On August 29th Sussex and Surrey Region joined up with the beautiful Bluedotaug to host an event with a difference.
The site has been managed by Kevin Sweet, Estate Manager, for 42 years with a focus on biodiversity so boasts an incredible list of species ranging from bats, badgers and deer, the smallest wren to the largest raptors, insects including crickets, moths, butterflies and bees, reptiles and amphibians and an enviable range of trees and plants. The 186 acres grounds include a SSSI, a golf course but of course wildlife doesn’t always appear on demand!
To enhance the experience we created an augmented reality trail, using technology which Bluedotaug uses for visualising sustainability data, to show our guests what might be seen at each marker, for example the butterfly which landed on Emily D’Silva’s head in the photo! This means that no matter what time of year you visit the hotel you can find out what might be seen in the grounds, giving hotel guests an incentive to return at different times of year.
Bluedotaug have gifted the markers to the hotel and will continue to develop the idea in partnership with them and we are delighted to be able to say that a second version of the trail is planned for our North East Region so watch this space for news in the spring.
Feedback was incredible, we had a high percentage of non members attending and we have had lots of social media messages, blog mentions and enquiries about membership and skills development. We have even heard that one attendee has booked a stay at the hotel in the near future, so it was a fantastic event for everybody.
We are now looking for more event hosts for different event formats building on our successful socials in the region.
Image credit: Sarah Clark, Ashdown Park Hotel
