Guides & agencies
How to broadcast a live tour from your phone
Published Updated 9 min read
To try an Echoris live tour, prepare two phones and a pair of earphones. One phone acts as the guide and the other as a visitor. Speech travels over a local Wi-Fi network created by the guide phone or an external router.
Follow this sequence: prepare the network, start the tour and join from the second phone with one QR code. The screenshots walk you through setup; the listening test and troubleshooting follow. Start here before gathering the group.
The screens and steps describe the flow reviewed on 17 September 2026. Check the button labels in your version of the app.
What you need
- a compatible, charged guide phone with Echoris installed;
- the tour network: the phone's own hotspot, or an external Wi-Fi router tested with your group;
- a second phone for the tourist test;
- earphones to verify real audio;
- a power bank when duration and device call for it;
- a no-audio fallback if the environment or equipment fails.
The session travels over a local network, not over the internet. Once that network exists, carrying audio within the group does not require internet access. Enabling a hotspot can depend on the phone, carrier and plan: check this beforehand. A router that can create a local network without a SIM is another option.
Choose who creates the network
In the app, under “Guide connection”, you pick one of the two options.
Your phone's hotspot. It creates the network without a separate router and can simplify setup for a small group. The phone sets the limit: Apple says the number of simultaneous connections depends on model and carrier, and Google documents up to ten for the Pixel hotspot. Check the limit of the model you will use.
An external Wi-Fi router. It creates a local network for the guide and visitors. Check that your chosen model can do this without a SIM. Connect the guide's phone to that network before you start and select the mode in the app; tourists will join the same network when they scan the QR code.
We use the TP-Link M7450 V3, a pocket router with its own battery, without a SIM. TP-Link advertises up to 32 connected devices; the guide phone also uses a connection. That network specification does not establish how many people will receive reliable audio on your route.
The rest of the kit, microphone included, is in the kit for a live tour.
Where you set it up, step by step
Both networks are saved once. After that you only choose which one to use before each tour. The screenshots are from Android; on iPhone the names the system uses change, the steps do not.
1. Open “Prepare tour” and look at the selector on top
On the home screen, tap Start a tour. At the very top, before the tour name, you get Guide connection.
The selector has two options: Phone Wi-Fi hotspot and External Wi-Fi router. On iPhone the first one is called Personal Hotspot, because that is the name Apple uses.
2. Open the “Tour Wi-Fi” screen
Under the selector, the status card carries a button: Configure the first time and Edit once a network is saved. Both open the same screen, Tour Wi-Fi, with one section per route.
3. If your phone creates the network
Turn the hotspot on in the phone's Settings: the app cannot switch it on for you, which is what the Open Wi-Fi hotspot settings button is for. Then copy the network name and the password into the two fields and tap Save.
4. If an external router creates the network
Connect the guide's phone to the router's network first, then tap Use current Wi-Fi: the network name fills in by itself. The password is typed by hand — the app cannot read it — and saved the same way.
5. Go back to “Prepare tour” and check the status
Pick the route you are going to use in the selector. The card below changes with it and tells you what state that network is in.
Once the card confirms you are connected to the configured Wi-Fi, you can start broadcasting.
Check that you can listen on the second phone
Do not merely check that a screen opens. Rehearse the complete joining path:
- bring up the tour network: enable the hotspot on the guide phone, or switch on the router and connect that phone to it;
- start the live tour;
- use the second phone as a tourist;
- open Echoris as a tourist and scan one QR code;
- let the app prepare the network and tour entry;
- connect earphones, speak and listen;
- walk away, lock the screen and return;
- end the tour from the guide and confirm the tourist sees “The guide has ended the tour”.
Use real phones. A computer simulation does not reproduce their Wi-Fi, battery or audio output.
Android: prepare the hotspot
This section and the next one only apply if you create the network with the phone. With an external router you skip both: just connect the guide's phone to the router's network.
On Android, the location and labels of settings vary by manufacturer. On Pixel, Google places them under Network & internet, Hotspot & tethering. Other manufacturers use labels such as Mobile Hotspot or Connection Sharing.
Check in advance:
- that the hotspot remains active;
- that you know the network name and password shown by the flow;
- that battery saving does not stop the application;
- that the phone does not disable the hotspot after a brief idle period;
- that calls or notifications do not change the expected microphone or output.
iPhone: model and carrier matter
Apple says the number of devices that can join Personal Hotspot at once depends on iPhone model and carrier. It also recommends keeping Wi-Fi and Bluetooth enabled during connection.
On a tour, keep the access screen visible while the group joins and avoid changing settings mid-flow. If a tourist does not join automatically, follow the instructions shown by Echoris: the app keeps the tour details while the visitor completes the network connection.
That is why the test that matters uses the exact handset the guide will carry.
