Editing Niagara Falls (section)

==Tourism==
[[File:AdvertisementTripNiagaraFalls6August1895.jpg|thumb|upright|Advertising broadside for trip to Niagara Falls from Massachusetts, 1895]]

Peak visitor traffic occurs in the summertime, when Niagara Falls is both a daytime and evening attraction. From the Canadian side, floodlights illuminate both sides of the falls for several hours after dark (until midnight). The number of visitors in 2007 was expected to total 20&nbsp;million, and by 2009 the annual rate was expected to top 28&nbsp;million tourists.<ref name="Trave;ppce">{{cite web |title=Niagara Falls |url= http://www.travelooce.com/niagara-falls.shtml
 |publisher=Travelooce.com |url-status=dead
 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130205181245/http://www.travelooce.com/niagara-falls.shtml |archive-date=February 5, 2013 |df=mdy-all }}</ref>

The oldest and best known tourist attraction at Niagara Falls is the ''[[Maid of the Mist]]'' boat cruise, named for an alleged ancient Ongiara Indian mythical character, which has carried passengers into the rapids immediately below the falls since 1846. Cruise boats operate from boat docks on both sides of the falls, with the Maid of the Mist operating from the American side and [[Hornblower Cruises]] (originally Maid of the Mist until 2014<ref>{{Cite news
|date=October 24, 2013 |title=Maid of the Mist completes its final voyage from Canada |language=en-CA |work=CTVNews
|url=https://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/maid-of-the-mist-completes-its-final-voyage-from-canada-1.1511234
|access-date=June 12, 2020}}</ref>) from the Canadian side.<ref name="momweb">{{cite web |title=Maid of the Mist
   |url=http://www.maidofthemist.com/en/ |publisher=Maid of the Mist Steamboat Company, Ltd |access-date=March 27, 2007
   |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070329072454/http://www.maidofthemist.com/en
   |archive-date=March 29, 2007 }}</ref><ref name="momleg">{{cite web |title=American Indian Legends – Legend of the Maid of the Mist |url=http://www.firstpeople.us/FP-Html-Legends/Legend_Of_The_Maid_Of_The_Mist-Unknown.html |publisher=www.firstpeople.us |access-date=March 27, 2007 |archive-date=November 27, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201127014810/https://www.firstpeople.us/FP-Html-Legends/Legend_Of_The_Maid_Of_The_Mist-Unknown.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> In 1996, Native American groups threatened to boycott the boat companies if they would not stop playing what they said was a fake story on their boats. The Maid of the Mist dropped the audio.<ref>Strand, pp. 10-11</ref>

From the U.S. side, American Falls can be viewed from walkways along Prospect Point Park, which also features the [[Prospect Point Observation Tower]] and a boat dock for the ''Maid of the Mist''. Goat Island offers more views of the falls and is accessible by foot and automobile traffic by bridge above American Falls. From Goat Island, the [[Cave of the Winds (New York)|Cave of the Winds]] is accessible by elevator and leads hikers to a point beneath Bridal Veil Falls. Also on Goat Island are the Three Sisters Islands, the Power Portal where a statue of [[Nikola Tesla]] (the inventor whose patents for the AC [[induction motor]] and other devices for AC power transmission helped make the harnessing of the falls possible) can be seen, and a walking path that enables views of the rapids, the Niagara River, the gorge, and all of the falls. Most of these attractions lie within the [[Niagara Falls State Park]].<ref name="nfspat" />
[[File:美國尼加拉瀑布29.jpg|thumb|left|[[Prospect Point Observation Tower]] (also known as the Niagara Falls Observation Tower)]]
The Niagara Scenic Trolley offers guided trips along American Falls and around Goat Island. Panoramic and aerial views of the falls can also be viewed by helicopter. The Niagara Gorge Discovery Center showcases the natural and local history of Niagara Falls and the Niagara Gorge. A casino and luxury hotel was opened in Niagara Falls, New York, by the Seneca Indian tribe. The [[Seneca Niagara Casino & Hotel]] occupies the former Niagara Falls Convention Center. The new hotel is the first addition to the city's skyline since completion of the [[United Office Building]] in the 1920s.<ref name="nfspat">{{cite web
|url= http://www.niagarafallsstatepark.com
|title=Niagara Falls State Park |publisher=Niagara Falls State Park |access-date=March 27, 2007 }}</ref><ref name="tfoa">{{cite web
    |url=http://www.flightofangels.net
    |title=The Flight of Angels |publisher=The Great American Balloon Company |access-date=March 27, 2007 }}</ref>

