Travel Ontario: Ontario's 50 Most Popular Tourist Attractions

Frank McGee was a Toronto-based freelance writer.

Travel Ontario: Ontario’s 50 Most Popular Tourist Attractions fulfills the promise of its title. It is simply a listing of Ontario’s most frequented tourist sites.

The Ropers, Wayne and Norma, a husband-and-wife team who live just outside of Kingston, are unabashedly promoting tourism in Ontario. The fifty sites in this picture book, which were chosen with the assistance of the Ontario Ministry of Tourism and Recreation, were obviously meant to highlight the variety of available activities for the visitor to Ontario or the Ontarian in search of a weekend excursion.

The fifty sites are the obvious ones that would be listed. They range from the sacred, the Martyrs’ Shrine in Midland, to the profane, Canada’s Wonderland, which is located just outside of Toronto. A good attempt has been made to report on sites that would suit all interests — from the historic, to points of natural splendour, to cultural attractions, and some of the sites that would interest children.

The site summaries include uninspired pictures that look like a standard file photo of each location. The writing style is clear and crisp and not overwhelmed with hyperbole or adjectives. The Ropers rely on the facts for colour. The descriptions do pique the reader’s interest by combining a dash of the historical with a pinch of the practical. However, the Ropers haven’t included any tips that would be useful for the traveller. In fact, the actual location of the sites is only vaguely outlined on a numbered map that provides no reference points.

Travel Ontario should be seen as a publication of only slightly higher quality and interest than you would find in your local government tourist office.