Book Review - Road Trip Survival Guide by Samantha Brown

If you're planning any type of road trip, you'll want to read through this book. Even if you're not going on a road trip, there is plenty of information and inspiration to get out of this book.

The first chapter focuses on planning your trip - researching your destination, making your trip more green (environmentally friendly), and some inspirational trips.

Chapter two has lots of good advice for packing and vehicle organizing plus packing lists.

The next chapter offers suggestions on snacks to make and bring with you (and thereby saving money and time).

I found the "Safety" chapter useful for any trip with tips on vehicle safety and road conditions, night driving, and other safety resources.

Chapter five has some great itinerary suggestions for road trips in the United States as well as Canada and Mexico.

Overall, this is a great book. Try to find it in your local library.

Title: The Road Trip Survival Guide: Tips and Tricks for Planning Routes, Packing Up, and Preparing for Any Unexpected Encounter Along the Way
Author: Samantha Brown
ISBN: 978-1982177072
Pages: 204

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Book Review - Moon Guide to Toronto and Ontario by Carolyn B. Heller

If you read my previous post you'll know I'm trying to visit the Six Flags owned amusement parks in Canada. Canada Wonderland is about forty minutes drive north of Toronto in Vaughan, Ontario. So I picked up this book to visit some other places nearby while I was in town and to check out local foods.

The first chapter, Discover Toronto and Ontario, offers several quick highlights - Top 10 Experiences, The Best of Ontario, Food and Wine Getaways, Toronto Art and Culture, Georgian Bay Road Trip, Top Recreation, Romance at the Niagra Falls, Northern Exposure, and the Underground Railroad.

The next seven chapters focus on specific areas complete with colorful maps, restaurant and accommodation suggestions, sports and recreation, shopping, entertainment and events, and sights. Chapters include Toronto, The Niagara Region, Lake Erie to Lake Huron, Eastern Ontario, Ottawa, Cottage Country/Algonquin/and the Northeast, Georgian Bay, and Lake Superior.

The tenth chapter features the Background of Ontario - the landscape, the plants and animals, the history, the government and economy, the people and culture, and the arts.

The Essentials chapter offers the important information - transporation, visas, recreation, accommodations, food and drink, travel tips, health and safety, and information.

One of the last chapters in the book, the Resources chapter, contains interesting books and internet sites if you want to deeper dive into Ontario.

There are several really great sidebars throughout the book. If you plan to visit Niagara Falls, check out the suggested two-day itinerary (or if you only have one day, just focus on day one). Sprinkled throughout the book are some interesting sites related to the First Nations including the Six Nations Museum and the Petrogylphs Provincial Park. If you like chocolate as much as me, check out the Stratford Chocolate Trail where you can sample six special treats.

Title: Moon Toronto and Ontario: With Niagara Falls, Ottawa and Georgian Bay
Author: Carolyn B. Heller
ISBN: 978-1640492387
Pages: 488

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Book Review - Lonely Planet Montreal and Quebec City by Steve Fallon, Regis St Louis and Phillip Tang

This summer I am hoping to make a trip to La Ronde, the Six Flags owned amusement park in Montreal, so I picked up a few Canadian tour guides. It's been over twenty years since I'd last visited Montreal and I can't wait to go back. Just FYI, Quebec is pronounced kay-BEC and people from Quebec are called Quebecois or Quebecoise (kebekwa).

I like how the Lonely Planet guide books are broken into four main sections (with color-coded tabs) - Plan Your Trip, Explore, Understand, and Survival Guide. Lots of full-color photographs and maps. At the end of the book after the index is a tear-out section of useful maps.

The first section, Plan Your Trip, includes the following: Montreal's Top 10, Need to Know, Top Itineraries, Monthy by Month festivals, Travel with Kids, Visiting Quebec City, Eating highlights, Drinking highlights, Entertainment, and Shopping.

The next section, Explore, is broken out into the following chapters: Neighborhoods at a Glance, Old Montreal, Parc Jean-Drapeau (where the La Ronde amusement park resides along with some other family-friendly places to visit), Downtown, Rue St Denis and the Village, Plateau Mont-Royal and the Northeast, Little Italy and Outremont, Lachine Canal and Little Burgundy, Day trips from Montreal, Accomodations, and Quebec City.

