09.03.2015
Cathedral to Launch New Digital Facility to Help Tourists Engage
St Patrick’s Cathedral, Dublin, is pioneering new technology which will make it easier for tourists to engage with the cathedral and its life. The new digital facility for tourists will be launched at the end of the month.
St Patrick’s is not only the National Cathedral for the Church of Ireland but also one of the busiest tourist sites in the country. Their footfall this year is expected to approach 500,000. Many visitors want to engage with the cathedral but have no mechanism to do so.
Over the past number of months staff have partnered with a digital media company called AppyBeacons to create an app which utilizes a new technology called “I Beacons”. This new facility will allow visitors with smart phones to learn more about the cathedral during their visit. The “I Beacons” prompt smart phones to show particular content at different points throughout the building. The benefit of the system is that it requires no changes to the cathedral’s ancient structure and St Patrick’s will be the first heritage site in Ireland to use the innovative technology.
The facility will be launched by Minister of State at the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport, Deputy Michael Ring, on Wednesday March 25 at 2.00 pm.