U.S. travellers are still visiting Niagara-on-the-Lake in high numbers, despite a sharp decline in traffic from Canada to the States. We asked some of them what brought them here, how they travelled and how they enjoyed their stay. Here are some of the things people said.

Archie Reyes
Boston

Reyes drove but was meant to fly before the Air Canada strike resulted in his flight being cancelled. He was in town to help two friends who recently moved to Toronto. He also has family in Mississauga. He said NOTL is one of his regular vacation spots.

“We always go to the Prince of Wales hotel because it’s a signature part of the town to take photos with,” Reyes said. “We like to drive around the vineyards for sightseeing … We always take our newbies to Niagara Falls, NOTL and then Toronto.”

The Stewarts
Milwaukee

The Stewart family, Jessica and Doug and children Meridyth and Ethan, drove for two days and made one stop in Michigan before landing in Niagara-on-the-Lake. They visited Niagara to see the falls from the Canadian side and decided to take a detour to Niagara-on-the-Lake while they were in the region.

“We came a long way to see the falls, so we stopped in Michigan at the halfway point,” Doug said. “We decided to come do some sightseeing and check out the town.”

The Brodericks 
Boston

The Brodericks, Lexi, Mike, Abby and Karen and Liam, drove for about eight hours to visit. They came to Niagara to see the falls and came across Niagara-on-the-Lake.

“We were visiting the falls and found this place nearby, and it’s a lot more quaint,” Mike said. “We really liked the chimney cakes at the Budapest Bake Shop.”

The family said they enjoyed NOTL but aren’t keen on coming back because it is “so out of the way from Boston.”

The Kravitzes
San Francisco

The Kravitzes, Dave and Shelli, took a five-hour flight to get to Niagara for a group tour around the region.

“We’re actually not spending the night here (in NOTL), which I’m so bummed about. This is incredible, it’s so beautiful,” Shelli said. “It’s definitely on our list for a place to come back to. What grabs me is the aesthetics and the flowers. It just feels very hometown-ish.”

“It’s beautiful. I like all the shops and galleries and so on, and all the flowers,” Dave said.

The Luedtkes
Annapolis, Md.

The Luedtkes, Dawn and Eric, drove 10 hours over a few days, stopping in Ithaca, NY for a few nights before arriving in NOTL. They were celebrating their fifth wedding anniversary. Dawn had visited Niagara-onthe-Lake before and wanted to bring Eric.

Dawn loves theatre, so she also came for the Shaw. The couple saw “Blues for an Alabama Sky” and “Anything Goes” while they were in town. They stayed at the Prince of Wales.

“It’s a beautiful town. We live in Maryland, which has a similar sort of older feel. Historic,” Eric said. “I’d love to come back because it’s the kind of place where I feel like you don’t get everything in one visit.”

“It’s a very neat little town,” Dawn said. “We have Fort McHenry, they have Fort George, so opposite sides of the War of 1812.”

The Villarreals
Pittsburgh

The Villarreals, Robert and his daughter Gianna, drove to NOTL, crossing the Peace Bridge. The family is in town for the second time. Their first visit was last summer and afterwards, they knew they wanted to come back. They took a walking tour, went to a winery and ate lots of food.

“The promenade here (Queen Street) with all the flowers, the way they’re set up in the houses and the way they take care of their gardens, it’s all just really appealing to my wife,” Robert said. “I think the Irish Harp pub is a nice touch.”

John Newcomb
Memphis

Newcomb flew from Memphis and ended up in NOTL. He was in town for a family reunion and decided to explore the downtown area along Queen Street.

“I think it’s pretty interesting because this is pretty north for me. Visiting the north is special to me because I like moose and maple syrup — the key things,” Newcomb said.

“We’re already planning next year to come back to Niagara, so I’ll probably be back in Niagara-on-the-Lake. We just have a lot going on so it’s kind of hard for me to get out here.”

The Broths
Atlanta

The Broths, Karen and Rick, took a 2.5-hour flight to Canada. The couple was visiting for a horse race in Toronto and decided to check out Niagara-on-the-Lake while they were in the area because a friend recommended it. They also made it a priority a stop at the Shaw.

“We were recommended to come here by a friend,” Karen said, adding she would come back to town. “The wineries, just the flowers, it’s so clean and everything looks so nice.”

“The wineries are nice, like Two Sisters,” Rick said. “It’s nice, it’s very quaint.”

“You guys are our little brother, we’re family. You are the 51st state and Donald Trump’s daddy, and you guys need to deal with that,” Rick added.

Kathy Dowd, Sheryl Comes and Michelle Manco
Naples, Fla.

The three were visiting a friend in Toronto, which is how they found out about Niagara-on-the-Lake.

“We did the walking tour, which we loved, and we’re staying at the Prince of Wales Hotel,” Dowd said. “The next thing we did was we went to the Trius Winery and we had lunch, and it was absolutely beautiful.”

“We couldn’t be this close (in Toronto) and not go. Just riding around your town, I just love it,” Comes said. “Seeing the border between Canada and America and how we’ve worked together over the years and sometimes not.”

“I learned more about the history, which I didn’t know a lot about,” Manco said.

The Roths
Detroit

The Roths, Megan, Dylan and Dan, drove for four hours to get to NOTL. The family was in Ontario for Riverfest Elora, an art and music festival. Dan has a podcast called “Event Explorer” and was covering the festival for it. After that event, they decided to take a quick trip around NOTL.

“We did the Shaw and ate at a little restaurant, which was cute. I didn’t know the Shaw Theatre Festival was in this town and I’m a big theatre person, so that would make me come back,” Dan said.

Beteta sisters
Los Angeles

Sisters Shirley and Ashley Beteta flew but had issues due to the Air Canada strike. They were in town because they wanted to take a small vacation and heard about Niagara-on-the-Lake on social media. They also wanted to see Niagara Falls from the Canadian side, which added to why they landed on Niagara.

“I just really like the architecture, I think it’s a very cohesive look altogether and it’s giving a lot of small-town vibes,” Shirley said.