Of course it's boring... it's a small town. It comes with the territory. But with heavy tourism, a good population of local artists, and the Shaw Festival (and its associated creative workers) it's about as exciting as a small town can get.
It may be a manicured and managed sort of place... but that's the point. Tourism is what drives the local economy... complaining that NOTL is too much of a tourist town is like complaining that CIBC is too much of a bank. As I mentioned above, NOTL was a very poor community until tourism took off (and is also why the main street managed to avoid destruction).
But don't think that this prevents it from being a real town. The place has an very strong sense of community. With the exception of the three "Vintage Inns", the tourist industry in the community is extremely grassroots... small shops, mom+pop B&Bs, and the Shaw itself.
In fact, I would say that it is a "real town" almost to the point of parody. The sort of place where people know the grocer, the baker, the post office ladies, and all their neighbors within a 2-block radius by name. The sort of place where many of the locals get around town by bicycle or foot, only needing their car for the rare trip to Virgil, St. Catharines, or Niagara Falls.