Understand Montreal and Quebec City section contains chapters on the history of Montreal and a separate history for Quebec City, People and Culture, Music and the Arts, and Architecture (a brief four page chapter on some key architectural points to visit).

Survival Guide is a chapter of interest to visitors - Transportation, Directory A-Z, and Languages (a very handy pull-out guide on some basic French)

This is a wonderful guide to this area. The walking itineraries with detailed maps and points of interest are great. Just a note, I saw on Amazon there's a newer edition coming out this year. Always be sure to validate operating hours and days as well as costs before heading out.

Title: Lonely Planet Montreal and Quebec City
Authors: by Steve Fallon, Regis St Louis, Phillip Tang
ISBN: 978-1788684507
Pages: 288

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Book Review - Atlas of Adventures - by Rachel Williams

I found this colorful, interesting book while wandering the Junior Non-Fiction section of my local library. There are full-color maps for every continent including Antarctica. Each one is full of adventures and animals which are then followed by deep dives into a selected few experiences (with nice zoom-maps in the corner). Plus you can read lots of interesting trivia tidbits. There's even a few look-and-find game you can try at the end.

The first section focuses on Europe. Learn about the Northern Lights in Findland, the London Eye, Scotland's Highland Games, Paris' The Louvre, Spain's Feria Del Caballo (Horse Parade), the gondolas in Venice, Skiing in the Bavarian Alps, and Moscow's Metro.

North America's section highlights the wonderful wilfdlife of Alaska, hot air ballooning in Canada, New York's famous Central Park, Arizona's Grand Canyon, riding a Steamboat on the Mississippi River, and following the migration of the Monarch Butterflies.

Central and South America features the fun Rio Carnival in Brazil, exploring the Amazon Rain Forest, or the cowboy culture of Argentina's Northern Patagonia.

Asia and the Middle East section includes the fun little Macaques monkey of Japan, Hong Kong's lantern festival, Thailand's Chiang Mai elephants, India's Holi Festival, Korea's Cherry Blossom festival (which I was surpised to learn about since we always just assumed Japan was the only one), and Israel's Dead Sea.

Africa features Egypt's Pyramids of Giza, joining a camel caravan across the Sahara Desert, playing soccer in Senegal, or taking a canoe safari down the Zambezi River.

The Australia and Oceania section leads to snorkeling the Great Barrier Reef, learning about the Waitangi in New Zealand, or surfing in Hawaii.

And finally some interesting things about penguins in Antarctica .

Overall this is a fun little book to read some neat tidbits on different animals and cultures. Look for it at your local library (even through the digital books or through inter-library loans).

Title: Atlas of Adventures: Travel Edition: A collection of NATURAL WONDERS, EXCITING EXPERIENCES and FUN FESTIVITIES from the four corners of the globe
Author: Rachel Williams
Illustrator: Lucy Letherland
ISBN: 978-0711255708
Pages: 96

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Book Review - Lonely Planet Banff, Jasper and Glacier National Parks by Brendan Sainsbury and Jade Bremner

This is an excellent, full-color guide to the 3 National Parks - Banff and Jasper in Canada and Glacier in Montana. The book is color-coded with tabs - Plan Your Trip, On the Road, Understand, and Survival Guide.

The Plan Your Trip section contains useful information such as colorful maps, Top 20 to see and do, Need to Know, Month-by-Month things to do, Sample Itineraries, Activities, Family Travel and Travel with Pets.

On the Road digs deeper into each park - Banff National Park and Sights Around the Park (such as Canmore or Kananaskis Country), Jasper National Park, Glacier National Park and Around the Park (West and East Glacier, St Mary and the Blackfeet Indian Reservation). There's a section on Waterton Lakes National Park.

Understand section highlights the parks today, the history of the parks, geology, wildlife, and conservation.

Survival Guide at the end offers general travel information - health and safety, suggested clothes to pack, transportation and getting around, and more.

What sets this guide apart are the really useful hiking maps detailing the routes for almost every trail.

