Niagara-on-the-Lake residents can expect a bump in tourism — and a new, car-free way to travel from Old Town to Toronto or Niagara Falls — thanks to a seasonal bus service launching Thursday.
FlixBus, an intercity bus service, announced in a June 20 press release that as of June 26, it will offer direct service to and from Toronto Union Station’s Bus Terminal, Rapidsview Park in Niagara Falls and 51 Queen’s Parade in NOTL.
The seasonal service will run through Nov. 2 and offer two trips per day, six days a week, Wednesdays excluded.
“More people are going to be able to get to Niagara-on-the-Lake,” said Kathy Weiss, executive director for Tourism Niagara-on-the-Lake, the town’s destination marketing organization.
Weiss said the schedule gives visitors about eight hours to explore, dine and shop in town between pick-up and drop-off — plenty of time to support local restaurants, boutiques and attractions.
“That’s eight hours of exploring our community,” she said, adding the service makes it easy to check off Toronto, Niagara Falls and Niagara-on-the-Lake all in one go, on the same bus.
FlixBus and Niagara Region Transit are completely separate, said Weiss. FlixBus is privately run and operated, while regional transit is run by Niagara Region: “They have nothing to do with each other.”
Karina Frayter, head of communications at Flix North America, said the company has had high demand from travellers looking for easy and cheap ways to get to NOTL, “without relying on a car or private shuttle service.”
“Getting here by public transit hasn’t always been easy,” said Frayter in an email.
The seasonal service will help fill that gap — part of the company’s broader mission to make travel more accessible across Ontario and beyond, she said.
Looking to pack up and head out? Times, costs and more can be found at flixbus.ca.
