About Us
Outline History
In the late 1980's a small group of tour guides all working for one
particular Toronto company began getting together for lunch and other
events. They enjoyed the opportunity to get together and compare notes. They
expressed regret that there was no organization enabling tour guides to
exchange information and ideas as they were doing. As time went by they
converted their regret into action creating the Canadian Tour Guide
Association as the very organization and forum that they felt was needed.
Their new organization was governed temporarily by a Steering Committee.
The Steering Committee quickly
got its act together and developed Bylaws and a Code of Ethics for members
which were adopted and an Executive elected within the new framework. All
the while the little organization was growing and, in hopes that it would be
just one chapter in a nationwide association, amended the name to be the
Canadian Tour Guide Association (Toronto Chapter). Ultimately when they came
to register the name, they found that legal considerations prevented use of
that name and the group was registered as the Canadian Tour Guide
Association of Toronto.
It found that a similar organization also existed in British Columbia. Once
the two organizations were in contact, they agreed to adopt similar logos
and one would be "CTGA of Toronto" while the other would be "CTGA of BC". An
older organization already existed in Montreal, Association Professionelle
des Guides Touristiques. All three organizations were now in touch and were
joined by similar groups in the National Capital Region and Quebec City.
Membership
The membership in CTGA of Toronto grew from less than a dozen in the
earliest years just described to 40 then 80
then 110. In recent years it has remained stable between 110 and 120. New
members are always welcome.
All of our members are established Toronto area local guides. However, many
of them are also qualified tour directors or tour managers (long distance
touring) and work on both the local scene and across the country.
In addition to Guide Members, CTGA of Toronto now has a category for
corporate affiliate membership called Sponsoring Membership.
Aims and Objectives
Our aims and objectives are quite simple:
To promote professional development for tour guides,
To provide opportunities for continuing education for tour guides,
To encourage professional integrity and ethical conduct in our dealings with
each other and with the public,
To cooperate with Canadian and foreign Guide Associations.
How we meet our aims and
objectives should become evident as you read through other pages of our web
site.