Title: Lonely Planet Banff, Jasper and Glacier National Parks: Detailed Itineraries | Travel Like a Local | Insider Tips | Covers Banff, Jasper, Glacier, Waterton Lakes, and more (National Parks Guide)
Author: Brendan Sainsbury and Jade Bremner
ISBN: 9781838696757
Pages: 272

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Book Review - Frommer's EasyGuide to Toronto, Niagara and the Wine Country by Caroline Aksich

Great travel guide that mostly focuses on Toronto with a few side trips (Niagara Falls, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Stratford, and Waterloo). The book starts off with "Best of" lists - "Best Authentic Experiences", "Best Restaurants", "Best Hotels", "Best Museums", "Best Free Things To Do", "Best Active Adventures", and the very interesting "Most Overrated Experiences", then "Best Festivals", "Best for Families", and "Best Neighborhoods".

Then you can find Suggested Toronto Itineraries and Neighborhoods in 1 Day, 2 Days, 3 Days, and 4 Days. Followed by "The Best of Toronto for Foodies" and more detailed info for "Best for Families" with highlights like the Ontario Science Centre and Centre Island.

This book has very detailed City-Street Maps which I appreciate.

Keep in mind that this book was published in 2019, so be sure to double-check operating hours and prices since Covid might have altered a lot of business's operations.

Title: Frommer's EasyGuide to Toronto, Niagara and the Wine Country
Author: Caroline Aksich
ISBN: 9781628874464
Pages: 288

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Book Review - Fodor's Travel Guide to Nova Scotia and Atlantic Canada

I'm planning a trip next year to Canada and have been trying to narrow down the provinces I want to visit so you'll see a few book reviews of the different areas. Nova Scotia and Atlantic Canada are definitely at the top of my list for the history and ease-of-access. This travel guide is full-color with some really inspirational photographs, detailed maps and city maps, and suggested itineraries.

After the introduction and the "Travel Smart" sections, the book is broken out by area - Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland. And these sections are further broken down into cities with "planning your time" highlights, things to do or see, places to eat, places to stay and more.

I especially like the experience suggestions in the beginning of the book - "What to Eat and Drink in Atlantic Canada", "What to Buy in Atlantic Canada", "Best Outdoor Adventures in Atlantic Canada", and "Best Historic Sites in Atlantic Canada".

The "Travel Smart" section lists out useful information - the Currency, Driving, Electricity, Time Zones, What to Pack and Wear, Getting There and then Getting Around. And even a "Helpful French Phrases" section you could tear out and take with you.

Even though this book was published in 2025, always double-check operating times and prices before heading out.

Title: Fodor's Nova Scotia and Atlantic Canada: with New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland (Full-color Travel Guide)
Author: Fodor's Travel Guides
ISBN: 9781640977853
Pages: 352

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Book Review - Moon Guide to Victoria and Vancouver Island

I've been considering taking an Alaska cruise and several operators have several points in Canada in their itineraries. So my interest was piqued when I found this book on Victoria and Vancouver Island. Moon Guides are always very useful and I like how this one breaks Vancouver Island into 3 sections - South, Central and North - to make it easier to focus on visiting one area rather than spending a lot of time back and forth. The island is quite big and there are many islands off the coast to visit via ferry. It is best to focus on one area due to the time it will take to arrive at your destination. Be sure to check the ferry schedules ahead of time to be sure you will arrive at your desired time and be able to depart (unless you are staying in a hotel) on time as well. Lots of good maps.

The Essentials section in the back of the book provides useful information on visiting Canada and the British Columbia area in general including airports, buses, rental cars (the insurance information was something new I learned), exchange rates (always check ahead of your visit to be sure you have the actual rate as it fluctuates), and more.

I do wish there were websites or facebook listings for each "big" location as I always like to verify hours of operation and costs ahead of time without having to google each stop. Obviously, some smaller businesses or mom-and-pop shops usually may not have websites. Overall, a pretty handy guide to take along on your trip whether you are cruising, driving or flying to this beautiful area.

Title: Moon Victoria and Vancouver Island: Coastal Recreation, Museums and Gardens, Whale-Watching (Travel Guide)
Author: Andrew Hempstead
ISBN: 978-1640496743
Pages: 248

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