What is the best way to create a self-guided tour app for a small town?

The most efficient way is to use an existing digital tourism platform like Driftscape. This avoids high development costs and provides built-in features like GPS triggering, offline maps, and gamification.

Can we use digital tools for indoor heritage tours?

Yes, digital platforms are excellent for museums to provide audio and video layers to physical exhibits, allowing visitors to explore deep history at their own pace without extra staffing.

Self-Guided Tours: Pros/Cons + Launch Checklist for Destinations and Museums

Q: How do self-guided tours support our Shop Local initiatives?

Digital tours allow for check-ins and rewards at local businesses, turning a sightseeing trip into an economic driver that BIAs can track and report on with real-time analytics.

Andrew Applebaum
il y a 12 minutes
3 min de lecture

Colorful teepee decorated with handprints and a sunburst design, set in a garden with green plants and red flowers. Bright, sunny day.

You’ve likely seen the "brochure graveyard": that stack of expensive, glossy maps sitting untouched at the back of a visitor center or, even worse, damp and discarded on a park bench. For BIA managers and DMO directors, it’s a constant struggle to justify printing costs when you have no way to measure if those maps actually drove foot traffic to your local merchants.

Transitioning to a self-guided tour model isn't just about ditching paper; it’s about providing a high-quality, immersive travel experience that works on your visitor's schedule, not just your office hours. Whether you’re highlighting a downtown business core or managing complex heritage tours, a digital tourism platform like Driftscape gives you the data you’ve been missing while making your destination more accessible to everyone.

What are the pros and cons of a self-guided tour?

A self-guided tour provides a flexible, cost-effective way for visitors to engage with your site using their own smartphones. While it offers unmatched data collection and 24/7 availability, it does require a thoughtful initial setup to ensure visitors feel supported without a physical guide present.

The Pros: More Data, Less Waste

Measurable Impact: Unlike paper, a self-guided tour app tells you exactly which stops are popular. For example, the Town of Riverview tracked over 4,000 views on their business scavenger hunt, giving them hard data to show their stakeholders.
Sustainability & Savings: You can stop the "print and purge" cycle. The Crescent Heights Village BIA saved nearly $7,000 by moving their cultural assets to a digital format.
Enhanced Storytelling: Use audio and video to create deep cultural tourism experiences that a flat map simply can't match.

The Cons: Managing the Shift

The Technology Hurdle: Some visitors are reluctant to download new apps. (This is why Driftscape’s web-app option is a lifesaver...it works right in the mobile browser).
Content Maintenance: Digital info is easier to update than print, but you still need to ensure your links and shop local offers stay current.

Your Self-Guided Tour Launch Checklist

Ready to launch? Don’t just put dots on a map, build a journey. Following a structured plan ensures your tour feels like a professionally curated experience rather than a random list of locations.

Pick a Compelling Hook: Don't just list buildings; create a mission. The Downtown Carleton Place BIA turned local history into a "Hardy Boys" mystery, resulting in 1,300 completions in a single month.
Quality Over Quantity: Start with 8–12 high-quality Points of Interest (POIs). One great story is better than five mediocre ones.
Gamify the Experience: Include a "check-in" feature. When visitors feel like they are "collecting" stops, they are significantly more likely to finish the route.
Bridge the Gap with QR Codes: Place physical markers at each stop. This helps tech-hesitant visitors jump straight into the experience without a struggle.

Tourism Reality: Your digital tour is only as good as your "boots on the ground" promotion. Successful destinations use the Driftscape platform to link physical signage directly to interactive mobile content, ensuring the tour is discovered by the people already walking your streets.

Common Questions from Tourism Pros

Q: How do self-guided tours support our "Shop Local" initiatives?

A: By integrating digital coupons or "points" for visiting specific shops, you turn a walk into a shopping trip. This gives BIAs a tangible way to prove they are driving customers through the doors of their members.

Q: Can we use this for indoor heritage tours?

A: Absolutely. Museums like the Michigan Heroes Museum use these tools to scale their storytelling, allowing visitors to hear the "behind the scenes" stories of exhibits even when the curatorial staff is busy.

Q: What happens if the visitor has no data plan?

A: This is a common concern. Look for a platform that allows for "offline mode" so visitors can download the tour at their hotel or the visitor center and use it without a cell signal.