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GUIDED TOURS OF THE QUARTIER DES SPECTACLES: LEARN ALL ABOUT A SQUARE KILOMETRE BRIMMING WITH CULTURE

Press release - For immediate release

Montreal, June 4, 2015 – Until October 18, regular and occasional visitors to Montreal’s cultural heart are invited to take a free guided walking tour of the Quartier des Spectacles. With some 40 festivals, 80 cultural venues, interactive installations and bold lighting, the Quartier des Spectacles is a destination where there’s always something interesting happening. Participants will enjoy the many surprises of the Quartier’s 1 km2, home to North America’s most diverse and concentrated collection of cultural venues.

Now in their third year, the walking tours offered by the Quartier des Spectacles Partnership are given three times a week in English or French, led by graduates of the city’s tourism and hospitality academy, the Institut de tourisme et d’hôtellerie du Québec. Visitors will explore the Quartier from west to east, from Place des Festivals to Place Émilie-Gamelin and its new temporary arangement, Les Jardins Gamelin. Guides will lead participants through public spaces and lively streets, as well as into iconic buildings such as the Monument-National and Place des Arts. The guides will also discuss current cultural events in the Quartier, temporary installations, the Urban Digital Laboratory and the Luminous Pathway. The information-rich tour has already earned a Bravo badge from TripAdvisor, thanks to many enthusiastic reviews by Montrealers and visitors alike.

The Quartier des Spectacles: an enormous outdoor theatre in the heart of Montreal

The Quartier is one of the most ambitious renewal projects undertaken in Montreal in the last decade, and it has been blossoming before our eyes ever since the inauguration of the public spaces dedicated to cultural activities and events. The walking tour explains the unprecedented creative and urban renewal. “Even those who regularly spend time in the Quartier des Spectacles can find it hard to keep track of all the transformations, new venues and redeveloped public spaces. The tour is an excellent way to visualize the whole process and get to know the many facets of the Quartier, which is so much more than just the Place des Festivals,” says Jacques Primeau, chair of the Quartier des Spectacles Partnership’s board of directors. The two and a half hour walking tour will help participants understand not only the history of this part of the city – a cultural hotbed for more than a century – but also the vision behind what is considered one of the cornerstones of the effort to establish Montreal as a cultural metropolis.

PRACTICAL DETAILS

FREE WALKING TOUR OF THE QUARTIER DES SPECTACLES

Until October 18, 2015

In English:
Saturdays, 3:30 to 6 p.m.

In French:
Thursdays, 5:30 to 8 p.m.
Sundays, 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Free reservations and information:

English tours: quartierdesspectacles.com/walkingtour

French tours: quartierdesspectacles.com/visiteguidee

For a fee, private tours can also be arranged for groups and/or at times outside the regular schedule. visite@quartierdesspectacles.com, or 514-879-0009, ext. 295


ABOUT THE QUARTIER DES SPECTACLES

The Quartier des Spectacles is Montreal’s cultural heart, boasting North America’s most concentrated and diverse group of cultural venues. The district is the year-round host to countless festivals and events, many of which include free outdoor shows and activities. The Quartier also hosts innovative urban installations involving cutting-edge lighting design, immersive environments or interactive digital spaces. The Quartier des Spectacles is an international showcase for new multimedia technology, making Montreal a global leader in the urban exhibition of digital content. For more information, visit quartierdesspectacles.com.

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Visuals Photos: flickr.com/photos/quartierdesspectacles/

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Media enquiries: Marie Lamoureux | marie.lamoureux@quartierdesspectacles.com | 514 923-6772