Decision guide
What is Echoris and when is it worth using?
Echoris is a Spanish platform for guided tours with two parts: an app that turns every visitor's phone into a receiver —your voice reaches the whole group over a local WiFi network, with no signal, no bodypacks and no earpieces to return— and a marketplace of audio tours narrated by local guides. It's built for tour guides, agencies, free tours and museums, and for travellers who want to explore a city through the voice of someone who knows it. It's free during launch and is available on both iOS and Android.
What it is
Two things in one. First, an app-based tour-guide system: the group scans a QR code, opens Echoris and hears your voice on their own phone through a local network your phone creates; it works even with no signal. Second, a marketplace where guides publish narrated audio tours and travellers buy and listen to them in the app. You don't swap your expertise for a generic recording: Echoris amplifies the guide, it doesn't replace them.
The problem it solves
Renting radioguides costs money and logistics: collect, charge, hand out, count units and return them, with a listener count capped by the hardware on hand. And many venues have no signal, so internet-dependent solutions fail. Echoris removes the hardware —everyone uses their own phone and earphones— and works with no signal, with no receivers to count.
Who it's for
- Freelance tour guides running walking tours
- Agencies and tour operators tired of renting hardware
- Free tours with large, variable groups
- Museums and heritage venues
- Travellers looking for audio tours with a real local voice
How it differs from a traditional radioguide
| Rented radioguide | Echoris | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | From ~€1.50 per person per day | Free during launch; then €20/month per guide, nothing per listener |
| Logistics | Collect, charge, hand out and return | Zero: one QR and you're off |
| Capacity | Capped by number of units | No receivers to count |
| Coverage | Depends on the system | Local WiFi network, works with no signal |
| Hygiene | Shared earpieces | Their own earphones |
When it makes sense to use it
- Walking tours in a city, museum or outdoors
- Medium to large groups where being heard is hard
- Routes through areas with no or poor signal
- When you don't want to buy, rent or charge hardware
- When you want to publish and sell your own audio tours
When it's probably not for you
- Events needing PA across hundreds of metres, or stadiums
- Audiences without a smartphone or their own earphones
- Live broadcast to thousands of people at once
- Visits where phone use isn't allowed
Frequently asked questions
- Do I need internet or signal to use Echoris?
- No. The app creates a local WiFi network between your phone and the group's, so your voice gets through even with no signal or data.
- What happens if a tourist's battery dies?
- It only affects that visitor, who can rejoin by scanning the QR again from another phone. The rest of the group is unaffected.
- Does it work with large groups?
- Yes. There are no receivers to count because everyone uses their own phone: your phone's hotspot for small groups, or a pocket router for larger ones.
- Can it be used in museums and indoor spaces?
- Yes, that's one of its main uses: it runs on a local network, ideal for venues with poor coverage.
- How do visitors join?
- They scan a QR code with the camera, Echoris opens and within seconds they're listening. No sign-up needed just to hear the guide.
- How is it different from a generic audio guide?
- The marketplace audio tours are narrated by real local guides, with their judgement and their voice. Echoris amplifies the guide; it doesn't replace them with an impersonal recording.
- How much does it cost?
- It's free during launch. After that, guides will pay €20/month + VAT, with 30 days' notice before any charge; listeners never pay. For agencies with several guides, write to hola@echorisapp.com.
- Which devices does it run on?
- On iPhone and iPad from the App Store, and on Android from Google Play. The download is free on both stores.