On the Canadian side, [[Queen Victoria Park]] features manicured gardens, platforms offering views of American, Bridal Veil, and Horseshoe Falls, and underground walkways leading into observation rooms that yield the illusion of being within the falling waters. Along the Niagara River, the Niagara River Recreational Trail runs {{convert|35|mi|abbr=on|order=flip}} from [[Fort Erie, Ontario|Fort Erie]] to [[Fort George, Ontario|Fort George]], and includes many historical sites from the [[War of 1812]].<ref name="npnrrt">{{cite web
|title=Niagara River Recreation Trail |url=http://www.niagaraparks.com/nature/rectrailarea.php
|publisher=Niagara Parks Commission |access-date=March 27, 2007 |url-status=dead
|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20070329062514/http://www.niagaraparks.com/nature/rectrailarea.php
|archive-date=March 29, 2007 |df=mdy-all}}</ref>
[[File:skylon-2.jpg|thumb|right|[[Skylon Tower]] as seen from a helicopter on the Canadian side]]

The observation deck of the nearby [[Skylon Tower]] offers the highest view of the falls, and in the opposite direction gives views as far as [[Toronto]]. Along with the [[Tower Hotel (Niagara Falls)|Tower Hotel]] (built as the Seagrams Tower, later renamed the Heritage Tower, the Royal Inn Tower, the Royal Center Tower, the Panasonic Tower, the Minolta Tower, and most recently the Konica Minolta Tower<ref>{{Cite web|date=February 3, 2017|title=History of Niagara Falls Towers – Minolta Tower, Niagara Falls, Ontario|url=https://www.niagarafallsinfo.com/niagara-falls-history/niagara-falls-tourism-history/niagara-falls-tower-history/konica-minolta-tower/|access-date=June 12, 2020|website=Niagara Falls Info}}</ref> before receiving its current name in 2010), it is one of two towers in Canada with a view of the falls.<ref name="Let's Go">''Let's Go Travel Guide'', 2004</ref> The [[Whirlpool Aero Car]], built in 1916 from a design by Spanish engineer [[Leonardo Torres Quevedo]], is a [[aerial tramway|cable car]] that takes passengers over the [[Niagara Whirlpool]] on the Canadian side. The [[Journey Behind the Falls]] consists of an observation platform and series of tunnels near the bottom of the Horseshoe Falls on the Canadian side.<ref name="npjbtf">{{cite web | title = Journey Behind the Falls | url = http://www.niagaraparks.com/nfgg/behindthefalls.php | publisher = Niagara Parks Commission | access-date = March 27, 2007 }}</ref> There are two casinos on the Canadian side of Niagara Falls, the [[Niagara Fallsview Casino Resort]] and [[Casino Niagara]].<ref name="CosgraveKlassen2009">{{cite book|author1=James Cosgrave|author2=Thomas Klassen|title=Casino State: Legalized Gambling in Canada|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nv9bWJcCKpUC&pg=PT116|date=February 5, 2009|publisher=University of Toronto Press|isbn=978-1-4426-9223-7|page=116}}</ref>

[[File:Niagara Whirlpool with aerocar.JPG|thumb|[[Whirlpool Aero Car]] above Niagara River whirlpool]]

Touring by helicopter over the falls, from both the US and the Canadian side, was described by [[The New York Times]] as still popular a year after a serious crash.<ref name=StillPopular>{{cite news |newspaper=[[The New York Times]]
  |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1993/09/26/nyregion/niagara-falls-flights-still-popular-after-crash.html
  |title=Niagara Falls Flights Still Popular After Crash
  |date=September 26, 1993
  |access-date=August 23, 2022}}</ref> Although [[The New York Times]] had long before described attempting to tour the falls as "bent on suicide"<ref name=Thundering>>{{cite news
|newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1925/08/30/archives/saving-the-thundering-niagara-falls-bent-on-suicide.html
|title=Saving the Thundering Niagara Falls Bent on Suicide
|date=August 30, 1925 |access-date=August 23, 2022}}</ref> and despite a number of fatal crashes, the "as many as 100 eight-minute rides each day" are hard to regulate; two countries and various government agencies would have to coordinate.<ref name=Niag92crash>{{cite news |newspaper=[[The New York Times]]
   |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/09/30/nyregion/niagara-crash-of-2-copters-kills-4-people.html
   |title=Niagara Crash Of 2 Copters Kills 4 People
   |author=James Dao  |date=September 30, 1992 |access-date=August 23, 2022}}</ref> These flights have been available "since the early 1960s."<ref name=StillPopular/>