New Cotswolds tourist map and guide app takes traditional visitor information into the digital age

A new mobile phone app to help Cotswolds visitors get the most out of their time in the area has been launched.

The app is the first of a new series of Map and Guide apps being developed by Pocket Places Ltd and provides an alternative to traditional paper leaflets.

Featuring a tourist map of the area, top visitor attractions, places to stay and details about many of the Cotswolds’ towns and villages, the mobile phone app takes a proven formula in tourist information guides and brings it bang up to date for 21st Century technology.

Visitors can download the Cotswolds Map and Guide app before heading out to explore the area, and they can access the information wherever they are - regardless of whether they have a mobile phone signal.

The Cotswolds Map and Guide app includes details about tourist venues, such as historic houses, farm parks and museums.

It also features information about many of the different towns and villages in the area, including Bourton on the Water, Burford, Cheltenham, Cirencester, Gloucester, Stow on the Wold, Oxford and Stroud, as well as street plans of major places.

In addition, the app includes details about where to stay – from bed and breakfast accommodation to hotels.

“The Cotswolds Map and Guide app is the ideal companion for anyone visiting the Cotswolds or who’d like to find out more about what’s available in the area,” said app developer Mark Oakden.

“We’ve taken the tried and tested method of a tourist map and guide book, and turned it into a mobile phone application which provides a wealth of useful information in the palm of your hand. We believe it’s the first mobile phone app of its kind for the Cotswolds.

“Because the information is available offline, it’s ideal for an area such as the Cotswolds where mobile signals can be intermittent.”

The app also links to useful information such as train timetables and local weather details, which can be accessed where data connection is available.

Featuring more than 200 photographs, the Cotswolds Map and Guide app is available from iTunes priced £0.69. The app is compatible with iPhone, iPod touch and iPad. Requires iOS 4.0 or later.

Details about the Cotswolds Map and Guide app can be seen here http://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/cotswolds-map-and-guide/id536569717?mt=8&ign-mpt=uo%3D4

Visit www.pocketplaces.co.uk for more information about the developer behind the app.

Issued by Nottingham PR company Perfect 10 PR www.perfect10pr.co.uk

Tourism apps Pocket Places now contain even more things to see and do

Personal tour guide mobile phone app Pocket Places has boosted the content of its apps for some of the UK’s key tourist destinations ahead of the summer of celebrations.

Guided walks, picture puzzles, extra tourist attractions, quiz questions and improved offline Ordnance Survey mapping are just some of the additions added to a number of apps in its Pocket Places series.

The apps feature audio-commentary about an area’s history, information about local tourist attractions, as well as suggested places to visit.

Three apps have just been updated with new information - Pocket Places Cornwall, Pocket Places Lake District, and Pocket Places Norfolk.

The additional content for Pocket Places Lake District includes a series of ten guided walks, suitable for all the family.

Starting from key tourist spots in the Lake District, such as Ambleside and Windermere, each walk can be completed within two or three hours.

Pocket Places Cornwall now includes details of the top ten beaches in the county.

In addition, picture puzzles have been added to both Pocket Places Lake District and Pocket Places Cornwall.

Meanwhile, Pocket Places Norfolk now has details of even more places to visit in the county with a new section on top attractions, including gardens, historic houses and heritage railways.

With information available in the palm of the hand, the Pocket Places apps are the perfect personal tour guide to some of the UK’s most popular tourist areas. More than 100,000 downloads have been made already.

Once downloaded, the app can be used wherever and whenever you like as it does not require an internet connection.

Download the Pocket Places apps for iPhones from iTunes for 69p. www.pocketplaces.co.uk

Issued by Nottingham PR company Perfect 10 PR www.perfect10pr.co.uk

Nottingham-based Perfect 10 PR wins Pocket Britain tourism app contract

Nottingham-based PR company Perfect 10 PR has won a contract to promote national tourist information app Pocket Britain.

The public relations firm led by Louise Duffield will support awareness of the brand both among consumers and the tourism trade.

