Self Guided Trips: 10 Itineraries Destinations Can Package Into Experiences

Walk through your downtown on a quiet Tuesday afternoon. You see the curated shop windows and the historic plaques, but visitors are mostly just passing through on their way to somewhere else. It’s frustrating because you know your town’s "soul" is right there, but there isn't a clear invitation for people to stop, stay, and spend.

Travelers are trading rigid group schedules for the flexibility of self guided trips. They’re looking for authentic cultural tourism, the kind that lets them find a local secret at their own pace. For a BIA or DMO, this is a massive opportunity to take the stories you already have and package them into a digital playbook that lives right on a visitor's phone.

How do self guided trips drive local economic growth?

Think of these trips as a digital bridge between a visitor’s curiosity and a small business’s front door. By organizing your Points of Interest (POIs) into a themed path, you increase "dwell time." When people stay longer, they naturally spend more at your local cafes and boutiques.

10 Strategic Itineraries to Build Your Digital Presence

You don't need a massive budget to create an immersive travel experience. Most of the time, the best content comes from the quirky local legends or the "hidden gems" your residents already love.

Here are ten ways to package your destination:

1. The "Hidden Gems" Art Walk: Connect murals, sculptures, and galleries.

2. Heritage Architecture Trail: Use audio to tell the story of your 19th-century Main Street.

3. The "Best Of" Foodie Crawl: A curated route hitting the best appetizer, main, and dessert spots.

4. Sustainability & Eco-Tours: Highlight green spaces and conservation efforts (the Evergreen Brickworks tour saw over 8,500 views using this approach).

5. Spooky Local Legends: A haunted history tour that keeps your downtown "alive" after dark.

6. Family Scavenger Hunts: Use gamification to keep kids engaged while parents shop local.

7. Film Location Tours: Map out the exact spots where famous scenes were filmed in your town.

8. Indigenous Storytelling Trail: Partner with local Elders to share the deep history of the land.

9. Seasonal "Light Up" Tours: A holiday-themed route (like the one in Sussex NB that drew 3,500 participants in a month).

10. The "Shop Local" Passport: A digital tour where checking in at local boutiques earns a reward.

Tour Format	Primary Audience	Key Benefit
Scavenger Hunt	Families & Schools	High engagement & prizes
Audio Tour	History & Art Lovers	Deep, immersive storytelling
Reward Trail	Foodies & Shoppers	Direct foot traffic to businesses

Turning Community Stories into a Digital Reality

I recently spoke with a BIA director who worried they didn't have enough "glamour" for a digital tour. We looked at their town-wide Halloween decorating contest and realized that was the experience. By turning those decorated homes into a digital map, Visit Thunder Bay saw a 1000% increase in engagement.

Pro Tip: Your self-guided tour app doesn't need to be a history textbook. It should feel like a local friend showing a visitor around. Start with one high-value theme—like a "Hardy Boys" scavenger hunt (which the Downtown Carleton Place BIA used to get 1,300+ completions)—and build from there.

Using a digital tourism platform like Driftscape allows you to track exactly what visitors are looking at. You can see real-time POI views and check-ins, giving you the data you need to prove ROI to your board. For example, the Crescent Heights Village BIA saved over $6,000 in traditional print costs by moving their cultural activation to a digital format.

FAQ: Mastering Your Digital Destination

Q: What’s the best way to promote a new self-guided tour?

A: QR codes are your best friend. Put them in shop windows, on trail-head signs, and at the hotel front desk. When a visitor scans a code and sees an interactive map of self guided trips, they’re much more likely to stay an extra hour.

Q: How do we get local businesses to participate?

A: Focus on the foot traffic. Digital tours physically lead visitors to their storefronts. Many BIAs have saved thousands in print costs by moving their business directories and coupons to a mobile-friendly format.

Q: Does a digital tour work in areas with poor cell service?

A: It does if you use a platform that supports offline maps. This is crucial for remote destinations or historic downtowns with "dead zones." Visit Sitka successfully used this to help travelers navigate their remote location.

Q: Can we gamify a walking tour?

A: Absolutely. Adding a scavenger hunt or a digital reward system (where visitors earn points for visiting certain stops) dramatically increases completion rates. People love a challenge, especially if there's a small local prize at the end.

Local experiences, Lasting impact!

Book a demo to see how you can turn your destination into a mobile tourism app where every story, shop, and trail is explored, shared, and loved!