What to Know
- Launches Oct. 15, 2020
- $19.99 on the App Store or Google Play
- Twelve puzzles lead self-guided explorers around the landmark, offering facts and stories, as well as a photo opps, along the way
Are you a devoted go-on-your-own-er?
Do you go on your own when the situation is perfect, or when you're in the mood, or if there is something tempting to do, something that's right at your fingertips?
Santa Monica Pier has long been a great place to explore on your own or alongside your sweetheart. If one of you wants a lemonade? You run and buy a lemonade.
If one of you wants one more minute to admire the sunset? You linger a little longer, on your own.
A new self-guided tour, one that is described as both "digital" and "immersive," will soon give pier-loving people a chance to explore at their own pace, on their own or with a paramour or loved one that's equally obsessed with the sunshine-splashed pier.
It's the Secret Story Tour, a "... new, immersive digital quest that travels back in time to discover the most legendary secret stories from the landmark’s 110 year legacy."
The Wild Optimists developed the history-meets-adventure game, which includes a dozen puzzles to solve, brain-twisters that attach real-life characters or facts to the places around Santa Monica Pier.
Places you may have already visited dozens of times, without knowing how they came to be, what's happened over the decades, or the people once associated with their origin stories.
How to proceed once you've downloaded the tour?
Just unlock a puzzle, which will lead you to the next puzzle, and then the next, and then the next. And is there a photo element? You bet: Look for the snapshot filter associated with each clue.
"We can't think of a better time to bring this digital/physical hybrid experience to life," said Negin Singh, Executive Director of the Santa Monica Pier Corporation.
"We know that everyone, especially families, are looking for safe and fun activities, and we are lucky to have puzzle masters like the Wild Optimists, and an open-air space to make it happen!"
The ocean-breezy adventure, which is priced at $19.99, begins Oct. 15, when The Secret Story Tour debuts at the App Store and on Google Play.
Good to know now? Santa Monica Pier's businesses are open while the rides of Pacific Park are temporarily closed.
