Walk your way around the City of London and discover its hidden gems

The City of London Corporation is delighted to announce the launch of a NEW City Visitor Trail App & Map on 18^th March which enables users to explore London’s famous Square Mile on foot through a series of fascinating routes, itineraries, personal insights and stories. From iconic landmarks to hidden gems, the City is a glorious maze of attractions, all within easy walking distance of each other. The NEW City Visitor Trail App & Map, provided by the City of London Corporation, will help visitors and locals alike to discover over 40 major landmarks;  from Tower Bridge, the world’s most famous bridge and the imposing Monument, to historic St Bride’s Church on Fleet Street – spiritual home of the media – and the delightful Guildhall Art Gallery, which houses both an outstanding collection of Victorian paintings and the remains of London’s Roman Amphitheatre.

There is also a separate Children’s Trail map available, delivered in partnership with Open City, featuring three kid-friendly walking routes, with stop-off and rest points, hidden histories to discover, collectable stickers to pick up at attractions en route, plus fun activities and games. The map reveals the rich and often gruesome history of the City and includes such fascinating facts as why there are ravens in the Tower, what started the Great Fire and how many curved panels of glass make up the Gherkin!

The City Visitor Trail App & Map both show the main self-guided walking trail plus five ‘get side-tracked’ options, all based on particular themes – Culture Vultures, Law & Literature, Market Mile, Skyscrapers & Sculpture and London Stories, London People. These easy and accessible walking trails will encourage visitors to stop, look around and discover places that they might otherwise miss, including some of London’s most iconic landmarks, ancient and modern. In addition, the app enables users to read or listen to stories from people closely associated with 15 of the main attractions, including Sir Nicholas Kenyon on The Barbican, the Dean of St Paul’s and Ivo Dawnay, the Director of London for the National Trust talking about St Bride’s.

“Following a rigorous tender process, the City of London Corporation partnered with Calvium because we knew we could rely on their professionalism and their expertise – not to mention their design skills and creativity. Jo and the team delivered exactly what we were looking for, even if it was something we hadn’t thought of before: their advice was at all times excellent and they solved any problem we encountered easily.We’re delighted with our City Visitor Trail app, and we trust Calvium absolutely to do a good job. Most importantly, thanks to them for their help and for a great app!” Stuart Millar – Visitor Marketing Executive, City of London Corporation

Key Features of City Visitor Trail App

STORIES

• The ‘Stories’ screen is presented as a picture wall, ordered according to the proximity of the user, with a recommended listening location.
• The picture wall will automatically adjust depending on where the user is in the City.
• The ‘Stories’ give the listener/reader a genuine insight into 15 selected attractions from all over the City. An extract from the Tower of London story by the Chief Yeoman Warder Alan Kingshott says, “…picture the scene, up on the hill…thousands and thousands of people up there to watch the execution… it was a rather ghoulish affair in some cases. One particular case was that of Jack Ketch:
  he took five strokes of the axe to sever the head and even then it wasn’t completely severed. He had to get his butcher’s knife out and then carry out and finish the job.”

MAP

• The map screen will show the location of each story, each attraction and nearest toilets.
• The user can turn on the ‘Locate me’ functionality which will actively track the user on the map.
• The app is designed so that it is easy to play the audio stories from anywhere but there is also an ‘ideal listening spot’ shown for a more rewarding experience. The app allows users to indicate that they have found the intended spot by pressing ‘Found it’.

TRAILS

• Clicking on a trail will turn on all the attraction markers on that trail.
• The trail tour will be shown as a series of scrollable thumbnails and the user can click directly on attractions to find out more.
• The app provides users with the opportunity to share their experiences with others via email, message or social media by clicking the ‘Share’ button.

MORE

• Feedback: users can fill out a quick survey of their experience.
• Download offline maps: this provides an opportunity to avoid data roaming charges and will be particularly useful for international users.
• About: further information will be available about the City of London Corporation and Partners.
• Tripadvisor: this link gives access to and an opportunity to review nearby hotels, restaurants and attractions.

This enjoyable app is available for download from 18^th March from the iTunes store, Google Play and from the City Information Centre, where you can use the free WiFi and purchase fast-track and discounted tickets for featured attractions. The app is compatible with iOS 6.0 and Android 4.0+.

Notes to Editors:

1. The City of London Corporation provides local government and policing services for the financial and commercial heart of Britain, the ‘Square Mile’. In addition, the City Corporation has three roles: (1) it supports London’s communities by working in partnership with neighbouring boroughs on economic regeneration, education and skills projects. In addition, the City of London Corporation’s charity, the City Bridge Trust, makes grants of more than £15 million annually to charitable projects across London; and it also supports education with three independent schools, three City Academies, a primary school and the world-renowned Guildhall School of Music & Drama. (2) It also helps look after key London heritage and green spaces including Tower Bridge, Museum of London, Barbican Centre, City gardens, Hampstead Heath, Epping Forest, Burnham Beeches, and important ‘commons’ in south London. (3) And it also supports and promotes the ‘City’ as a world-leading financial and business hub, with outward and inward business delegations, high-profile civic events, research-driven policies all reflecting a long-term approach. See www.cityoflondon.gov.uk for more details.
2. The City Visitor Trail is funded by monies from Tower Bridge, the Monument and Guildhall art Gallery, with sponsorship from the Diocese of London and Local Implementation Plan funding from Transport for London. The market mile is delivered in partnership with LB Tower Hamlets and the children’s map in partnership with Open City (London’s leading architecture education organisation).
3. Fifteen stories have been recorded for the app, by the following:

• Barbican Centre – Sir Nicholas Kenyon (MD, Barbican Centre)
• Guildhall – Sara Pink (Head of Guildhall Library)
• Guildhall Art Gallery – Sonia Solicari (Curator)
• Leadenhall Market – Joanna Burnaby-Atkins (Film Liaison Manager, City of London Corporation)
• The market mile – Alan Dein (Historian)
• The Monument – Peter Witowski (Exhibition Guide, City of London Corporation)
• Museum of London – David Spence (Director of Programmes, Museum of London)
• St Bride’s – Ivo Dawnay (London Director, National Trust; former journalist)
• St Dunstan-in-the-East – Niall Birnie (Team Leader, Open Spaces, City of London Corporation)
• St Mary-le-Bow – Doreen Golding (Pearly Kings and Queens)
• St Paul’s Cathedral – The Very Reverend Dr David Ison (The Dean of St Paul’s)
• St Stephen Walbrook – Harry Bennett (chorister)
• Sculpture in the City – Stella Ioannou (Project Director, Sculpture in the City)
• Tower Bridge – Peter Witowski (Exhibition Guide, City of London Corporation)
• Tower of London – Alan Kingshott (Chief Yeoman Warder)

4. Watch the City Visitor Trail Video.
5. The City Visitor Trail App has been designed by Calvium who are a limited company providing software development, tools and services for the creation of mobile applications across various platforms. www.calvium.com

 High-res images available on request

Media contacts

Francesca Collin at Aneela Rose PR
Tel: 01444 241341
Francesca@aneelarosepr.co.uk