Cahokia AR Tour

I was excited to use this app during my visit to Cahokia Mounds, but it ended up being more frustrating than helpful. For starters, the app is almost useless once you’re on the trails — there’s very little signage in the park, and the app doesn’t do enough to fill in the gaps. It lacks a clear, detailed map, which is a huge oversight given how many trails crisscross throughout the area. Staying on the right path is nearly impossible. To make matters worse, the cell service is extremely poor, which made downloading and using the app painfully slow. There was no warning about this at the visitor center or entrance, and no promotion of the app in visible areas like the driveway or main signage. How are visitors supposed to even know it exists before they head out? This could be a valuable tool, but right now it feels like a missed opportunity. I expected better for such a significant historic site.

After arriving we learned that the museum was closed, however a virtual reality tour was offered via this app. Mind you, the museum is free, but because it’s closed, you’ll need to shell out $5. Not that big of a deal, but a little irritating to go from free to $5. Only after you download it do you find out that headphones are required. Seriously?!?! I’m literally sitting in you’re parking lot and NOW you tell me that headphones are required? How many people just carry headphones with them? Wasted $5 because there’s no option if you don’t have headphones with you. On top of that, the app is only compatible with certain devices. We wanted to use an iPad for a bigger viewing screen, but my iPad was not compatible, so we had to use the phone. Needless to say, I’ll never be going back to Cahokia, nor will I ever donate money to them ever again. You’re welcome for the $5 donation, and thanks for screwing people over with your useless app. Oh, and if people still want to visit this horribly managed historic site, use the restroom before you go as they failed to put in portable restrooms. Saw a man forced to use the restroom in the wooded area by the back parking lot. Supposed to be a sacred site, but with no portable restrooms, they don’t give people any option but to urinate on this sacred site. Way to go, Illinois!

Visited Cahokia while the welcome center is closed, so this app was a fantastic way to get more information and enhance our visit—otherwise we would’ve only had the physical signs to rely on, which would be OK but they do not have as much information as the app. The AR was delightful, and I liked the slider ability to change how much AR I was seeing: from wholly CG to just some AR buildings on the real landscape. The audio tour part was also excellent, and since I was visiting with one other person, we both wore one Bluetooth earbud so we could listen while walking. Overall, I highly recommend this to enhance a visit, but ESPECIALLY if the welcome center is closed or you’re skipping it.