Horseshoe Falls.

If a helicopter tour is not within your budget but you really want to get that birds eye view of the magnificent surroundings, take an elevator to the top of Skylon Tower to get a similar view from the observation deck. For the romantic folks out there, book a spot at the revolving Skylon Restaurant to truly impress your date.

Less People. Less Hassle

Probably the best reason to visit Niagara Falls in the autumn is the much smaller crowds compared to summer and the holiday season in December. Although larger crowds can be more fun, smaller crowds have various benefits worth mentioning.

no lineups at niagara skywheel

First of all, with smaller crowds comes much lower rates on hotel rooms. As the fall season progresses, hotel rates will keep on plummeting to rates that are so low you might even feel guilty paying so little for such a great experience. Rates have been known to fall below half of what it would cost to book the same room in the busy summer season.

If you aren’t a fan of big lineups, this is another major benefit of visiting in the fall when there are smaller crowds. Most of the attractions at Niagara Falls and Clifton Hill remain open during the autumn months, but with way less people trying to visit these attractions. As a result, you do not have to wait in lineups that could take up to an hour in the busy summer months.

Final Thoughts

Although summer may have more favorable weather for visiting Niagara Falls, don’t rule out autumn as a great time to visit this world renowned tourist destination. The weather is still bearable and there are various benefits to choosing this time of year for your Niagara Falls travel plans. Beautiful autumn scenery, low hotel rates, no lineups and unforgettable festivals are just some of the reasons to visit Niagara Falls in autumn.