There’s still time to take part in the city centre’s festive trail app
A f e s t ive t r a i l f e at u r i n g Christmas characters has been taking place in Sunderland city centre, providing Covid-friendly outdoor entertainment for families in the area.
The ‘Christmas in Sunderland’ experience combines a series of city centre light installations with seven ‘magical’ augmented reality (AR) characte rs, who p opulate the route mapped out by a custom-made app developed for the scheme.
T h e A R route, o rga nised by Sunderland BID and Su n d e rl a n d C i ty C ou n c i l , was thought up as a solution for families looking to keep youngsters entertained during the holidays in a sociallydistanced and Covid-safe way.
The festive trail – which features hidden elves, reindeer and giant gifts – is already proving a big hit with North East families and there’s still time to take part.
Christmas in Sunderland follows on from a Monsters trail held at Halloween, which saw ghoulish creations come to life when visitors scanned a QR code on city centre buildings – a similar scheme based around the idea of the Pokemon Go! app.
Sharon Appleby, the BID’s Head of Business Operations, said the Christmas trail is a perfectly adapted form of family entertainment for the current climate.
“Not only is it huge fun for all ages, but it’s entirely out
doors and, by its very nature, socially distanced,” she said.
“We need a little Christ
mas magic more than ever this year, but we also need fresh air and exercise more
than ever, too. And this trail means families can have fun a n d s tay s a fe at th e s a m e time.”
Besides unlocking the hidden AR features of the trail, the Sunderland Experience app, which can be downloaded free from Apple and Google Play stores, also points up offers at a number of city businesses.
“We very much hope it will encourage those following the trail to stay a little while in the city centre and explore our excellent independent and high street shops,” Ms Appleby added.
The Christmas in Sunderland experience will run until Sunday.
The Sunderland Experience app is available to download for free from Apple and Google Play stores. Anyone who downloaded it for the Halloween event can use it again by updating it.