How to Get to Niagara Falls from New York City, Buffalo and Toronto

Niagara Falls sits on the border between New York State and Ontario, and how you get there depends mostly on which side you start from. In the words of Niagara Falls State Park, the New York side’s own park, most visitors fly into Buffalo Niagara International Airport (BUF) or drive in on Interstate 90. The airport is about 30 miles from the park. From Toronto, the choice is between the car, a GO Transit train that runs to Niagara Falls all year, and a day tour.

This guide takes each starting point in turn: New York City, Buffalo and Toronto. It covers the last few miles by car and where to park on each side, the bus and train options, what you need to cross the Rainbow Bridge, and how to get around once you are there. Prices and timetables are for 2026; check before you go.

First decide which side you are visiting

Before you plan a route, decide which side of the river you want to spend the day on, because it changes everything from the documents you carry to the boats you can take.

The New York side is Niagara Falls State Park, America’s oldest state park, created as the Niagara Reservation in 1885. It is free to walk into, open 24 hours a day, every day of the year, and the park describes it as a Niagara Falls visit with no passport required. This is where you find the Maid of the Mist, which boards only from Niagara Falls, New York, and Cave of the Winds on Goat Island.
The Canadian side is the parkland run by Niagara Parks in Ontario, with Journey Behind the Falls at Table Rock, White Water Walk, the Whirlpool Aero Car and the Niagara City Cruises boat. The falls themselves straddle the international border, and the Canadian bank faces the Horseshoe Falls head on.

If you start in the United States and have no passport, stay on the New York side; it has the boat, the viewpoints and Cave of the Winds. If you start in Toronto, you will arrive on the Canadian side and can cross to the American side on foot if your documents allow it. Our tickets and prices guide compares what each side charges.

From New York City: the three realistic options

There is no quick way from Manhattan to the falls. The park is at the far western end of New York State, on the Niagara River between Lake Erie and Lake Ontario, and every option is a commitment of a full day or more. In practice there are three choices.

Fly to Buffalo and drive or ride the last stretch. Buffalo Niagara International Airport (BUF) is the airport the park itself points visitors to. From there you rent a car, call a ride share (the park confirms ride sharing is available throughout Niagara Falls USA) or take a local bus to Niagara Falls.
Drive the whole way. The route across the state is the New York State Thruway, I-90, which the park names as the main road in. Allow for tolls on the Thruway and on the South Grand Island Bridge near the end.
Book a day trip from New York City. Tour companies sell trips from Manhattan that handle the transport, some with the Maid of the Mist ticket as an option. They are long days, so read what is included before you book.

Whichever you choose, the last part of the journey is the same: into Buffalo, over Grand Island and up the Niagara Scenic Parkway into the park. That stretch is described below.

Day trips from New York City: what to check

A tour from Manhattan is the easiest way to see the falls without planning a two-day trip, but tours differ more than their titles suggest. Before you book, check these points against the listing.

How you travel. The full-day tour on our tours page goes by coach from Times Square, about 7-8 hours each way, so most of the day is spent on the road. Compare the time at the falls, not the length of the day.
Which side you see. A tour that stays on the US side needs no passport. One that crosses the Rainbow Bridge into Canada does, for every passenger, in both directions.
What is included. Check whether the Maid of the Mist ticket is included or an option you pay to add (a 2026 adult ticket costs $30.25 if you buy it yourself), and whether Cave of the Winds is part of the day. Cave of the Winds uses timed tickets that are sold only at the attraction and the park’s Welcome Center, not online, so a tour that includes it saves you a line.
The season. The Maid of the Mist closes for the 2026 season on Sunday, November 8 and does not run from January 1 to April 23. A winter tour sees the falls from the viewpoints and Cave of the Winds, which is open year-round, but not from the boat.

The tours page lists the day trips from New York City alongside the tours that start at the falls.

Buffalo is the gateway city for the New York side. The airport is about 30 miles from the park, and the park’s directions from it are straightforward.

By car from the airport, take Route 33 to I-90, then I-290 to the I-190 north. Cross the South Grand Island Bridge (a toll bridge) and drive across Grand Island. After the North Grand Island Bridge, take Exit 21 to the Niagara Scenic Parkway, which becomes Prospect Street at the park. Signs lead to the park’s parking lots.
By bus, NFTA-Metro route 40 runs between downtown Buffalo and the Portage Road Transit Center via downtown Niagara Falls and Grand Island. It suits a traveler staying in downtown Buffalo; check the timetable on the NFTA site for the stop closest to the park.
By ride share, Uber and Lyft-type services operate throughout Niagara Falls USA, which is often simpler than the bus if you are only going for the day.

