Niagara Falls

Welcome to Niagara Falls, where even jaded eyes don't grow tired.

While the Falls themselves are the principal attraction on the Niagara Peninsula, the entire area has just about everything you need for a good tourist destination.

First, there are the Falls -- the perfect day trip for both overseas and domestic tourists. The attractions around them run the gamut with Clifton Hill being the center of the Fallsview Tourist Area.

A little farther away are various wineries, which have been a staple of this area for decades. Canadian wine may not have quite the international appeal of Australian, French or Californian, but local wineries punch well above their weight.

Most of the wineries are located near the picture-perfect village of Niagara-on-the-Lake, a place that is so pleasing to the eye it's as if it could have been taken right from a Norman Rockwell painting.

Niagara was a hotspot two centuries earlier -- the main flashpoint on the Canadian side of the border during the War of 1812. American and Canadians only fight over preferred hotel rooms, bed-and-breakfast spots and bar stools nowadays, but Niagara-on-the-Lake is a village borne out of conflict. A visit here is considered just as essential as a trip to the Falls -- especially if you can do it in concert with one of the many festivals in Niagara-on-the-Lake.

What about the golf? Well, it's among the best of any similar region in this part of North America.

If you're a fan of classic country clubs, Whirlpool Golf Course is probably the best option. The late Stanley Thompson, the country's greatest golf course architect, designed it.

More contemporary options include the 36-hole Legends on the Niagara and John Daly's Thundering Waters Golf Club, a fun and entertaining layout not far from the Marineland amusement park. Grand Niagara Resort and the 27-hole Peninsula Lakes Golf Club facility are also worth a look.