Hearing is a vital part of each visitor's experience at a tourist attraction. Whether its a single guide leading an audio walking tour of an art gallery or multi language tours of a building of historic interest, a visitor's experience can be outlined not only by what they see but by what they hear.
Self Guided Tours
Visitor audio guide systems include an array of large area radio and self-guided audio guide equipment - we'll help you choose what's best. We offer solutions to help your venue or visitor attraction provide tour guests with high quality sound and maximum engagement.
Visitors use an Audioguide to bring exhibits to life with creative audio commentary.
Navilution provides seatback controllers for passenger tour commentary.
Tour boat passengers listen to tour commentary on their smartphones via ListenWIFI.
AudioGuides
- BUY from just one audioguide
- HIRE for a special event, exhibition, trade show
- RENT for a whole season at an attraction
- LEASE as an alternative to capital expenditure
Hand held devices ('audioguide') with pre-recorded audio content are also popular where you may have many visitors that prefer a self-guided tour at their own pace or, where you make the audio tour available in several languages. Using an audioguide device, visitors may choose to listen via the built in loudspeaker on a handset or connect headphones (or a neck loop adaptor for hearing aid users). This is also a great way of managing peak visitor periods, where deploying guides for many groups would be impractical. Audioguides are affordable for even the smallest attraction - we have a client using just two audioguides for occasional visitors to a heritage building.
Some of our audio guide devices have dual function and can be used for self guided audio tours (playback) or, by listening to a live guide. This feature allows the tour guide to lead the tour party in person, talking directly to all the audioguide receivers. The tour guide may then choose to initiate the playback of the pre recorded content on all the audioguide receivers (this plays in each visitor's language) to add an extra dimension to regular guided tours. More about products...
Programming & Automation
Most systems are set up using a PC and system software and to upload recorded media to each device. Some also monitor the usage of the devices to help manage the content playback effectively and report on visitor statistics.
The tour visitor can select pre recorded audio content by dialling a number or they may be automatically triggered at trigger points like exhibits, paintings, doorways, or waypoints on an outdoor walk. This involves positioning a small device to trigger the playback on the visitor's audioguide - these may easily be hidden, so the visitor is unaware or, by using signage with a point-and-click function, allowing the visitor to control what they listen to. Technology for triggers includes infra-red (IR), radio frequency (RF) or RFID tags / badges.
Solutions for In-Vehicle Tour Commentary
Built-in vehicle tour systems can automatically deliver audio content using GPS location. Navilution® technology brings completely automated, multilingual commentary to tour operator's vehicles - be they on road, rail or water! Bring your tours to life with creative storytelling that will captivate your guests, giving them a true experience. On the same sightseeing city tour bus route, tell stories that simultaneously entertain children with fun facts, while on a separate channel the grown ups listen to historical re-enactments for example.
We have smart solutions for wireless audio anywhere on your vehicle or, at your passengers' seat using a controller panel with direct headphone connection. We can help with audio content too.
Audio Recording Service & Storytelling Content
We can provide a full service option of recording all your audio clips. In our bespoke recording studio, we record the voice description clips with absolute clarity using only the best industry standard recording equipment like Sennheiser, DiGiCo, Sony and Apple MAC.
Our voiceover artists can invoke almost any era and accent to suit the requirements of the tour and we also can add ambient and atmospheric sounds to further enhance the visitor experience.
We can use binaural spatial audio to place sounds in 3D around the listener, creating an immersive layer on top of their real world surroundings. This places listeners within the story, and lets them hear soundscapes as if they are really happening in the space around them.
We’ll work with you and storyboard your requirements if necessary, to formulate a coherent, flowing script that will inform, entertain and add value to your tours. Should you need to provide multiple language channels, we’ll arrange professional translation of your scripts and voiceover artists.
It takes around one day per ten TourGuide information points (usually around 1-3 paragraphs) to record with many projects/tours averaging 20 information points.
Consider the visitor experience for all your guests; different levels of interest (artistic, historical, facts & figures); their age; first language; and how to include those with additional hearing and visual needs by creating an inclusive design for accessibility. We can help with this too through working with our specialist partners.
Talk to one of our team about your project.
BYOD - Bring Your Own Device
Wi-fi hotspots that stream audio content directly to your visitors' smartphone or tablet are now another cost effective solution with options to personalise content via a downloadable App (Android and iPhone). The wi-fi hotspot is dedicated to the visitor guide system and doesn't require internet access.
Systems available include ListenEVERYWHERE.
Whether you need just a few handsets for occasional visitors
or hundreds for a popular attraction, we're happy to help.
