Jolly Old St. Nicholas will be making his return to the Royal City as part of Sunday’s Santa Claus parade through downtown Guelph.
The festivities get underway at 1 p.m. with the fifth annual Santa Road Race that will see runners make their way through the three-kilometre parade route.
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The race is organized by the Speed River Track and Field Club and registration stays open until Sunday. All of the proceeds from the run will support Big Brothers Big Sisters of Guelph.
Those taking part are encouraged to don a red and white Santa suit or something festive for the race.
At 1:15 p.m., volunteers will start making their way through the parade route, collecting letters to Santa and donations to the Guelph Food Bank.
The parade itself begins at 1:30 p.m. at Woolwich and Powell streets and ends on Wyndham at the railway bridge.
Several organizations will be involved in the parade, including members of Guelph’s Indigenous community who will be carrying flags that represent the Metis, Inuit, Mohawk, 2 Spirited and the Anishinaabe people.
Spectators can warm up after the parade in Old Quebec Street Shoppes where Santa will be sharing milk and cookies until 4 p.m.
Organizers with the Downtown Guelph Business Association are expecting 20,000 people to line the parade route, so anyone hoping to get a good spot should show up early.
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Drivers are being reminded that there will several road closures in the downtown core on Sunday, between 11 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.
Roads that are affected can be found on the city’s website.
Environment Canada is forecasting a sunny Sunday and a high of 1 C.