Transformez les visiteurs en habitants avec une application Explorez comme un local

You know tourism is fundamentally changing. Modern travelers aren’t just ticking off checklists—they are actively craving authentic connection, discovering hidden gems, and genuinely feeling like they belong. They want to explore like a local, app in hand, guiding them to unique, memorable experiences.

As a DMO, BIA, museum, or cultural site, you understand the power of these moments. The challenge is: how do you scale them effectively across your destination? That’s where a strategic explore like a local app becomes your most powerful tool for visitor engagement and smart destination management.

It’s about more than recognizing the importance of local experiences. It’s about delivering them consistently, enriching every visitor journey and fueling greater community prosperity.

The Shift: From Tourist Traps to Authentic Local Gems

Modern travelers increasingly prioritize authenticity. They are drawn to unique local stories, independent shops, and cultural details that traditional guidebooks often overlook.

This shift presents huge opportunities for forward-thinking tourism organizations to:

• Boost Visitor Engagement: Use rich, contextual information to go deeper than a signpost, offering compelling narratives right where they happen.

• Support the Local Economy: Naturally direct foot traffic to independent eateries, artisans, and small shops across various neighborhoods.

• Manage Visitor Flow: Disperse people across lesser-known areas and neighborhoods, easing crowds and reducing pressure on key hotspots.

• Preserve Cultural Heritage: Connect past and present with engaging storytelling that gives context to historic sites and community landmarks.

Providing an immersive travel experience isn’t just good hospitality—it’s the core of smart destination marketing for today's visitor.

Beyond the Brochure: What an “Explore Like a Local” App Delivers

A purpose-built digital tourism platform becomes your always-on, interactive guide. It transforms static information into a dynamic experience that benefits every stakeholder.

This type of city tour app or audio tour platform allows for:

• Self-Guided Discovery: Visitors can follow curated routes (from heritage walks to culinary trails) at their own pace, enabling a highly personal and memorable experience.

• Access to Hidden Gems & Local Businesses: Side streets, neighborhood cafés, pop-up galleries, and artisans emerge through rich narratives, photos, and audio delivered contextually via map-based tours.

• Pro Tip: Integrate location-specific "badges" or "check-ins" to gamify the experience and encourage deeper exploration of under-visited areas.

• Visitor Flow & Distribution: Strategically design tours to guide visitors naturally across different neighborhoods. This reduces congestion in hotspots and elevates under-visited areas, promoting equitable economic impact.

Impact dans le monde réel : Driftscape en action

Carleton Place – Chasse au trésor des Hardy Boys

To breathe new life into their literary roots, the Downtown Carleton Place BIA launched a self-guided scavenger hunt inspired by the town’s connection to Charles Leslie McFarlane, ghostwriter of the Hardy Boys series. This mobile experience—built in Driftscape—turned public spaces into clue-filled scenes and sparked community-wide curiosity.

Key Takeaway: Interactive storytelling revives local history and drives meaningful visitor engagement—with minimal overhead for your team.

• Results: Over 1,300 completions in just 30 days, with high engagement from local schools.

Michigan Heroes Museum – Self-Guided Audio Tours

Looking to deepen engagement and expand accessibility, the Michigan Heroes Museum used Driftscape to create multilingual, map-based audio tours. Visitors could explore the inspiring stories of regional military and space heroes at their own pace—anytime, any day.

Key Takeaway: Even with small teams, self-guided tours offer museums and cultural sites a scalable, impactful way to connect with more visitors and deepen interpretation.

• Results: More than 3,000 exhibit interactions and 1,200 completed tours in the first year.

Choisir votre application « Explorez comme un local » : liste de vérification de démarrage rapide

Use this quick guide when evaluating a self-guided tour app platform for your destination:

Caractéristique	Pourquoi c’est important
Intuitive CMS	Can your team add POIs, routes, and media without relying on developer support? (This cuts down on long-term costs.)
Customization & Branding	Does the app fully reflect your destination’s unique identity, colors, and tone?
Analytics & Insights	Can you track engagement, popular routes, and economic ROI for your stakeholders?
Accès hors ligne	Does the platform ensure tours work seamlessly even when a visitor has poor or no internet connectivity?
Scalability & Support	Will the platform grow with you as you add more content, tours, and languages over time?

FAQ : Explorez comme une application locale

Q: What is an “Explore Like a Local” app?

A: It’s a city tour app designed to help users experience destinations like residents—through uncovering hidden gems, supporting local businesses, and enjoying immersive storytelling. Unlike traditional guides, these self-guided tour apps offer curated cultural tourism at each step, making the experience more personal and relevant.

Q: Why should destinations invest in a self-guided tour app?

A: They drive significantly deeper visitor engagement, extend the time visitors spend in your area, disperse tourists across a wider geographic area, and channel revenue directly to small businesses. Furthermore, the built-in analytics provide valuable data to help you prove community value and return on investment (ROI).

Q: How does an interactive tourism app manage visitor flow?

A: The platform allows you to strategically design map-based routes that highlight lesser-known areas and neighborhoods. By making these areas discoverable and engaging, the app encourages exploration beyond traditional, crowded major attractions, supporting equitable economic impact across the destination.

Q: Can a local exploration app work without internet?

A: Yes, a high-quality platform must offer robust offline access. Tours, maps, audio, and all associated content download in advance to the user’s device, ensuring seamless usage even in rural areas or places with poor cellular connectivity.

Q: What metrics should we track with the app’s analytics tools?

A: Key metrics to track include downloads, tour starts and completions, dwell time at various Points of Interest (POIs), and referral rates to local businesses. These measurable insights clearly demonstrate both visitor engagement levels and the overall economic impact on the community.

Q: How can we brand the app as our own for a cohesive experience?

A: You should choose platforms that allow for full white-label customization. This includes using your organization’s logo, color palette, naming conventions, and voice for any push notifications, ensuring the visitor feels they are having a cohesive and branded experience from your destination.

Q: How long does it take to launch a basic local exploration app?

A: If your chosen platform features an intuitive, no-code Content Management System (CMS), building a basic self-guided tour (10–15 points with audio and images) can take just a few weeks. The key is to launch, gather user feedback, and then iterate quickly to create richer content and deeper engagement over time.

L’avenir du tourisme est local, numérique et engagé

An interactive tourism app is quickly becoming an essential part of the modern destination toolkit. By delivering rich storytelling, self-guided tours, and access to the community's local gems, you deepen visitor connections, drive sustainable tourism practices, and create passionate advocates for your area.

Book a demo to see how you can help visitors truly explore like a local and experience the best your destination has to offer.