Sovereign Hill has launched an app designed to guide visitors through its outdoor museum including a Chinese speaking trail and another for people with special needs.
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The Gold Seekers app coincided with the opening of Bright Visions, an immersive audio-visual exhibition that is part of the state government’s eight million dollar investment in Sovereign Hill’s By Day and By Night project.
The app offers visitors three trails using 40 iBeacons installed throughout the museum.
When visitors approach the iBeacons, signals are sent via Bluetooth technology causing the phones to shout ‘Eureka!’.
Visitors will then be invited to discover more information through icons appearing on their screens.
The trails include Built on Gold for families, kids and students, Hidden Secrets, which is designed for visitors with special needs, and New Gold Mountain, which is a digital tour for Chinese-speaking tourists.
Minister for Regional Development Jaala Pulford attended the launch on Thursday morning.
“We’re very pleased to continue to support Sovereign Hill’s investment, re-invigoration and modernisation,” she said.
“We can never rest on our laurels when you’re entertaining and educating the world.”
“Seeing this new app and the way in which it will integrate seamlessly with Chinese markets’ social media addiction, and with people who want to experience Sovereign Hill in their own language and walking around in their own time, is just fabulous and so important.”
Sovereign Hill partnered with Victorian company Studywiz to develop the app, which was financed through aid from the Victorian government’s Department of Economic Development, Jobs, Transport and Resources.
The app is free to download through the Apple Store and Google Play.
The other talking point of the launch, The Bright Visions exhibition, is part of the sound and light show redevelopment Blood on the Southern Cross.
It’s based on a historical essay from historian Dr Clare Wright and research from Sovereign Hill historian Dr Jan Coggon.
The exhibition took five years to complete with the building modified with ramps and lifts for people with special needs.