What’s open and closed Thanksgiving 2023 in Niagara Falls, St Catharines, Niagara Region

Published October 8, 2023 at 11:12 am

This year, Thanksgiving falls on Monday, October 9, in Niagara Falls, St Catharines and the rest of the Niagara Region.

While American Thanksgiving is celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November every year, in Canada, we celebrate Thanksgiving on the second Monday of October. This is because the Canadian Thanksgiving is closely linked to the harvest festival that is more familiar in the UK.

However, his historians actually have a more specific event in mind when it comes to Canadian Thanksgiving. As the story goes, in 1578, English explorer Martin Frobisher and his crew gave thanks, and communion was observed, either on land at Frobisher Bay in present-day Nunavut, or onboard a ship anchored there.

The explorers dined on salt beef, biscuits, and mushy peas and gave thanks through Communion for their safe arrival in Newfoundland. This is now accepted as the first “Canadian” Thanksgiving, 43 years before the first “American” Thanksgiving.

Since they are designated as tourist areas and exempt from holidays, nearly every major centre in Niagara Falls and Niagara-on-the-Lake will likely be open.

What’s Open:

The Smart Centre in Niagara Falls and the Canada One Mall in Niagara Falls are both open.
The Outlet Collection in Niagara-on-the-Lake is also open.
All restaurants throughout Niagara will be open on Monday.
Some smaller grocery stores, such as Rabba grocery stores
All Cineplexes and movie theatres that are presently open will be on Monday.
Shopper’s Drug Mart stores will be open as will convenience stores and gas stations.
Craft breweries in Niagara Region that are traditionally open Monday will be open on Thanksgiving. They include: Bench Brewing, 3991 King St, Beamsville 905-562-3991; Lock Street Brewing, 15 Lock St, St. Catharines 905-935-2124; Silversmith Brewing, 1523 Niagara Stone Rd, Virgil 905-468-8447; Niagara Oast House Brewing, 2017 Niagara Stone Rd, Niagara-on-the-Lake 905-868-9627; The Exchange Brewery, 7 Queen St, Niagara-on-the-Lake, 905-468-9888; Niagara College Teaching Brewery, 135 Taylor Rd, Niagara-on-the-Lake, 905-641-2252; Counterpart Brewing, 3659 Stanley Ave, Niagara Falls 905-354-2739; Niagara Brewing, 4915-A Clifton Hill, Niagara Falls, 905-374-5247; Blackburn Brew House, 8001 Blackburn Pkwy, Niagara Falls 905-358-0801; Cold Break Brewing, 193 St Paul St W, St. Catharines 647-581-4009; Gretzky Estate Beer/Wine, 1219 Niagara Stone Rd, Niagara-on-the-Lake 1-888-510-5537
Restaurant/brewery The Merchant Ale House, 98 St Paul S, in St Catharines is open.
Most of the 65-plus area wineries are expected to be open, but call ahead to be sure.
Niagara Falls tourist attractions such Bird Kingdom, The Fun House, Niagara City Cruises, Clifton Hill Entertainment, Niagara Falls Fun Zone and Ripley’s Believe It or Not! are open.

What’s Closed

The Pen Centre and Fairview Mall in St. Catharines. However, the Landmark Cinema at the Pen Centre is open
Non-emergency municipal services, including all town and city halls
Federal and provincial government offices
Canada Post (no mail pickup or delivery)
Most major grocery stores, including Walmart’s, will be closed
All 13 Beer Stores and 15 LCBOs in the region will be closed
Garbage and recycling will be collected one day later

Transit

Niagara Falls Public Transit, Welland Public Transit and St Catharine Public Transit will all be on holiday schedules
The Niagara Inter-Municipal Transit Service, which operates a region-wide transit system, with stops in St. Catharines, Welland, Niagara Falls, Port Colborne, Thorold and Fort Erie, will all revert to their traditional holiday schedules.
GO Transit buses that run from Toronto to Niagara Falls will also be on a holiday schedule.

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