First time going to buffalo, need advice.

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I have to agree with this assessment. I've gone to US every 3 months or so, but last two months i was there every week. In the last 6 crossings, all were done at Lewiston and not once was i pulled in for additional taxes. The longer you stay in US the less they give a ****. Last three trips i was in US for 5 days each trip and they all but waved me right through.

Rainbow, its pretty much 75% you're gonna go in and pay. Which in itself is not a bad thing. I dont go down there to evade taxes, i send stuff down cuz its cheaper, plus do grocery shopping which is not taxable, plus make a day out of it.



Robp said:
My experience is rainbow, pay taxes EVERYTIME, Lewiston and peace, have not paid taxes YET.

I not saying I never will, but every time I've used rainbow I've had to pull over and pay taxes. So the last three times I've crossed to pick up packages I've been totally honest and haven't paid anything yet.
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interesting. Ill just go with whichever bridge is quicker both ways, and let you guys know how it went on the way back.
 
we went over Saturday, on the weekend of a US holiday..

Rainbow over, it said wait times were ~35 minutes, we crossed in maybe 20 (around 10:30 am)
Peace Bridge coming home, had lunch, poked in some stores picked up 3 ceiling fans at Lowes total ~ $300, saved a lot from what it would have costs at home.

Hit the border home around 4pm, declared the $300, waved through, have a nice day, no additinal taxes. Maybe 3 or 4 cars in line ahead of us?

I live and work reasonbly close to the border, we go over probably once a month, quite a bit more lately (we are building a house) and have ordered numerous fixtures. Much cheaper in the states and free shipping in most cases.

We ship to Parcel Donkey near the Queenston Bridge and go over to pick up. In the 20 or so trips either my wife or I have made in the past few months, She was brouight in once to pay taxes and it was minimal.

My experience is check the wait times for the bridges and use the one closest to where you are going when you can. Really all three are only 20-30 minutes apart so detouring isnt a big deal.
 
First off, thanks to everyone that replied, it helped a lot!

Long story short we crossed over at Lewiston bridge both ways; going there was about 40min wait @ 10am and coming back was about 15 minutes @8pm. We bought a few things from the outlet mall and Walden Galleria, declared 150 on the way back and they waved us through. The guard on the way there asked a bunch of questions but on the way back barely asked anything.

Good trip overall, unless you have a lot of shopping to do, or you are ordering stuff to a buffalo address for pick up I wouldnt say its worth it just for the clothes.

thanks again for the advice!
 
DemonPig said:
If you ever intend to go to the States again for the purpose of shopping then proceed to Pennsylvania.
Buffalo is crap. Whatever you save is wasted on gas and exchange, plus not the best riding area.
Penn - great roads and great deals. Wish the state was closer.
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Years ago Butler PA was supposed to be good. I never went and don't know if that's still the case.

Also taxes vary by county. In Watkins Glen there is no tax, ZERO, on items of clothing under $100. If you see a shirt for $9.99 you give the guy a $10 and he gives you a penny back. It really feels weird. It could be totally different five miles down the road.
 
It's not even low or non-existent taxes in Penn, stuff is just way cheaper. I mean same Sketchers that you paid $80 here for, I got for $30 there. I usually go around every 2 years and spend about 300 bucks, + motel, some casino, some drinking, food, gas = $500 trip (I split motel and gas money with friends). So for that kind of cash I have a great weekend and replenish my closet. Same kind of stuff would cost me around $600 in GTA and I get no gambling, no booze, no fun. :)

The only downside is the 4 hour drive vs 1.5h to Buffalo. That's why I stay 2 nights.

Roads are sweet over there. When I went last year, no cops and no gravel. Way more twisty than what we're used to here.
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