Guelph Arts Council Historical Walking Tours

For over 30 years, Guelph Arts Council has promoted the cultural heritage of Guelph by offering six different walking tours on selected Sundays.The tours are a unique opportunity for residents and visitors to learn about Guelph’s history while taking in the beautiful architectural and natural features of the city. 

2020 Tour Information
-Tours will run from August 2 - October 4
-Tours begin on Sunday at 10am unless otherwise indicated
-Duration: 60 - 90 minutes
-View 2020 tour schedule and locations

Registration & Safety
-To ensure physical distancing, tours will be limited to 6 people per tour
-Pre-registration is required. Purchase your ticket online or call 519-836-3280 to make your booking
-Face coverings are mandatory to participate in tours

Keepsakes
Historical Walking Tour booklets are available at Guelph Arts Council, The Bookshelf, and Guelph Civic Museum for $5 each. Booklets offer historical information and architectural drawings, which allows self-guided tours and makes a wonderful keepsake. Downloadable booklets are also available.

Interested in a private tour for your group? Contact us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 519-836-3280.

Sponsored by Sleeman Breweries and Downtown Guelph Business Association

Workshops

Photo Credits: Melissa Gobeil

Cultural Tours

For the past 20+ years, Guelph Arts Council has offered an amazing annual overseas spring arts and cultural tour for members and friends. Past destinations have included a wide range of countries and regions mainly in Europe (France, Spain, Italy, Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Greece, Turkey, Hungary and Romania, Poland and the Baltic States, Croatia and Slovenia) but also North Africa (Tunisia) and Asia (Turkey). Highlights of these tours include intriguing history, wonderful art and architecture, great food and drink including specialties of the region, excellent first-class hotels, and some wonderful stories offered by longtime tour guide, historian, lecturer, author, Jacques Pauwels, PhD, of Pauwels Travel in Brantford. For 2020, the 22nd offering will be Central Europe from the Carpathians to the Danube, a leisurely 14-day circular tour exploring Southern Poland, the Moravian region of the Czech Republic, and Slovakia.  Dates are April 14 to 27, 2020.  

For more information, please contact Sally Wismer at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

View 2020 brochure

The Guelph Emerging Artist Mentorship Project

The Guelph Emerging Artist Mentorship Project (GEAMP) is a partnership of Guelph Arts Council (GAC) and the University of Guelph School of Fine Art and Music (SOFAM) that supports emerging artists in the critical transition to professional life.

Through the project, emerging musicians, visual artists, and cultural managers work with established-artist mentors to develop the professional networks and business and management skills needed for creative careers in Guelph. The collaboration has provided emerging artists, musicians, and cultural managers with valuable opportunities to work creatively with each other and with established arts professionals, as well as promote their work and gain experience in curation, social media, marketing/publicity, graphic design, and more.

Participants in the project include SOFAM fourth-year students and recent grads, as well as other emerging Guelph-Wellington artists. They have a discipline focus in visual or media arts, music, or cultural management.

In 2017 the project was launched with support from Ontario150 Partnership Project, and has continued with RBC support. In each round, the emerging artists’ experience culminates in a group exhibition of their work that they plan, promote, and install with support from their mentors. Since 2017 the Guelph Emerging Artist Mentorship Project has paired 48 emerging musicians, visual artists, and cultural managers with established-artist mentors.

GAC and SOFAM are grateful for project support from the RBC Emerging Artists Project, which helps artists bridge the gap from emerging to established.

Artists interested in the program are invited to contact Guelph Arts Council at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 519-836-3280.