Cave of the Winds — Attraction in City of Niagara Falls

Cave of the Winds has to be on your list of things to do when you visit Niagara Falls State Park. It's a rare chance to feel the power of the Niagara River. Be prepared to get soaked. The day you plan on walking the Cave, get your timed tickets as soon as you can, time slots fill up fast. Tickets can only be purchased at the Cave of the Winds Plaza on Goat Island and not online. A side note, if you plan/want to ride the trolley around the park, you can purchase a wrist band when you purchase your Cave tickets. You have a few minutes wait in the little museum and then a short film. The film is informative. Some people complain about having to go through these two things before taking the 100 foot elevator ride down to the decks. This is done, I believe, to give you a better understanding of what you are about to experience and to control the flow of people so it doesn't get overcrowded. Unfortunately the decks are not wheelchair friendly but there are handrails all along the decks. It may be slow going for someone with mobility issues but I believe it is doable depending on the severity of ones mobility issues. I do not recommend going barefoot due to the slippery conditions of the decking and stairs. A few people I saw were barefoot and I noticed some of them slip on the stairs. Flipflops, Crocks and the like were worn by most people. If you have an old pair of sneakers or hikers, I recommend wearing those for the traction. I say old pair because they will get soaked and will take a day or two to dry out. Socks can be optional; bring extra socks, shoes and a change of clothes. Unfortunately there is no place to store the extra items unless you walk back to your car or hotel if it is nearby. The rain covers they give you help but you are still going to get wet. At the end of the tour, they have boxes to recycle the covers, please deposit them there unless you plan on keeping them.

While most newer phones are water resistant, invest in a waterproof case - your phone will get just as wet, if not wetter than you. I do not recommend bringing your DSLR/mirrorless camera on the walk, even with a fabric rain cover. There is so much mist and spray in the air that it's still possible for it to enter the rain cover. A dive housing is what you want if you are adamant on bringing your camera on the walk.

The views from the decks are amazing and awe inspiring. You can see some of the Horseshoe Falls and can watch the boats enter the mist. Some spots can get crowded but be patient and the crowds thin out fast so you can get your selfie or pictures. The best spot to feel the power of the Niagara River is the Hurricane Deck. The Bridal Veil Falls hits a huge boulder and pummels the Hurricane Deck. The best spot to feel it is in the left hand corner of the deck. You are guaranteed to get soaked and pushed around some. Awesome experience.

If you are looking to get close to the falls and experience the power and sound of the Niagara River, you can't beat the Cave of the Winds. Fun for the whole family....

We went to Cave of the Winds on Wednesday, July 5th around 10:30am. Family of 7, ages ranging from 3 to 40. This was our favorite part of our Niagara Falls trip. If you can only do one thing, I highly recommend doing this. You start out with getting your picture taken. You do a normal smiling picture first, and then a funny picture. If you have any small children (5 and younger) I recommend picking them up or else they will not be visible in the pictures. You get to see/purchase your pictures at the very end. They do not tell you this, but there are several downloadable pictures in the package, it looks like there would only be two but there were I think 6. Next you are in a room for approximately 7 minutes. This room is air conditioned and has many interactive things to do that involve the history of the falls. From there, you go into another air conditioned room to watch a short educational film about Niagara. When that's over, you're given your ponchos and you're free to travel Cave of the Winds at your own pace. Cave of the Winds is not a cave at all, you are actually kind of under Bridal Veil Falls. There is a lot of stairs. I have limited mobility with my ankle and I was able to make it through the whole thing. My 3 year old was also able to do everything with no issues. None of the walkways or stairs were slippery, but some of the hand rails were. I very highly recommend baggies to put your belongings in. The ponchos do not keep you dry, at all. Make sure you wear clothes and shoes that can get wet and dry quickly. The things inside my backpack purse were soaked, luckily I had thought ahead and bagged anything I was worried about into ziplock baggies. Also very strongly suggest waterproof pouches on lanyards for your phone. They do sell some in the gift shop but they're cheaper at Walmart. They did not effect the quality of pictures and videos we took. I'd definitely put the lanyard around your neck or wrap it around your wrist because the wind and water could easily knock your phone out of your hands. Even though it is July, the water was so cold. It was nice though and helped cool us off. The hurricane deck was very cool. The kids loved that part. Be sure to take your time along the entire path, we saw 3 snakes, many baby seagulls and eggs, some snails, and one rabbit. There are so many rainbows. The best part is that you can stay down there as long as you want, you really get your...

Of course the experience of the falls is “great” and you can read reviews and look at my photos about that. But this is why there is 1 star.

For 25 years, I have struggled with panic attacks. Claustrophobia is a huge deal for me. So taking a small elevator isn’t something I’m happy with. The lady up front was WONDERFUL and I asked if I would be able to ride with just my family. She said it wouldn’t be a problem. I didn’t think it would be an issue due to ADA and common decency.

Going down was smooth. They accidentally put two others with us but I did fine and got super excited for the experience. It was wonderful down there.

We returned to the tunnel. I spoke with the worker about my need to take the elevator in a small group. He proceeded to question me like “why did you even come down here?” I start to get embarrassed (sucks being a 40 year old terrified of elevators) and said “I’d climb up the wall if you let me.” You won’t believe his response, “oh is it bad to tell you about an hour and a half ago me and 11 guests got stuck?” And he laughed. I went into instant panic attack. I blackout and my daughter tries to calm me down and my wife tries to get him to shut up and stop talking.

When the elevator arrives, we go on and the elevator operator questions why it’s just us. He explains and she begins to say “no we aren’t doing this.” And started getting hateful with us. Not sure what was said by my wife as I was trying not to scream but we began the ride up.

Afterwards I found out stairs were an option but the guy said “well you wouldn’t like the stairs.” Seriously? Making decisions for me? When I go to Vegas I climb 20 flights to avoid elevators. I would gladly do the 8 stories here.

I did speak with a manager who said they will be spoken too. I had to immediately return to the hotel to decompress and sleep it off. Because of that, my wife and daughter missed the maid of the mist boat and we all missed the observation deck because it was closed by the time I was able to recompose myself.

This was the highlight of our 9 day road trip and these two people made us miss most of...