Streetwise Toronto [Folded Map] [Map]

Streetwise Maps (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 7, 2005

PLEASE NOTE: A newly updated version of this STREETWISE map is available. The map may be found by searching for the new product ISBN: 9781931257503 Thank You.

--This text refers to an alternate Map edition.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Don't leave home without STREETWISE" -- New York Times

"STREETWISE is an absolute travel essential" -- Travel & Leisure

About the Author

STREETWISE® is the first map to be designed with modern graphics and is the originator of the laminated, accordion-fold map format. We’ve set the standard that every map company has imitated but never duplicated. Our mission is to make you feel comfortable, to make you feel safe in a place where you’ve never been before and to enable you to experience a familiar place more fully.

The company was founded in 1984 by Michael Brown, who had been in international publishing for many years, setting up subsidiaries for textbook publishers. In the 1970’s, Brown traveled extensively throughout Africa, India, the Middle East and Southeast Asia. Brown would take a large paper map, cut out the city center, folded it up and slip it into his pocket, thus preventing him from looking like a tourist in areas where discretion is the better part of travel. This was his tool for surviving.

After many years on the road, Brown settled back in New York and decided to start his own business, based on the adaptations he had made to maps in his travels. His goal was to give someone the ability to navigate easily in unfamiliar terrain.

He started with a new map format: the accordion fold. Such a simple idea, but at the time it was revolutionary. No more struggling to fold an awkward, oversized paper map. This new format would enable the user to blend in like a native, instead of stick out like a tourist. Brown then added lamination to ensure that the map would be a lasting tool.

More important than the format was the design of the map itself. It had to be a map that not only succeeded above and beyond any map he had used, but was esthetically appealing as well. The look of it had to be as striking as the functionality. Color was introduced in a way that was never seen before in a map - vivid purple for water, soothing gray for the background of street grids, gold to highlight elements of the map. Clarity, conciseness and convenience in a very stylish package.

Building the business was a 24 hour job. Brown sold the maps during the day, zipping around Manhattan making deliveries on his Harley Davidson. At night he packed the orders and did the design work. More titles were added, each title requiring months of research and design.

Today, STREETWISE® produces over 130 titles for major destinations, regions and countries throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, Australia, Europe, the United Kingdom and Asia. We have grown from the back of a motorcycle to selling millions of maps around the world.

Yet each title is still painstakingly researched and updated. STREETWISE® is one of the only, if not THE only map company that conducts research by walking or driving an area to ensure accuracy. After all, what good is the map if what you hold in your hands doesn’t match what you see on the street sign? This lengthy fact checking results in superior accuracy; in effect, we’ve done the work, now you have the adventure.

In the end, it’s not about the map, it’s about getting out and finding your own authentic experience wherever you go. It’s about being in a city or a region and discovering things that you never thought you would find. You can do this if you have confidence and you have confidence if you have a great map. STREETWISE® is the great map that you need. --This text refers to an alternate Map edition.

Product Details

• Map: 6 pages
• Publisher: Streetwise Maps; Revised 2005 edition (February 7, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1886705089
• ISBN-13: 978-1886705081
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 4.1 x 0.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,982,325 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #47 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Reference > Atlases & Maps > Canada
  • #56 in Books > Travel > Canada > Cities > Toronto
  • #82 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Travel > Canada

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Wish I'd had this the last time I visited Hogtown..., October 13, 2001

By 

B. Hutchins "overage undergrad" (Podunk, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Streetwise Toronto (Map)

... you can bet I'll have it with me when I go back. The usual Streetwise quality is evident in this map; the only quibble I have with it is the rather odd orientation. Thanks to the fact that all Streetwise have to fit into their standard rectangle shape, and the somewhat unusual shape of Toronto means that in order to fit it in, it has to be oriented with north nowhere near "up". Once you get used to that, though, you have a dandy, sturdy map of Toronto, including the TTC subway lines.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Convenient, but needs to be updated, January 22, 2006

By 

msmoon - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Streetwise Toronto (Map)

I purchased this in 2003 for a trip later that year. I had no problems getting around, but after multiple trips to the city I would recommend buying a map once you're in the city. I spotted a minor error with the subway listings, and they list a non-existent green space in the Annex neighborhood...I asked a passerby and they had no idea where it could be! The TTC (Toronto Transit Commission) has free, to-date-maps that are available in all the stations with agents. So do some booths at Pearson Airport. Still, the foldable, waterproof format is super-convenient. Just remember to pick up a more current map and carry the Streetwise one when you're walking around for general reference.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great, great, great, January 16, 2006

By 

S. Scantlebury "Traveller" (Barbados) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Streetwise Toronto (Map)

So easy to use! Although orienting yourself with North was a little challenging at 1st. The fact that the map is laminated is a definite plus! This is something I can use over and over again, I even gave one as a gift to a friend who lives in Toronto and they love it as well!