Customer Reviews

Michelin Green Guide Ontario, 1e (Green Guide/Michelin)

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I'm a big fan of Michelin Green guides because they're great at helping prioritize one's visit to an area. The 3-star, 2-star, 1-star, and no star ratings really let the reader know which sites are not to be missed, which sights should be seen if one has a bit more time, and which are probably more of interest to locals with more time on their hands. Other aspects of these guides which I like include many color pictures, as well as maps of the major tourist areas. There are also sections on basic Ontario logistics (tourist offices, climate, transportation, etc.), as well as just enough Ontario history, politics, and geography to help the casual visitor understand more of what he's seeing.
In individual entries, one can quickly reference important logistical information such as how much time to allot to the site, where to park, and so forth. Hotel and restaurant information is very bare-bones; I would think that most people would want to rely on other sources of information for this, such as a AAA/CAA guide or tripadvisor.
Unfortunately, many Michelin Green guides (not the Quebec guide for some reason, though) like to organize cities in some sore of cutesy way instead of by alphabetical order, and this guide is a good example. Unfortunately, this means that all entries need to be searched first in the index. They have a "Southern Ontario" section, for example, which doesn't include Windsor or Niagara Falls, although cities which are further north, such as Guelph and Kitchener are included. Similarly, Prince Edward County, located right in Lake Ontario, is not included in the "Lake Ontario" section (it's in the 1000 Islands section, for some reason).
Also bizarrely, the sights in Niagara Falls NY are completely ignored in the Niagara Falls entry (Goat Island, Cave of the Winds, etc.). Wouldn't most readers want to know? Finally, the map of the major tourist area of Ontario is hidden on page 108/109, for reasons known only to the authors (a map of the entire province including Hudson Bay is in the opening cover foldout).
In summary, while I find this guide stupidly organized, I can't deny that it has really helped me plan our trip--with the proviso that other methods will probably need to be used for finding hotels and restaurants.