New app offers tourists a 'sonic' Stockholm guide
The Stockholm Tourism Board has launched a new game-based app that takes users on an auditory ride through Stockholm, as part of a bid to attract 50 percent more tourists to the capital over the next decade.
"We wanted to do something that stood out, that was unique and that hasn't been done by anyone else; this application truly is the first of its kind," Ann-Charlotte Jönsson, PR manager of Stockholm Visitors Board, told The Local.
The app, "Stockholm Sounds", promises a blend of mobile gaming and tourist pocket book in one, with music, sounds, sights and challenges centred on Stockholm and Swedish culture, history and attractions.
By visiting over 40 locations in Stockholm, users earn "points" by completing challenges, history quizzes or gaming sessions, all connected to music or sound experiences.
From discovering "the sound of sushi" at Akki Sushi in Södermalm to a music quiz at popular record store Pet Sounds, completing the mini tasks unlocks events and rewards including pre-party playlists on Spotify and information about hangouts around the city that are popular with the locals.
"We have always marketed Stockholm very visually, and it is a beautiful city, but its a living city too, filled with great culture. So we wanted to focus on producing something for visitors that is innovative and creative, allowing them to experience a different side of the city," Jönsson said.
She explained that as more and more readers access the Visit Stockholm website from mobile devices, the team had to shift focus.
"Personally I love traditional tourist guides but in many ways the mobile revolution has changed our use of media. Now your mobile is your best friend, your companion and a source of entertainment at once," she added.
"ICT and music are two industries at the forefront of Stockholm, combining them seemed obvious. This app is a good representation of what Stockholm, and Sweden, is all about."
The app is free, which was developed in collaboration with music service provider Spotify, doesn’t require Wi-Fi or data roaming and is available on both android and apple. Games start as soon as you touch down at Arlanda airport.
Josh Liew
Comments
See Also
"We wanted to do something that stood out, that was unique and that hasn't been done by anyone else; this application truly is the first of its kind," Ann-Charlotte Jönsson, PR manager of Stockholm Visitors Board, told The Local.
The app, "Stockholm Sounds", promises a blend of mobile gaming and tourist pocket book in one, with music, sounds, sights and challenges centred on Stockholm and Swedish culture, history and attractions.
By visiting over 40 locations in Stockholm, users earn "points" by completing challenges, history quizzes or gaming sessions, all connected to music or sound experiences.
From discovering "the sound of sushi" at Akki Sushi in Södermalm to a music quiz at popular record store Pet Sounds, completing the mini tasks unlocks events and rewards including pre-party playlists on Spotify and information about hangouts around the city that are popular with the locals.
"We have always marketed Stockholm very visually, and it is a beautiful city, but its a living city too, filled with great culture. So we wanted to focus on producing something for visitors that is innovative and creative, allowing them to experience a different side of the city," Jönsson said.
She explained that as more and more readers access the Visit Stockholm website from mobile devices, the team had to shift focus.
"Personally I love traditional tourist guides but in many ways the mobile revolution has changed our use of media. Now your mobile is your best friend, your companion and a source of entertainment at once," she added.
"ICT and music are two industries at the forefront of Stockholm, combining them seemed obvious. This app is a good representation of what Stockholm, and Sweden, is all about."
The app is free, which was developed in collaboration with music service provider Spotify, doesn’t require Wi-Fi or data roaming and is available on both android and apple. Games start as soon as you touch down at Arlanda airport.
Josh Liew
Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.
Please log in here to leave a comment.