One QR code carries the network and tour details
The guide displays one QR code containing the network and session details. It lets the visitor enter the correct tour. The tourist scans it once from Echoris; the app prepares the connection and continues into the tour without asking for a second code.
Give one instruction at a time:
- first, open Echoris as a tourist and scan the guide's QR code;
- next, accept or complete the Wi-Fi connection if the system asks;
- finally, wait while the app checks the network and opens the tour.
If assisted joining is unavailable, Echoris keeps the session details and shows the network name and password. After joining manually, the tourist returns to the app and confirms that they are connected. Joining for the first time still requires scanning the guide’s QR code; typing a separate PIN does not replace that step.
How many people can join
Echoris has a configured technical admission ceiling of 50 tourists. It is not a recommended or certified group size: it is the software's ceiling, not a demonstrated capacity.
What we have actually measured is real tours with about 20 people connected to an external router. That is the figure we have, not a maximum: we have not yet tested where the ceiling sits above it. With the phone's own hotspot, plan for considerably fewer, because there the handset sets the limit.
A router’s advertised limit describes network connections: it is not a maximum validated for Echoris audio. Nor does a single tour certify capacity, duration or compatibility. Plan around a repeatable test with your equipment and route, recording how many people could listen throughout the visit.
Validate in stages with the real equipment and stop when joining, audio or recovery ceases to be reliable. For large groups, add legal limits and route operating capacity too.
Help the group join without blocking the departure area
Before departure, set aside an access area where the group will not block passage. Request earphones and sufficient battery in pre-arrival information. Add a support person when group size requires it.
Join two tourists first and confirm audio. Then add the rest in small groups. Do not begin the main explanation until you know who could not join and which alternative they will receive.
If something fails: five checks
The network is missing. Confirm the tour network is still up — the hotspot active, or the router switched on and charged — and that Wi-Fi is enabled on the tourist phone.
The phone is on the network but not in the tour. If you already scanned the QR code and completed the manual connection, return to Echoris, confirm that you are connected and follow the app's prompt. With a router, also check that devices can communicate with one another; client isolation may prevent this. You do not need another code after completing that admission.
If the first scan failed, improve the light, clean the camera and scan the current QR code again.
The tourist joins but hears nothing. Check volume, earphones and phone audio output. Play ordinary media outside the app to isolate the problem.
A tourist disconnects on the route. After joining once, Echoris may reuse the saved connection if the network, session and guide’s address on that network stay the same. Stop moving and confirm audio before continuing.
The guide cannot broadcast. Apply the fallback: regroup, reduce the talk to essentials, switch to backup equipment or split the tour. Safety and orientation come before preserving the stream.
Close the tour explicitly
End from the guide phone and confirm tourists receive the final state. The tourist screen should say “Tour ended” and “The guide has ended the tour”, with the action “Back to start”. This helps everyone recognise that the visit has ended rather than mistaking it for a connection failure.
If you are still choosing equipment, compare radioguides and visitor phones. For crossings, headcounts and support roles, see how to manage large tour groups.
Prepare your first trial
If you do not have the app yet, see the Echoris download options. Then gather the two phones, follow the steps above and listen from the visitor phone. Once you know how it works, test it with your intended group and route.
Sources
- Apple Support — Connect to the Personal Hotspot of an iPhone or iPad.
- Apple Support — Share your internet connection from iPhone.
- Google Pixel Help — Share a mobile connection by tethering or hotspot.
- TP-Link — M7450 specifications and advertised connection limit.
Frequently asked questions
- Do I need internet to broadcast a live tour?
- Audio travels over local Wi-Fi and does not need internet access once the network exists. Enabling a phone hotspot may depend on the handset, carrier and plan; check beforehand. You can also use a router that creates a local network without a SIM.
- How many people can listen at once?
- The software admission limit is 50 tourists, not demonstrated capacity or a recommended group size. A router connection limit does not certify audio for that group either. Test the phone or router, devices and route with the intended group size. We have measured real tours of about 20 people with an external router: that is the available experience, not a tested maximum. With a phone hotspot, the limit depends on the handset.
- Can I use an external router instead of my own hotspot?
- Yes. Select External Wi-Fi router under Guide connection and connect the guide phone before starting. Visitors join the same network through the QR code. Local audio transport needs no SIM or internet; that does not prove router capacity for your group.
- What if a visitor can't scan the QR code?
- The first admission requires the signed QR code; the PIN is inside it and does not replace it. Improve the light, clean the camera and scan the current code again. On iPhone, if assisted joining fails after the scan, Echoris keeps the session while the visitor connects from Settings.
- Can I test it without a group?
- Yes. Prepare a second compatible phone with Echoris and earphones to listen as a visitor. Check joining, listening, reconnection and ending the tour. Use real phones; a computer simulation does not reproduce their Wi-Fi or audio output. Then test the intended route and group.