A BRAND-new Christmas-themed augmented reality app is set to be unveiled in Bournemouth today.

The Go Bournemouth Coast app will allow visitors to take part in an interactive Christmas-themed treasure hunt and aims to bring more visitors to the town over the festive period.

It was created by augmented reality and virtual reality specialists Diverse Interactive, and funded by Bournemouth Coastal BID.

It was showcased for the first time at the World Travel Market London on November 8 to demonstrate how smartphone AR technology is being used to enhance the world around us.

A special celebration to mark the arrival of the app will take place at Fisherman’s Walk in Southbourne on December 9.

Chris Elson, client development manager at Diverse Interactive, said: “We’re really excited to partner with Bournemouth Coastal BID on the development of their augmented reality app experience and work with such a progressive bunch of thinkers.

“We’ve already seen how phenomenally popular augmented reality character treasure hunts have been, so there’s no doubt that this is going to be a huge seasonal success for the local area. We are looking forward to unveiling the app officially to the public later this month.”

The app called ‘Go Bournemouth Coast’ will be released at the end of November with a celebration event taking place on the 9th December in Southbourne’s Fisherman’s Walk.

Stefan Krause, Coastal BID Manager, said: “Merging the real world with the digital world there will be fun games, prizes and incentives for visitors to pop into our many fantastic businesses and retailers and discover more of Bournemouth through the app.”