Thessaloniki’s History and Culture Come to Life via ‘Artelot’ App

The Municipality of Thessaloniki has introduced the city’s residents and visitors to an augmented reality (AR) application offering them the opportunity to experience more of the city’s history and culture.

Developed by Artelot Media S.R.L., a Milan-based tech startup, the AR app enables users to visit the sites, read interesting stories and have their photo taken with visual depictions of the characters related to each story.

“The Thessaloniki Alive project ‘revives’ stories and urban myths of Thessaloniki, dating from 4th century BC until today through the mobile phone cameras of residents and tourists with the help of AR technology,” the municipality said in an announcement.

Through the app, Thessaloniki’s residents and visitors can receive information on 25 points of interest and monuments, in English and in Greek.

Among these are the White Tower, the Rotunda of Galerius, the Church of Agios Dimitrios, the Arch of Galerius, the Church of Panagia Halkeon and the Ancient Agora.

Photo Source: @Municipality of Thessaloniki

“Through the new app, we aim to strengthen the image of Thessaloniki as a center of innovation, hospitality and digital entrepreneurship; offer information to visitors with many different interests, and provide residents with information on the city’s history and culture,” the municipality said.

The application for the moment is available for mobile phones with an IOS operating system at https://apps.apple.com/gr/app/artelot/id1537569221.

Access to the 25 monuments on the Artelot app is free for the next two years, through an exclusive donation by the Stavros Niarchos Foundation.

The “Thessaloniki Alive”  project is carried out by the Thessaloniki Convention Bureau.