A Brief Overview of Niagara’s Geography
The Niagara Region is actually made up of 12 different municipalities: St. Catharines, Niagara Falls,
Niagara on the Lake, Fort Erie, Port Colborne, Welland, Wainfleet, Pelham, Thorold, Grimsby, Lincoln and West Lincoln. Each of these cities has their own municipal government, but there is also a regional government for the whole of Niagara.
All of these different cities have something different to offer the tourist. Niagara Falls is obviously the most popular of the 12, and has the highest concentration of hotels, restaurants, casinos and attractions in the Region.
Niagara on the Lake is also a very popular tourist destination. It is a quaint little village that is home to some great museums, art galleries and the Shaw Festival (map). This is a great place to wander around in pretty much any season.
The other municipalities in the Niagara Region aren’t necessarily known for their tourist drawing abilities, but that doesn’t mean they don’t deserve a visit.
A day can be devoted to St. Catharines, a city that is becoming known as the cultural centre of the region. Watch a ship climb the canal at the Welland Canal Centre (map), and then head down to Port Dalhousie (known as “Port” to city residents) (map), and take a ride on the century old carousel for just 5 cents a ride. Downtown St. Catharines is home to tons of excellent restaurants, and you’ll be able to find a restaurant to suit most tastes, right from greasy diners to fine dining.
The Town of Grimsby is a lovely, quaint little burg, perfect for wandering on a nice day. Spas, wineries, golf courses, shopping, galleries and museums (although it is going to be pricey) all abound in Jordan Village. Even if you are not purchasing anything, it is a great place to explore for an afternoon and experience a bit of small town Niagara.
Port Colborne which is nestled right on Lake Erie, is a laid back kind of place. If you want to hang out at the beach, or wander along the canal, this is a great place to go. As you can tell from its name, Port Colborne is a city steeped deep in marine history, and while you are there, you can have the chance to learn all about it at the Port Colborne Historical and Marine Museum (map). Sherkston Shores (map) is also located in Port Colborne, and is a great place to spend the day at the beach! There are shop, restaurants and even waterslides. Kids will love this place.
Fort Erie is home to the Fort Erie Race Track (map), if you want to take in some horse races, or if history is your thing, you could check out Old Fort Erie (map), a historic fort that offers history tours as well as ghost tours.
Pelham is a picturesque little town, filled with roadside fruit and vegetable stands, craft shops and tons of antique stores. A little known fact: Canada’s Oldest Sugar Maple Tree is located right in Pelham; it is 90 feet high, and 85 feet wide.
“Canada’s Most Patriotic City” is located right here in the Niagara Region: Thorold. This city is also a great place to view the ships in the canal, and has some lovely hotels and bed and breakfasts’ to stay in.
The great thing about visiting Niagara is, if you have a car you could easily visit at least a couple of these places in a day. You can have breakfast in one city, lunch in another, and dinner is yet another one.
I’ll be writing more in depth articles about all of these place and activities, but this gives a good overview of just how large the Niagara Region actually is, and all of the things there are to do and places there are to go!
Photo, Niagara Region
