Old tunnel under Niagara Falls reopened: great tourist novelty between Canada and New York
Niagara Falls, one of the world’s most popular tourist destinations, has just added something new to its vast offering of activities: a 115-year-old tunnel tour that offers a unique history of a power plant beneath the area.
The 2,200-foot (670-meter) long tunnel was built beneath the Niagara Falls Power Plant, on the Canadian side of the border with New York, and served as an exit point for water used in hydroelectric power generation for more than a century, notes Niagara Parks on its official portal.
“This unmissable experience offers the opportunity to be part of an exciting renaissance and the chance to discover the incredible history and heritage of this celebrated building. Immerse yourself in the history of the visionaries behind it, as well as the workers who kept it running for 100 years.
Harnessing the powerful energy of Horseshoe Falls, this pioneer of hydroelectric power comes to life with a entertaining and educational experience highlighting both the remarkable history and unique architectural features of this engineering marvel of 115 years”.
The tunnel once held 71,000 gallons of water moving at nine meters per second, he said. CNN. Tourists can now walk onto a new platform to get directly to the river level.
Unlike the falls, where boat tours are closed for the winter, the tunnel will remain open year-round. It can even be visited at night, when it is activated “Currents”, a sound and light show inside the station. “This immersive, family-friendly experience presents an incredible 3d projection, interactive lights and images and a stunning musical score.”
The Niagara River Falls are among the most visited places in the world (about 14 million tourists a year) and are the number one destination for honeymoons. It is a heritage shared between the states of Ontario (Canada) and New York (USA), each with its namesake city separated by the waterfalls and competing for visitors in healthy competition. It is the second largest group of waterfalls in the world, just below Victoria (Mosi-oa-Tunya), in southern Africa.
And although there are multiple specialized tours by water, land and air (balloon and helicopter), with their respective fees, the Niagara Falls can also be appreciated for free, practically walking next to it. Both Niagara cities are small, but full of services, 70 and 490 km from Toronto the NYC.
The power plant, which operated from 1905 to 2006, diverted water from the mighty Niagara River to run giant generators that electrified regional industry and the nearby Great Lakes port of Buffalo.
Today the Niagara Parks station it is the only hydroelectric power plant in the world completely intact from its time. Originally operated by the Canadian Niagara Power Company, it used Westinghouse generators to create alternating currents patented by the inventor Nikola Tesla, state of the art technology at the time. More information about tunnel visits here.
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