Black Friday, one of the most exciting shopping days of the year for many is quickly approaching. Each year following American Thanksgiving thousands of Canadians flock to the Niagara borders to participate in the amazing shopping deals offered on Black Friday, which is why we thought we'd share tips to avoid traffic at the Niagara border.
Black Friday is the official kick off to the Holiday shopping season and is the busiest shopping day of the year. Recently many US retailers started to extend their Black Friday deals a week in advance, which provides Canadian’s with the option of shopping before Black Friday and missing the crazy traffic.
If you are planning to partake in the Black Friday deals this year make sure you do your research and select which Niagara border has the least wait time. There are three borders to choose from; Peace Bridge, Rainbow Bridge and Lewiston-Queenston.
At Youngs Insurance Brokers, we are always looking for ways to provide our customers with helpful tips, Black Friday is no exception, please view the tips outlined below before crossing the Niagara borders;
Black Friday Border Crossing Tips
- Anticipate waits of 2 hours or more
- Be sure before arriving to the Niagara border of your choice you fill up on gas and use a restroom
- Please note the heaviest border traffic will be on Wednesday November 25 before the holiday and again on Sunday November 29 following the holiday
- When entering the US the peaks are late morning through to the afternoon
- When entering Canada the peaks are later afternoon through to the evening
- If you will be coming back to Canada on Black Friday, you will have the longest border wait between 12 p.m. and 9 p.m.
- In general, the least amount of traffic at the Niagara borders are either before 7 a.m. or after 8 p.m.
- You can only use NEXUS if everybody in the vehicle is a cardholder
- Do your research! Canada has restrictions on some products, such as baby playpens, car seats, etc. as Canada has sticker safety requirements, due to this you will not be able to bring such products across the border
We hope you find our Black Friday Border Crossings Tips helpful!
Another thing to keep in mind if you are planning on Black Friday shopping in the US are weather conditions; considering the weather may be very different in Niagara compared to across the border. Furthermore, be alert when driving, as there is a documented spike in car accidents in the US on the Wednesday evening before American Thanksgiving and then on Sunday evening following the holiday.
We hope you enjoy a safe and fun Black Friday shopping spree!
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