Photo check-ins

A check-in is how you prove you made it. It’s the single action at the centre of the whole game: you’re at a place, you check in, you earn experience.

How a check-in works

1. You arrive at the place. Check-ins are proximity-based: you have to actually be there.
2. Your phone confirms you’re there. Locatour uses your device’s location to check that you’re at the spot, not somewhere else.
3. You take a photo. You snap a quick photo, live, in the app: a little memento of the moment and your visit.
4. You’re checked in. Experience is awarded, your streak ticks over, and the moment is saved to your history.

Snap a photo, then tap Check in

Checked in: XP added to your level

Why a photo?

Three reasons, in order of importance:

• It’s the memory. The photo is the souvenir, the thing you’ll scroll back through later. Locatour is about creating memorable experiences, and the photo is how each one gets saved.
• It marks that you were present. Taking a photo on the spot is part of being there, not just passing through.
• It keeps the game fair. Real check-ins from real visits are what make levels and achievements mean something.

Share a check-in

Made it somewhere special? You can share any of your check-ins as a link. Open a check-in from your profile, tap Share, and Locatour creates a public page for that moment (your photo, the place, and when you were there) that you can send to anyone.

It’s the easy way to show a friend the hidden waterfall you found, or to look back on a favourite day out. Only the check-ins you choose to share get a link, and anyone you send it to can open it without a Locatour account, so share the moments you’re happy to make public.

Keeping it fair

Locatour is a game of genuine visits, so we take fairness seriously. The app is designed to recognise a real, in-person check-in and to gently discourage ways of faking one. We keep the exact details of those checks under the hood, partly so they keep working, and partly because honest players never need to think about them. If you actually went, you’re fine.

If a check-in doesn't work

• “You’re not close enough.” Get a bit nearer to the exact spot and try again.
• “We can’t pin down your location.” Step into the open, away from tall buildings or dense tree cover, and retry: your phone needs a clear view of the sky.
• Location is turned off. Make sure location services and Locatour’s location permission are enabled.
• You’re offline. No signal? No problem: Locatour can save your check-in and finish it when you’re back online.

Want the plain-language technical version? See How photo check-in works. Curious what we do with the photo and your location data? See Your data & security.