Run by Norfolk-based Mark Oakden, Pocket Britain has been short listed in the Race for Apps final to discover world-beating ideas for smartphone apps for visitors attending the London Olympic Games this summer.

“This is a really exciting client win for Perfect 10 PR, and one which we believe has huge potential,” said Louise Duffield. “The app market is growing, and there’s a massive push for British tourism this summer, what with the Olympic Games and the Queen’s diamond jubilee.

“Pocket Britain is a high quality digital tourist information centre, offering details about what to do and the history of an area – literally at people’s fingers tips on their smartphones.”

Perfect 10 PR, based in West Bridgford, has a range of clients in Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, Leicestershire and nationally, primarily in the food and drink and constructions sectors.

Mark Oakden said: “We are looking forward to working with Perfect 10 PR to raise awareness about Pocket Britain at what is an exciting time for both British tourism and the development of apps for smartphones.”

The mobile web version of Pocket Britain, which is free to download, is being continually updated and is available from www.pocketbritain.com via the Apple Appstore and the Android Marketplace. Users can either download the app or visit the website using their smartphone.

www.pocketbritain.com

www.perfect10pr.co.uk

Nottingham team act as personal tour guides for mobile phone app Pocket Britain

This Easter, thousands of tourists will be guided around some of Britain’s most popular tourist destinations with help from a Nottingham team.

Voice artists from the city were involved in putting together the audio for Pocket Britain – a free mobile phone app which gives visitors key information about an area, including venues to visit.

The app has recently been announced as a finalist in the Race for Apps final, a competition that aims to discover world-beating ideas for smartphone apps for visitors attending the Olympic Games this summer.

Created by app developer Pocket Places, the commentary, audio and sound effects for Pocket Britain were recorded at Nottingham-based Northbound Studios by musician and recording engineer Mike Giddins.

He used voice artists living in the city, but with different accents, to record the commentary.

And while many of the sound effects were recorded at specific venues across Great Britain, some of the more general sounds were recorded in Nottingham, with the River Trent featuring whenever the sound of water is used.

“The various members of the Nottingham team have played a huge role in the development of Pocket Britain, and in effect they will be guiding tourists and visitors around hundreds of venues across Great Britain this Easter,” said Mark Oakden, CEO of app developer Pocket Places, which is based near Norwich in Norfolk.

Mark, who is originally from Nottingham, went to the former Bilborough Grammar School and worked for many years at computer-aided design software company Pafec Ltd at Strelley. He has worked with tourist boards, heritage sites and other organisations across Great Britain to create the free mobile phone app.

His son Nick Oakden, from Hyson Green, wrote many of the scripts used in the app, which is a national destination guide that’s available literally at your fingertips.

Nottingham musician Mike Giddins, who has written music for TV and radio, worked with five locally based voice artists, including two students from the University of Nottingham and an actor originally from the north of England, to create authentic-sounding commentary.

“I’m a bit of a perfectionist and I do like attention to detail when it comes to sound effects,” he said. “When you’re involved in a project like this you have to be a people manager, you have to have an artistic angle on it and you have to have a technical angle on it.

“I’m very proud of the quality of the app. It’s great to think that people across Great Britain will be enjoying getting out and about and visiting hundreds of tourist destinations listening to our words.”

The mobile web version of Pocket Britain, which is free to download, is being continually updated and is available from www.pocketbritain.com via the Apple Appstore and the Android Marketplace. Users can either download the app or visit the website using their smartphone.

It features details about the best and most interesting places to visit around Great Britain, and contains more than 500 articles and thousands of photos.

It even allows users to send a free picture postcard to friends and family – sharing their experiences.

“We have worked with a wide range of organisations to put together the content for Pocket Britain,” said Mark Oakden.

“Each Pocket Britain article is in a consistent format, designed for a small smartphone display, and every article contains at least one photo, with many articles featuring further photos and even audio commentary.

“The app uses the location facilities of the smartphone to inform users what’s of interest nearby, including the history of an area and places to visit, and features useful information like opening times, entry prices and contact details.”

Issued by Nottingham PR company Perfect 10 PR www.perfect10pr.co.uk