For your GPS, the park gives 15 Goat Island Loop Road, Niagara Falls, NY 14303 as its address. That takes you to the parking on Goat Island, near Cave of the Winds and the Horseshoe Falls.

Driving in: how to avoid the weekend traffic

The direct route has one well-known problem. The park’s four lots fill up early on weekends (Friday included) and on holidays, and the queue to get in can back up from the Niagara Scenic Parkway onto Grand Island and the I-190. The park itself suggests a way around it.

Leave I-290 at Exit 3 North for Niagara Falls Blvd (Route 62) and drive into the city on ordinary streets.
Park in a city lot in the downtown core; several are a short walk from the park.
Use the alternative GPS address of 10 Rainbow Blvd., Niagara Falls, NY 14303, which leads to the Niagara USA Welcome Center and other parking.

The park reckons this route adds about 10-15 minutes of driving but avoids the long waits in traffic. On a summer Saturday, that is usually a good trade.

Parking on the New York side

If you drive into the park itself, these are the four lots and what they cost in 2026. Fees and hours can change, and fee collection may be extended.

Lot	Where	Best for	Fee
Lot 1	333 Prospect Street, Prospect Point	Maid of the Mist, the Welcome Center	$10 a day; $15 Friday to Sunday from May 22 to October 11
Lot 2	Goat Island	Cave of the Winds	Same as Lot 1
Lot 3	Goat Island	Three Sisters Islands	Free Tuesday to Thursday; $10 for a car when fees apply
Lot 4	Great Lakes 360	The Aquarium	No fees set

Lots 1 and 2 charge $10 a day from March 1 to May 21, then $10 Monday to Thursday and $15 Friday to Sunday from May 22 to October 11, and $10 a day again from October 12, 2026 to March 31, 2027. Lot 3 charges only in summer (May 22 to September 7, 2026, Friday to Monday and holidays) and is free from September 8 to May 21.

From Toronto by train: the GO and WEGO packages

From Toronto, the train is the obvious choice for anyone without a car. GO Transit runs to Niagara Falls all year, and Niagara Parks says the GO Niagara service operates daily. The direct train leaves from Union Station and stops in downtown Niagara Falls, Ontario, where the WEGO bus takes you to Table Rock Centre at the brink of the Horseshoe Falls.

Niagara Parks sells the train and the bus together. On its price list:

Weekend 1-day package: round-trip GO train plus a day of WEGO buses, $22 CAD.
Weekend 2-day package: round-trip train, 2 days of WEGO and the Falls Incline Railway, $35 CAD.
Weekday 1-day package: the same as the weekend 1-day package, $34 CAD.

Children 12 and under ride GO Transit free. If the direct Niagara train is not running at the time you need, GO’s fallback is the Lakeshore West train to Burlington and GO Bus Route 12, which drops you at the Niagara Falls Bus Terminal, across the street from the train station. In summer, weekend Niagara trains carry bike coaches, which is useful if you want to ride the river path.

Flying into Toronto rather than starting downtown? The UP Express runs directly between Toronto Pearson Airport and Union Station, so you can be on the Niagara train without a taxi.

From Toronto by car

The park on the New York side gives the driving route from Toronto as the Gardiner Expressway to the QEW South. If you are going to the US side, you then cross the Rainbow Bridge into Niagara Falls, New York, and follow signs to the park; you need documents for the United States (see below).

If you are staying on the Canadian side, Niagara Parks has its own lots:

Falls Parking (Lot A), across from the Horseshoe Falls and Table Rock Centre, is the one Niagara Parks recommends; it is a short walk from Journey Behind the Falls.
Rapidsview (Lot C) is a park-and-ride lot, 7-8 minutes from Table Rock Centre on the WEGO Green Line, at $10 for the day. It closes in winter.
The Rainbow Bridge lot is a 10-minute walk from Niagara City Cruises, the Canadian boat to the falls.

Niagara Parks does not allow overnight parking in any of its lots, so if you stay the night, park at your hotel.

