Niagara-on-the-Lake, located on Lake Ontario near the US border is very popular with tourists and for good reason.

It’s accessible – being only 90 minutes by car from Toronto or 45 minutes from Buffalo if the border isn’t backed up. And it’s very pretty – almost surreal really with its storybook looking main street.

But there’s much more than meets the eye – and as a former resident of the town, I feel qualified to opine on all the great things to do in and around Niagara-on-the-Lake.

Fall is a particularly lovely time to visit – especially with the grape harvest underway.

Here is my list of 15 things to do in and around Niagara-0n-the-Lake.

• Rent a bike and head out for some easy cycling along the Niagara Parkway. If you’re feeling very ambitious cycle to Niagara Falls and even on to Fort Erie.

Niagara Falls - the American side

• Pack a picnic (you can pick up fixings on the town’s main street or at Kurtz Orchards or Walkers Farm Market, located along the Niagara Parkway) and find yourself a picnic table along the Niagara River. Enjoy the views over to the United States.

Local fruit stand - perfect for picking up picnic supplies

• There are fifty plus wineries stretching from Grimsby to Niagara-on-the-Lake covering the whole gamut from small, very personalized operations to those whose lifeblood are the tour buses. There are 18 wineries in the Niagara-on-the-Lake area alone so biking and visiting wineries can easily consume a few days’ time. If you are a serious oenophile then you might want to visit as many as you can and make it the real focus of your trip. Others might be happy just to tour a few of them, enjoy a meal and time a visit to coincide with music in the vineyard. Don’t miss the local specialty – ice wine, made from pressing frozen grapes.

Grape vines growing beside Lake Ontario

• Take in a play at the Shaw Festival Theater. The season lasts until the end of October. You can still catch Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, My Fair Lady, Heartbreak House, Drama at Inish – A Comedy and several others.
• Visit Fort George National Historic Site. During the War of 1812 it served as the headquarters for the Centre Division of the British Army. There are special events at the Fort throughout the summer including musket and military music demonstrations.
• Head to nearby Queenston along the Niagara Parkway and take a guided tour of the Laura Secord Homestead. Laura Secord is famous for having had the courage and fortitude to walk 32 kilometers to warn the British of a surprise American attack during the war of 1812.
• Check out the Mackenzie Printery and Newspaper Museum in the restored home of publisher William Lyon Mackenzie. It features exhibits representing 500 years of printing technology.
• Wander through Niagara-on-the-Lake and admire the beautifully restored houses.

Niagara-on-the-Lake main street

• Head for the main street and join the throngs of tourists who head from store to store with mostly a glazed look in their eye. Try not to be like that. Engage the owners – as a previous store owner I looked forward to real conversations with visitors.
• Interested in attending a winery cooking school? Strewn Winery, just minutes from town, offers a large selection of courses including culinary weekends from January until the end of November.
• If you like the thrill of big water and fast boats then a ride on the Niagara River Jet Boat might be the perfect outing for you. Boats with 1500 horsepower engines take you for a 45-60 minute ride, depending on where you boarded, up the Niagara River to the gorge where the walls on either side of you reach 200 feet high. The trips go to about 1.6 kilometers (1 mile) short of Niagara Falls, just before a section of Class 6 (huge, scary) water that is not navigable.

Niagara River jet boat

• Visit one of the spas at any of the signature Niagara-on-the-Lake hotels – like the Oban Inn, The Pillar and Post or the Queen’s Landing.
• Go apple picking in the fall – a fun family activity. You’ll see plenty of U-Pick signs along the side roads.
• And there’s always golf at the local 9 hole course with scenic views over Lake Ontario.
• Excellent local dining is available at many of the wineries and all the major hotels; as well there are some good restaurants along the main street.

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