For Bostonians, the good news is that a quick Valentine's jaunt into Canada's Niagara Falls needn't cost a fortune, especially with the favorable exchange rate. The Sheraton Fallsview Hotel & Conference Centre (www.fallsview.com; 800-618-9059), one of the city's high-end hotels that overlooks the falls, is offering a romance package for $142, which includes one night's accommodation for two in a falls-view room with a hot tub, a bottle of wine and dinner for two. One of its rivals, the Niagara Falls Marriott (www.niagarafallsmarriott.com; 888-501-8916), has a Champagne & Magic Package where at mid-week, $195 will buy you two nights, two breakfasts, one dinner and a gift package with champagne, champagne glasses, chocolates and soap.

In summer, you can feel the water soak your hair on the Maid of the Mist, a cruise boat that takes you past American Falls and into the mist of Horseshoe Falls, where you emerge damp, yet strangely invigorated. In winter, there are aerial cable cars, walks along the Gorge rapids and journeys behind the falls, where you descend into their base via elevator and follow a series of tunnels behind and under for a unique glimpse at Horseshoe Falls.