Day trips from Toronto: what to check

Tours from Toronto are the most common way people see Niagara from Canada, and most stay on the Canadian side. Before you book, check:

Whether the boat is included, and which one. From the Canadian bank the boat is Niagara City Cruises’ Voyage to the Falls; the Maid of the Mist boards only from the New York side. On the Toronto day tour on our tours page, the boat cruise and Journey Behind the Falls are optional upgrades, and in winter, when the boat is closed, other attractions replace it.
Whether the tour crosses into the US. If it does, everyone needs documents for both countries.
How much time you get at the falls, compared with stops elsewhere such as Niagara-on-the-Lake or a winery.
When you get back. The fireworks over the falls start at 10 p.m. in season (May 15 to October 12 in 2026), so an evening tour is the only way to see them without staying overnight.

Crossing the border at Niagara

The two cities called Niagara Falls are joined by the Rainbow Bridge, the one general border crossing between the US and Niagara Falls, Canada. A second bridge, the Whirlpool Bridge, is for NEXUS members only. You can drive across or walk across the Rainbow Bridge on its pedestrian walkway, and there is a toll to cross into Canada.

What you need depends on the direction:

Into Canada: Niagara Parks advises that US citizens must carry a valid US passport; it calls the passport the only reliable and universally accepted travel document. The ArriveCAN form is no longer required.
Into the United States: a valid passport, enhanced driver’s license or trusted traveler card (NEXUS, SENTRI or FAST). Canadian children under 16 need only a birth certificate or other proof of citizenship. Citizens of some countries need a visa.

The New York park repeats the rule plainly in its FAQ: if you are an American citizen and want to cross to the Canadian side, you must show your passport at the border.

Seeing both sides in one trip

Because the two cities face each other across the gorge, many visitors base themselves on one side and walk across to the other for a few hours. That works well, with three caveats.

Carry the right documents for both directions. Into Canada, a passport; back into the United States, a passport, enhanced driver’s license or trusted traveler card.
Expect a queue at busy times. Niagara Parks points travelers to the Niagara Falls Bridge Commission for live border wait times rather than giving an estimate.
Do not plan on the boats in both countries. The Maid of the Mist and Niagara City Cruises sail into the same basin below the Horseshoe Falls; choose one and use the time saved for something the other side does better, such as Cave of the Winds in New York or Journey Behind the Falls in Ontario.

On foot, the bridge walkway lands you in the middle of each city: from the US end you come out on Niagara Street, where signs lead to the park, and from the Canadian end WEGO buses run along the Niagara Parkway to Table Rock.

Getting around once you are there

On the New York side the park is compact enough to walk, but the Niagara Scenic Trolley circles it about every 30 minutes, and the ticket is good all day. In 2026 it costs $5 for an adult and $3 for a youth, and its last day of the season is November 29, 2026. It often fills up; the park suggests arriving early or coming on a weekday.

On the Canadian side the bus is WEGO, a hop-on, hop-off system linking the Niagara Parks attractions with the hotels; its lines meet at Table Rock Centre. A 24-hour adult pass costs $16 and a 48-hour pass $20, in Canadian dollars with tax included. Niagara Parks attractions, restaurants and shops also accept US dollars and US cards; at its exchange rate of 1.30, $1 USD counts as $1.30 CAD.

How long to plan

The New York park advises at least a day to see everything in it. A realistic plan for a first visit:

Morning: Cave of the Winds first, because it uses timed tickets and the park advises reserving it before anything else, then the Three Sisters Islands and Terrapin Point on Goat Island.
Midday: the Maid of the Mist from Prospect Point (20 minutes on the water) and the Observation Tower.
Evening: the illumination, which starts at dusk every night of the year, and in season the 10 p.m. fireworks.

Add a second day if you want the Canadian side as well, or a jet boat or helicopter flight; our boat tours guide compares them.

Which route suits you

Starting in New York City with a weekend: fly to Buffalo, rent a car or use ride shares, and stay a night.
Starting in New York City with one day: a day tour from Manhattan; check how you travel and what is included.
Starting in Buffalo: drive in using the weekend detour, or ride share; the bus suits a downtown hotel.
Starting in Toronto without a car: the GO train and WEGO package from Union Station.
Starting in Toronto with a car: drive the QEW and park at Table Rock or Rapidsview; cross the Rainbow Bridge on foot if you want the American side too.

Questions about passports, tickets and the season are answered briefly on the FAQ page.