19th-century
honeymooners
at the falls
Chillin’ in
Niagara
How to win at
winter when visiting
Ontario’s famed falls
By LIz fLemIng
in spite of his bad-boy brother
and his own reputation as a scandalous ladies’ man,
Jérôme Bonaparte, Napoleon’s younger sibling,
managed to convince Baltimore society girl Elizabeth
Patterson to marry him. How?
He promised her a honeymoon in Niagara Falls.
That famous duo was one of the first ever to travel
to the “Honeymoon Capital of the World.” Today, more
than 50,000 couples come each year to celebrate their
own nuptials—and they represent just a small fraction
of the 12 million people who visit annually. Two centuries on, Niagara is still the place to be.
Though spring, summer and fall are the seasons
when tourists arrive in droves, winter offers the most
striking views and exciting outdoor activities. Hotel
rates are lower, restaurants have shorter queues and
the whole place glistens with an icy welcome.
The wintry sidewalks beside the Niagara Gorge are
a great photo vantage point, but total immersion in
the raging water is what you want. Journey Behind the
Falls takes you 45 metres down into a tunnel bored »
36
Winter 2016
CAA Manitoba
honeyMooners: Photo researchers, inc/alaMy; falls: niagara Parks coMMission
In the summer of 1803,
A winter
wonderland
near the
Horseshoe Falls