By analysing information obtained through Palma’s free public Wi-Fi and that of the city’s port, the application manages data in real time and improves the touristic experience of visitors
Welcome Palma is the new mobile application which, using real-time data, provides cruise passengers disembarking into the Balearic capital with personalised information, improving their experience and the management of the city’s infrastructures.
The app, launched by the Port Authority of the Balearic Islands (ATB) in collaboration with the Palma 365 Tourism Foundation and the Universitat de Les Illes Balears (UIB), uses information generated by Palma’s free public Wi-Fi and that of the city’s port to gain a real-time understanding of visitor flow.
The information obtained allows cruise passengers to receive personalised recommendations, thus improving their experience, increasing their satisfaction and helping to ensure a more even distribution of tourists around certain points of interests. The Welcome Palma app, therefore, enables tourists to obtain real-time information about the busiest tourist sites, while helping them to plan their itinerary by providing them with cultural information, public transport tips and weather forecasts.
One of the app’s key features is the “hot spot” detector, which provides tourists with information about the busiest places at any given time, and a “conversational bot” messenger feature that allows visitors to talk to “Sebastià”, a virtual guide named after the patron saint of the city that provides tourists with advice and helps them to plan their itinerary.
Access to the app is recommended through Facebook, as this will allow the tourist to receive personalised information based on aspects such as the popularity of each location, real-time congestion information, proximity and even user interests. However, tourists can also log into the app via the web portal or the app itself.
Besides improving the quality of information provided to tourists, this app also facilitates cohabitation between residents and cruise passengers by reducing the levels of tourists at the most popular sites, offering real-time data and recommending other places of interest besides the obvious ones. It is an ideal tool, according to the director of Palma 365 Tourism Foundation, Pedro Homar, “to manage the success of Palma (as a tourist destination)”.
