Niagara Falls is one of the most visited sites in North America, but once a year, thousands of people flock to Niagara, not to see the thunderous falls, but to see the Winter Festival of Lights, Canada's foremost illumination festival.
The Winter Festival of Lights includes over 125 animated lighting displays and three million tree and ground lights which can be enjoyed around the Niagara Park Winter Wonderland, including displays such as the world famous Enchantment of Disney, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Fort Erie Racing, a Nativity Scene and the World's largest illuminated Canadian-American Flag.
The festival first began in 1983 when it managed to attract 250,000 people. Since then the celebrations have steadily grown and the attendance now stands at over 1.3million visitors and 1060 motor coaches each year. Planning for the festival is a year round job, with staff investigating new and creative events and entertainment all the time.
The local economy benefits enormously from the festival, which comes at a time of year that is traditionally quiet on the tourist front, creating significant winter employment for nearby communities. The festival requires hundreds of staff and takes on around 400 volunteers each year.
One of the best things about the Winter Festival of Lights is the price - there is no admission fee to view the illuminations (although donations are gratefully accepted). But there's more than just the thousands of light displays to see. During the festival, visitors can enjoy 20 nights of spectacular fireworks as they explode high over the mighty falls and there are also a variety of concerts and events during festival; this year, visitors can enjoy Disney's Beauty and the Beast, The Niagara Falls Comedy Fest, a variety of singers from the Niagara Gospel concert series, including The Martins and The Beene Family, The Mantini Sisters, Charley Price, The Golden Age Variety Show, The Misty Kids Show and the Nutcracker Ballet.
Niagara falls are a spectacular attraction in their own right, but during the winter festival, there is even more to see and do, so its not surprising that the festival attracts over a million visitors each year, which means hotels in Niagara do tend to get booked up quickly and you'll need to reserve in advance to be sure of a bed.
With so much to see and do for both young and old, the Niagara Winter Festival of Lights continues to be one of the biggest events in the North American festival calendars; don't you think it's time you became enlightened?
