How a Sightseeing App Helped Carleton Place Create a Hit Self-Guided Tour
- Andrew Applebaum
- Jun 14
- 3 min read
Carleton Place, like many small towns, faced a familiar challenge: how to bring forgotten stories back to life—and foot traffic back to the town centre. Their sightseeing app solution? A self-guided, story-rich scavenger hunt powered by Driftscape. Here's how it worked—and what your destination can learn from it.
The Problem: Forgotten History, Missed Opportunities
The town had a hidden gem that most locals had forgotten: Hardy Boys author Charles Leslie McFarlane. With plans to unveil a historical plaque in his honour, the question became: How can we further celebrate this event to draw both locals and visitors?
The Sightseeing App Solution: Storytelling Meets Technology
With Driftscape, the town launched a self-guided scavenger hunt that reimagined McFarlane’s world through a heritage-inspired digital tour. The experience mimicked the style of a Hardy Boys mystery: each clue, each location, drawing the visitor deeper into a story that started with curiosity and ended in discovery.
Using Driftscape’s web-based platform (no app downloads required), Carleton Place created an interactive map layered with:
Vintage-style illustrations inspired by the Hardy Boys book covers
QR code signage at each stop to guide users and add visibility
A tour finale at the local library, complete with a commemorative plaque
What Carleton Place Achieved
1,300+ people completed the tour in just over a month
Local schools integrated it into field trips
Residents and tourists praised the creative use of local history
No additional staff needed to maintain or run the experience
Quick content updates and easy expansion through the Driftscape dashboard
What Made It Work
Low-lift, high-impact: The Carleton Place team could launch quickly with minimal effort thanks to Driftscape’s intuitive tools.
Engaging narrative: The tour tapped into a familiar fictional world to attract audiences across age groups.
Community buy-in: Schools, libraries, and locals participated, amplifying its success.
Measurable impact: Built-in analytics provided hard data to show community engagement.
How Your Destination Can Apply This Tour Model
Looking to replicate this kind of success? Here’s how your town or tourism group can adapt the approach:
Identify a local story, legend, or theme No historical figures? No problem. Tours work well showcasing shops, farms, markets, events and holiday themes (Sweet Treat tour, anyone?)
Use Driftscape to build a self-guided walking tour or scavenger hunt Setting up a tour is quick and requires no technical skills and we'll guide you along the way
Add QR signage for physical visibility and easy navigation
Putting up posters with a QR code that links directly to your digital tour makes it easy for visitors to get up and running. Best part? No need to sign up to start, they scan and start exploring.
Engage schools and local orgs to help share and promote
Digital-based education tours can be a fun way to captures kids attention! And engaging community organizations, local businesses and news can get the word out for your campaign.
Pro-Tip: Do a coffee chat to show local businesses and their employees on how the tour works. They, in turn, can show visitors how it all works.
Use analytics to evaluate engagement and optimize content
In-depth analytics show you how many people are visitors your sites, which ones are popular and which ones may need adjusting. All analytics are anonymous, so no private info is shared from your visitors.
Need More Proof? See the Tools in Action
Preview the Experience: View the Carleton Place tour
Final Takeaway
Carleton Place proves what’s possible when digital tools meet authentic storytelling. For destinations seeking visitor engagement with limited staff or budgets, Driftscape offers a practical, high-impact sightseeing app.
Ready to bring your town’s story to life?
Explore how Driftscape’s sightseeing app can help you build tours that engage, educate, and drive foot traffic.
Comments