Turn your town's history into a quest people play
A quest is a self-guided walking tour and a scavenger hunt in one. Players follow clues on their phone from landmark to landmark and hear your town's real history at each stop.
Ask about a quest for your townWe build it and take care of everything. Your historians and guides are welcome to join in.
- Named the most disruptive startup in hospitality by the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO)
- Awarded by Booking.com for the impact we bring to tourism worldwide
- Played by more than a million people in over 1,000 cities
What is a quest?
Walk to the first stop
Players open the quest on their phone and the first clue sends them to the first landmark.
Solve the clue on the spot
The answer is on the building, the plaque or the statue. You have to be there to find it.
Hear the story where it happened
At every stop the town's history unfolds, written with the people who know it best.
Maryville, Tennessee: a Christmas quest through two centuries of downtown
Maryville commissioned a Christmas quest for its downtown: something families and visitors can play on Broadway any day in December, past the shops, taverns and restaurants that line the street.
- Quest
- A Timeless Christmas: The Twelve Gifts of Maryville
- Route
- 15 stops on and around Broadway, starting and ending at the town's Christmas tree
- Made for
- Families, residents and visitors in the Christmas season
- Status
- Being tested on the street, launching in December
The story
Players are guided by a merchant and former mayor who knows every corner of town. Through a brass spyglass, Maryville's old buildings come back into view as they once were. Each era leaves a puzzle to solve and a gift to collect: twelve in all, across two centuries of Christmases.
What makes it different
It follows the town's founding map. Maryville was laid out in 1795 as 120 lots, on fifty acres given by the Revolutionary War veteran John Craig, and almost every building on the route still stands on one of them. At most stops, players find a shop, tavern or restaurant that is open today and learn what stood on the same lot before it.
What players discover
3Raven
The temperance newspaper that helped persuade the town to give up its own charter in 1879, just to close the saloons
7Bella + Palace Theatre
The Palace, finished in 1886 by a German-born cabinetmaker who was also the first man in town to advertise as an undertaker
8Bank Corner
The corner of Blount County's first courthouse, where a young Sam Houston enlisted in 1813
10Federal Building
The house that sheltered a Union general's headquarters in the winter of 1863, later moved to make room for the post office
11Dandy Lions Gifts
The library a widow gave the town in memory of her husband, who died on Christmas Eve, 1929
How do we create a walking tour for our town?
We build every quest from scratch and take care of all of it: the research, the route, the clues, the story, the testing and the upkeep. If you want to be part of it, we build it together. Your team, local historians and guides join the work and pick the stories that matter most to your town. Residents discover something new about where they live, and visitors get a reason to stay the afternoon.
How does a quest bring more people downtown?
Every stop is a reason to walk one more block. Players move through your downtown at their own pace, on any day and at any hour, and the route can pass the cafés, shops and museums you want people to find. There is no staff to schedule and nothing to install on the street.
- 1A first call about your town and your occasion
- 2Research and a first route, with your historians and guides if you want them involved
- 3We write it and test it on the street, and you see it before launch
- 4Launch, with the material to promote it
No staff on the day. No tickets to sell. It runs every day of the year.
A quest, a brochure, plaques or a scavenger hunt app: what's the difference?
Quest
- Tells the story at each stop
- Yes, researched and written by us
- Keeps people walking to the next stop
- Yes, a clue at every stop
- Who builds it
- We do, and you can join in
- Keeping it up to date
- We update it
- Found by visitors before they arrive
- Yes, listed in the Questo app
Brochure or map
- Tells the story at each stop
- A few lines
- Keeps people walking to the next stop
- No
- Who builds it
- Your team and a printer
- Keeping it up to date
- A reprint
- Found by visitors before they arrive
- No
Plaques and signs
- Tells the story at each stop
- A few lines
- Keeps people walking to the next stop
- No
- Who builds it
- Your team and a fabricator
- Keeping it up to date
- Repairs and replacements
- Found by visitors before they arrive
- No
DIY scavenger hunt app
- Tells the story at each stop
- If you write it
- Keeps people walking to the next stop
- If you design it
- Who builds it
- Your team
- Keeping it up to date
- Your team
- Found by visitors before they arrive
- Rarely
Made for the moments towns plan around
Anniversaries and centennials
A quest gives the anniversary something that lasts after the celebrations end.
How it works for anniversaries
Festivals and events
Give festival crowds a reason to explore the rest of town, and to come back on a quiet weekend.
How it works for festivalsMain Street and downtown programs
Bring people downtown on foot and past the shops, any day of the week.
How it works for downtowns
Questions towns ask us
Who is it for?
Towns and cities, Parks and Recreation departments, Main Street and downtown programs, tourism offices, museums and historical societies.
Can we pay for it with a grant?
Often, yes. Towns fund walking tours through state historic preservation, humanities and tourism grants, or from their tourism budget. We can send a written scope and budget for your application.
How long does it take to build?
It depends on the research and on how involved your team wants to be. Tell us your date on the first call and we plan backwards from it.
Do players need to download an app?
Yes, the free Questo app for iPhone and Android. They start the quest when they arrive and play at their own pace.
Can local businesses be stops?
Yes. A business with a story makes a good stop, and it brings players through the door.
Can visitors play it in other languages?
Yes. A quest can be translated, so visitors from abroad can play it in their own language.
Who keeps it running after launch?
We do. The quest is hosted on Questo, and if something changes on the street, like a plaque that moves, we update it.
Who is behind Questo?
Questo makes outdoor quests played by more than a million people in over 1,000 cities. The UN World Tourism Organization named us the most disruptive startup in hospitality, and Booking.com gave us an award for our impact on tourism.
How much work is it for our team?
As much or as little as you want. We can do all of it, from the research to the launch and the upkeep. Or we build it together, with your staff, local historians and guides choosing the stories and reading the drafts.
Your town is the next stop
Tell us about your town and the moment you're planning for. Alex, our founder, reads every request and replies by email.
- You send this form
- Alex replies by email
- A first call about your town and your occasion