NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. — The Fashion Outlets of Niagara Falls USA were packed with people ready to get their Black Friday deals.

"We've gone through, you know, a couple of years we've had to really distance ourselves, and right now I think everybody is excited to be back in the mall and have that true holiday experience, that hustle and bustle that you expect," Susie Swiatkowski, Fashion Outlets of Niagara Falls USA marketing manager, said.

This is also the first holiday season since the pandemic began with no COVID-19 restrictions at the Canadian border. 

"For shoppers, it means that hopefully, we're going to stay busy all year long. It's really exciting to see that our Canadian friends are able to come back and they are coming back. So we at the Fashion Outlets of Niagara, we've been welcoming them back for the past couple months," Swiatkowski said.

Local shoppers say they're glad to be back without restrictions.

"It's been really nice to just kids with you and come in and shop around and see what they want maybe what you want and just have a good time," Danielle Cook of Pendleton said.

Others weren't too crazy about the lines.

"The only thing that's kind of... that I didn't expect is that some of the smaller stores have a line. I don't want to stand in line, I guess I'm not a patient person. But other than that it's great. It's fun seeing people out all over again and like I said, no masks," JoGee Monroe of Lockport said.

But people were happy to get back into their Black Friday traditions.

"We get out to shop one day a year together and we can save a lot of money," Mike Smith of Derby said.

"We normally like to go out on Black Friday, we're not looking for anything specific, just looking to get out of the house... spend some time together," Lori Kmidowski of Hamburg said.