(Above) Cllr Jane Carr explores MK’s Tree Cathedral using the Love Exploring app
Space themed walks have been added to MK City Council’s Love Exploring app in time for half term. The augmented reality app helps children and families to explore the city and uncover hidden gems as well as providing rich history behind well-known locations.
The free to play smartphone app showcases more than 50km of specially designed trails in 18 different locations around MK. To date, the app has brought everything from fairies, dinosaurs and spooky creatures to parks and streets across the city. It’s designed to encourage children and young people to get active and walk around their local area.
Suitable for all ages, the Love Exploring app is packed with local history and little-known facts, and uses interactive maps, guided tours, and quizzes to bring landmarks to life.
People can download the Love Exploring app on a smartphone, select a local park or visitor attraction and scan away using the camera on their device. The latest space themed walks include planets, moons and even a space station across 15 locations from the Tree Cathedral at Newlands to Waterhall Park and Emberton Country Park.
“The school holidays can be particularly hard for families during this cost-of-living crisis. This free app combines exercise with some out of this world graphics and is loads of fun. We have beautiful parks and historical places throughout our city and this app is connecting children and their families with some of these great locations. Thousands of local people are using the app and we expect that number to grow as we continue to add new games and features.”
The app was commissioned by Milton Keynes City Council and developed in partnership with Sprytar and local organisations including The Parks Trust. Since 2021, when the app launched in Milton Keynes, it has been downloaded more than 9,000 times with an estimated 22,000 miles walked across the city.
The Love Exploring app is available via Google Play and the App Store. You can also download it from the official website.