By Sean Ryan - 03 April, 2015
Dean of St Patrick’s Cathedral, the Very Rev Victor Stacey, and the Minister of State for Tourism and Sport, Michael Ring, try out the new cathedral app.
St Patrick’s Cathedral Dublin became the first iBeacon enabled tourism site in Ireland recently with the launch of a special app.
The St Patrick’s Cathedral app was launched by Minister of State for Tourism and Sport, Michael Ring, as the 13th century cathedral embraced state of the art technology.
The new app, which can be downloaded for free at http://stpatrickscathedral.ie/App.aspx allows visitors to access multimedia information on key features of the cathedral through their mobile devices.
As they walk through the cathedral, the app automatically highlights points of interest on their smart phones or other wifi enabled devices.
The app uses iBeacons which are small transmitters. These have been installed at strategic locations around the cathedral and send information to visitors’ smart phones once they download the app.
St Patrick’s Cathedral is the first fully iBeacon enabled visitor facility in Ireland and the app has been developed for the cathedral in partnership with Irish company, appybeacons.
The cathedral’s Dean, the Very Rev Victor Stacey, admitted to being a technophobe but said that the use of iBeacons would help bring the cathedral’s rich heritage closer to their visitors from around the world.
He said, “We are always looking for new ways of bringing the Cathedral’s rich cultural heritage closer to our many visitors from around the world. Our partnership with appybeacons has enabled us to offer the most innovative visitor engagement platform available in the market today.”
“St Patrick’s Cathedral is home to some of Ireland’s finest historical items and craftsmanship and the iBeacons technology allows visitors to access information in a way that is unobtrusive and respectful of the space.”
“In reality, this means that there is less need for information boards, stands and other information sources. The app allows us to showcase the Cathedral to its fullest extent,” he added.
Minister Ring complimented the developers on the excellent app which he said “would allow visitors to engage with and learn about the cathedral’s life and history”.
On behalf of the Government, he thanked the cathedral for their efforts in engaging with tourists.
“I am delighted to see that a heritage site of the importance of St Patrick’s Cathedral has taken the initiative of going digital, which will greatly enhance the visitors’ experience. Authentic historical experiences attract visitors and provide them with memorable experiences – experiences which animate their holiday and which they will share later and promote to friends and family,” the Minister said at the launch of the app.
“The development of a learning and interpretative space will, I understand, allow scope for visitors to engage with and learn about the Cathedral’s life and history. It will, when it is completed later this year, I am sure help to keep the Cathedral in the top ten of visitor attractions in the country.”
He said heritage institutions like St Patrick’s Cathedral are vital to Ireland’s culture and heritage and it is important that they continuously innovate to attract and engage visitors.
“That is why the Government through Fáilte Ireland continues to invest in these attractions and is indeed funding the redevelopment of the South Transept in the Cathedral into a new visitor interpretative and interactive area for visitors.”
Andrew Dunne, Director of appybeacons added, “iBeacon technology is an absolute game changer, particularly in terms of unlocking the potential of the mobile powered visitor.”
“It really is the next big thing and will fast become an essential element of the visitor engagement experience. It allows tourist attractions such as Saint Patrick’s Cathedral to engage with visitors in a way that was never possible before.”
The app works on most new smart phones and tablet PCs and is available to download for free. As the use of the app is reliant on a stable internet connection, Saint Patrick’s Cathedral offers free Wi-Fi to all its visitors.
