Niagara Falls Tourism Series – Clifton Hill
Canadian City Offers Numerous Attractions on Tourist Promenade
Sep 8, 2009
Niagara Falls, Ontario, located in the southern part of the province, is one of Canada’s top tourist destinations. Niagara Falls Tourism and the City of Niagara Falls estimate that between 12 to 14 million tourists come to see the falls each year – a figure that has caused Forbes Traveler to name the Niagara Falls as Canada’s most visited tourist attraction.
But the city of Niagara Falls has much more to offer tourists than just the falls: the colourful and eclectic tourist promenade Clifton Hill, amusement parks and kid-friendly attractions such as Marineland and water parks, and numerous other attractions, such as casinos. This article focuses specifically on the attractions on and around Clifton Hill, which include arcades, several museums and haunted houses, and numerous themed restaurants.
Niagara Falls Arcades and Entertainment Centres
The largest arcade is the Great Canadian Midway, a 70,000 square-foot complex of video games and rides. The arcade games offer tickets which can be redeemed for prizes. There is also an FX roller coaster simulator and a laser shooting game called Ghostblasters, in which the objective is to earn points by shooting ghosts.
Other arcade centres include:
- Adventure City (formerly Marvel Superhero City), a gaming centre attached to the Rainforest Café, which features a motion ride, a go-kart shooting game, a children’s play area, a mini golf course, and arcade games.
- The Sports Zone, a sports bar which also features bowling and sports arcade games.
- Strike Rock N’ Bowl, a new 25,000 square foot entertainment complex consisting of 14 full-size bowling lanes, billiard tables, and arcade games.
Clifton Hill Candy Stores, Haunted Houses and Mazes
The Clifton Hill area features numerous candy stores that sell all kinds of sweets and treats. The Hershey Store, next to Casino Niagara, is a 7000 square-foot store that sells chocolates, fudge, milkshakes, fruit, and cookies. The Fantasy Fudge Shop sells a variety of gourmet fudges. There is also a Coca Cola store, which sells Coke products and memorabilia.
The Clifton Hill area features five haunted houses which vary considerably in intensity. The three tamest (The House of Frankenstein, Dracula’s Haunted Castle, and The Haunted House) are located directly on Clifton Hill, while the two scariest (Screamers House of Horrors and Nightmares Fear Factory) are located along Victoria Avenue. The latter two houses feature live people in costumes who are known to grope, scratch, or in the case of Screamers, even lick tourists. Nightmares is known for being North America’s longest-running haunted house and over 95,000 people have chickened out.
There are two family-friendly maze games in the Clifton Hill area. The first, Mystery Maze, is located off Clifton Hill on Oneida Lane, and is billed as “an adventure that will test your sense of direction.” The other, located right on the hill, is The Crystal Caves, a mirror maze adventure featuring numerous dead-end passageways.
Galaxy Golf and Dinosaur Park Miniature Golf Courses
There are two miniature golf courses at Clifton Hill. The first, Galaxy Golf is a deep space-themed glow-in-the dark course featuring 18 holes. The second, Dinosaur Park Mini Putt is an outdoor prehistoric-themed course also featuring 18 holes.
Clifton Hill Restaurants and Museums
There are numerous big-chain restaurants on and around Clifton Hill. Among them are Burger King, Boston Pizza, Dairy Queen, Hardrock Café, Kelsey’s, Mama Mia, Montana’s Cookhouse, Pizza Pizza, Planet Hollywood, Rainforest Café, Ruby Tuesday, Starbuck’s, Tim Horton’s, and Wendy’s.
There are four wax museums located close to Clifton Hill. Louis Tussaud’s Waxworks is the original wax museum, having first opened in 1949. Currently, it features realistic figures of The Riddler, Tiger Woods, Britney Spears, and more. Similarly, Movieland Wax Museum of The Stars features amazingly lifelike wax recreations of popular movie and television stars, and recording artists. Among them are Elvis Presley, Halle Berry, Captain Jack Sparrow, and The Joker. There are also two wax museums on Victoria Avenue: the Criminals Hall of Fame and the Rock Legends Wax Museum.
Other museums include:
- Classic Iron Motorcycle Museum, a multi-storey motorcycle museum on Victoria Avenue, which features a large collection of vintage and custom motorcycles built from 1916 to present. It showcases Harley Davidsons, BMWs, Ariels, Indians, Triumphs, BSAs, and more, as well as antique toys, artwork, and other rare memorabilia.
- Guinness World Records, a museum of facts, feats, and incredible world records featuring interactive displays, games, and trivia.
- Ripley’s Believe It or Not!, a museum of over 700 amazing oddities, including strange customs and artefacts from around the world.
Other attractions on Clifton Hill include:
- Brick City, described as “a world created entirely with Toy bricks.” From trains, planes, and automobiles to buildings and people, it’s all there at Brick City.
- Bronto’s Adventure Playland, a Veggie Tales-themed interactive indoor/outdoor play centre.
- The Fun House, a children’s attraction featuring distorted mirrors, an anti-gravity room, and the like.
- The Niagara SkyWheel, a ferris wheel that reaches 175 feet above the Niagara Falls, offering a spectacular view of the falls, Clifton Hill, and the entire city.
- Ripley’s Moving Theatre, a 4D theatre billed as the only one of its kind. According to Clifton Hill’s Official Web site, visitors “actually move with the picture and feel every bump, dip and turn.”
- The WWE Retail Store, the world’s only WWE store. It features souvenirs, clothing, and interactive games and displays all relating to World Wrestling Entertainment. Also, be sure to check out the 200-foot PileDriver Drop Ride, an exciting thrill ride located at the store.
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