Frequently asked questions
What the guide covers, what it costs, and what it deliberately does not do.
Before you pay anything
What is TurOwl?
Recorded audio about the things you walk past and walk into. Pick a country, a city, a place inside it, or a single highlight inside that place, press play, and listen.
Do I have to buy anything to use it?
No. Country and city stories are free. Every place's story is free for its first 45 seconds, and one highlight in every place is free in full.
Do I need an account?
Not to listen, and not to buy. Everything free plays without one, and you can buy on the website and in the apps without an account. Signing in, with Google, Apple or a code or link we email you, keeps your purchases across devices. No password. We only send marketing mail if you ask for it.
Who writes the stories?
The stories are written with AI and read by synthetic voices. They may contain mistakes, so treat them as general interest, not an authority on history, safety or access.
Buying
What do I get when I buy something?
Permanent access to everything at that level and below. A place unlocks its full story and all of its highlights. A city unlocks every place inside it. A country unlocks every city we cover there.
Is it a subscription?
No. Every purchase is a single payment. Nothing renews, nothing expires, and there are no credits to top up.
What is the cheapest way to cover a whole trip?
If you are seeing several places in one city, the city usually works out cheaper than the places bought one by one. If you are moving between cities in one country, the country never costs more than its cities bought separately.
Can I get a refund?
Yes, if something is broken or missing. For a purchase on the website, write to us and we will refund it. If you live in the European Union or the United Kingdom, you can also cancel a website purchase within 14 days for a full refund.
How do I get a refund for something I bought in the app?
App purchases are refunded by the store, not by us. For the iPhone app, ask Apple at reportaproblem.apple.com. For the Android app, ask through Google Play.
Using the guide
Does it work without a signal?
Yes, in the TurOwl app on your phone. Download anything you own there, with its offline map if you like, and it plays with no connection. That is what most people do before going underground or inside a thick-walled building. In the browser the guide needs a connection.
Does it know where I am?
If you let your browser or phone share your location, the guide leads with the city you are standing in and the places nearest to you. That check happens on your device. If you do not, everything is still reachable by searching.
Can I change the narrator's voice?
Yes. Choose a narrator under Narrator in your profile, on the website or in the app. A download in the app keeps the voice it was made with, so download again after changing it.
Does it plan my day or walk me between places?
No. It tells you about what is in front of you. Routes, timings and opening hours are deliberately left out.
Is there a phone app?
Yes, for iPhone and Android. Sign in with the same email and everything you own is there, ready to download for listening offline.
Which cities do you cover?
Some of the most visited cities in the world, chosen deliberately rather than scraped. The Explore screen lists every one of them.
My city is missing. Will you add it?
Possibly. When the guide does not cover where you are standing it offers to note your interest, and that is what we work from when choosing what to cover next. Our privacy policy says what a note keeps.
Your account
How do I delete my account?
Open your profile, then Account Settings, and choose Delete account. We email you a code to confirm it. You can do this on the website without the app, and the steps are in our privacy policy. Deleting your account ends your access to everything you bought.
Still stuck?
There is a longer walk-through of how everything fits together on the how it works page, and anything it does not answer can go to support@serophin.com or through our contact page.