Mark your calendar: the next two months
August and September get busy fast in Niagara. A few things worth locking in now before tickets or tables disappear.
Jackson-Triggs Summer Concert Series
An outdoor amphitheatre at the winery in Niagara-on-the-Lake, 500 seats, under the stars. Dallas Smith plays August 7, Chantal Kreviazuk August 8, Wild Rivers August 14, July Talk August 15, Finger Eleven August 22, and The Trews close it out August 28 and 29. If you're planning a wine country night, build it around one of these.
Lewiston Art Festival
August 8 and 9, just across the border in Lewiston, New York. More than 175 artists and crafters along Center Street, plus food vendors and live music. An easy add if you're already spending the day near the Falls.
Storm the Falls
August 16 at the Niagara Falls Convention Centre. Classic restorations, custom hot rods, and a few builds you won't see anywhere else this year. I know the organiser, Conner, and I make a point of getting to this one every summer. It's a genuinely good afternoon even if you don't know a carburetor from a crankshaft.
Niagara Grape and Wine Festival
September 11 through 27, with Discovery Pass weekends running the 11th to 13th, 18th to 20th, and 25th to 27th. Self-guided tastings across more than 30 wineries, live music and food at Montebello Park the last weekend, and the Grande Parade through downtown St. Catharines on September 26. It's billed as the festival's 75th year.
Misty City Music Festival
September 18 to 20 at the Fallsview Event Grounds. Three days of country headliners: Jake Owen, Jon Pardi and Dustin Lynch, and Brooks and Dunn, one per night.
That's a few to start with. The rest of what's on through September, including a tribute show, a jazz weekend, and a historic reenactment across the river, is up on the site if you want the full run. This week's full rundown, including everything happening across the region, is always at niagaradigest.ca/niagara-events-this-week if you want more than the highlights below.
The Inside Scoop
Where these towns actually are
Niagara Falls, Niagara-on-the-Lake, and St. Catharines are three separate towns about twenty minutes apart, not one big Niagara. Falls is the tourist core. Niagara-on-the-Lake is the wine country town with the historic main street. St. Catharines is the working city in between.
This week's pick
Music Niagara Festival opened Monday and runs through August 14 across various venues in Niagara-on-the-Lake, ticketed. It's a good excuse to build a day around Old Town: a concert, dinner, a walk down Queen Street. Check the festival's site for this week's specific lineup, since venues shift night to night.
The reservation problem
If you're hoping for dinner after at Revé and it shows fully booked, check the restaurant's Instagram stories that evening. Cancellations do get posted last minute.
The tour bus problem
If you're in Niagara-on-the-Lake any time this week, Fritters on the Lake on King Street gets swarmed by tour buses around noon. Go mid-morning instead and you'll actually get a table.
Free and easy every night
Fireworks over Niagara Falls run at 10pm, every night, free, no ticket needed. The falls are also lit in colour every evening starting at dusk. If your night includes Niagara Falls, skip the $30 to $40 lots near Clifton Hill. Park at the Rapidsview lot instead and take the free shuttle bus in.
In closing
Know a festival we missed this week? Reply and tell us. We read every one. Want more of this? The full peach festival breakdown and the farmers markets guide are both live on the site now.
Tim.
P.S. There was an issue with permissions for our free guide. With apologies, try these links instead: EPUB version or PDF version.