Photo: Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority

BLUETOOTH technology is providing even more information and services to visitors to the Yorkshire Dales National Park.

A special hi-tech unit has been installed at the Grassington National Park Centre that will enable people to download walks and information about the village onto their mobile phone, laptop or other equipment – even when the building is closed.

The unit contains an application called ‘Discover Grassington’ – a package of information about the area that includes self-guided river and village walks.

The free facility is the latest attempt by the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority (YDNPA) to reduce the number of panels located in the National Park that give visitors information about the immediate area.

Meghann Hull, the YDNPA’s Interpretation Officer, said: “This is the latest form of digital interpretation that gives people information without the need for physical panels – and we hope it will be a real success.

“The great thing is that people can download it onto their mobile phone or PDA by just standing on the Bluetooth ‘hotspot’ outside the National Park Centre and following the step-by-step instructions posted in the window. You can access it when the centre is closed, it needs no phone signal to work and it's completely free.

“We are hoping to reach out to different audiences and provide interpretation in new ways. This is a pilot and, if all goes well, we hope to install more at the other National Park Centres in the future.”