Five applications of VR in tourism

Virtual Reality has been on the rise for several years. But with the corona crisis, the opportunities to explore a destination remotely are appreciated even more (dream now, visit later). VR is already being used in various places in the Netherlands, for example in museums or visitor centers. But VR is more widely used worldwide. The possibilities are very diverse. In this article five applications of Virtual Reality in tourism.

#1: Virtual tours

The most obvious application of VR in tourism is the ability to create virtual tours from home. On the couch you can virtually go to a destination and experience it. This experience is relatively easy to produce with a 360 degree video. There are many examples of 360 degree virtual tours on YouTube. The Canadian British Columbia even turned it into a VR app with ‘The Wild Within VR Experience‘ a few years ago. But companies also use it as a means of getting to know the product or service. For example, the Australian airline Quantas has made virtual tours of various flight destinations. Hotels give virtual tours through their hotel, the rooms and the facilities, such as the Atlantis Hotel in Dubai.

In Germany TimeRide has been created in a few cities. Through physical and digital experience you will be brought back to the past of the city where you find yourself at that moment. It’s a real immersive experience.

#2: Virtual sales

A second application is virtual sales. This can be interesting for the sale of bungalows or apartments, for example. On the one hand, because you can make a remote virtual tour through a holiday object and get a good impression of the atmosphere, the layout and the view. This is certainly useful for destinations that are further away and where you can already make a first selection of objects that you want to view on location during the orientation phase.

#3: VR Campaigns

Virtual Reality can of course also be used as a campaign element. Thomas Cook’s case is often mentioned in the travel industry. They were one of the first to use VR. There are a number of 360 degree videos in the ‘Try Before Your Fly’ campaign. For example from locations in New York or scenes in an A330. The videos contain directions with which you could enter a competition. The campaign generated 180% growth in bookings to New York.

One of the best and most creative campaigns that uses VR is the Old Irish campaign in Georgia. Unsuspecting passersby are put on VR glasses. Here they get to see images of Ireland, while the environment around them undergoes a metamorphosis. When they take off the glasses, they get an Irish experience they will never forget …

#4: Entertainment and education

A fourth application is for entertainment and education. This way you can do things with VR that you would otherwise never dare. For example, jumping out of a plane to skydive or dive with sharks. This can be combined with an educational element about flora and fauna. But you can also attend virtual theater shows or visit museums. At home from your couch.

But there are more possibilities. For example, you can travel through time in Hong Kong and experience different periods in history virtually. Or take a virtual tour of the original Pompeii, to see the site before the volcanic eruption.

#5: VR Attractions

Another virtual experience that is booming are the virtual attractions. These can be attractions that are all about Virtual Reality or existing attractions that are supplemented with VR. For example, at Indoor Skydive Roosendaal you can not only get the feeling of skydiving in a wind tunnel. You can also supplement this with a VR experience where it really looks like you are jumping out of an airplane and floating in the air.

Another form is the use of VR on roller coasters. In this case, the existing roller coasters are enriched with VR, with which you not only have the roller coaster experience, but also experience a virtual story. The Kraken attraction in Seaworld Orlando shows that this is still under development. After a year, the VR component was removed again. Guests would consider it insufficient added value and the duration of the attraction would be longer.

Sometimes VR is enough to be an attraction in itself. These options are also available in the Netherlands, such as Enversed VR Center in Eindhoven or the VR Cinema in Amsterdam. But as far as I’m concerned, The Void is the absolute top. A physical space is hereby transformed into a virtual experience, often linked to films such as Ghost Busters, Star Wars or Jumanji. A combination of a bodypack, flight simulation and impressive graphics make this a special VR experience.