Over the last year, local resident Mark Dawson has worked on creating a smartphone app called Laguna Beach Portal, offering a unique look inside Laguna Beach’s sister city of Menton, France, from right here on Laguna’s downtown streets.
The augmented reality app that just launched this week leads users on a walking path that visits 10 portals in roughly 40 minutes. The tour starts on the boardwalk in front of the iconic Main Beach lifeguard tower before turning toward The Promenade on Forest, up to Laguna Presbyterian Church, over to City Hall and then back toward the sand along Ocean Avenue, “visiting” each portal along the way to experience 360-degree views of the French city and its annual Fête du Citron lemon festival.
“The South of France is amazing—not at all what I expected,” said Dawson, who traveled to Menton with his wife, Mary, last year to gather footage for the project.
“…I’ve always wanted to create applications with experiences that inspire younger people to do more and realize that everyone can make a contribution and push things forward.”
Dawson already has plans to create another app: a walking tour through Heisler Park with a focus on the public art pieces found there, including interviews and insight from the artists who created them.
The app is up and running on the iPhone app store and can be found by searching “Laguna Beach Portal.”
