Could Virtual Reality Substitute the ‘Real’ Experience? Evidence from a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Northern Portugal

Losada, Nieves; Jorge, Filipa; Teixeira, Mário Sérgio; Melo, Miguel; Bessa, Maximino

doi:10.1007/978-981-33-4260-6_14

Cited by 14 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 17 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The result consisted of two videos, each with a 4000 x 4000 (top/bottom layout) resolution. It is consistent in the literature that 360º video is a genuine VR technology, fundamental for new content distribution, that can provide high levels of immersion at a reasonable cost [17], [18], [57], [58].…”

Section: G Proceduressupporting

confidence: 80%

“…In the tourism context, mental imagery can be defined as a person's mental representation of knowledge, feelings, and global impressions about a destination [11]. Thus, it is important to provide a pleasant experience to the user to stimulate the interest to physically visiting it and achieve satisfaction, considering VR as a complementary tool for the tourism industry, as defended by several authors [16][17][18][19][20]. It means that the feelings and the emotions felt during "real" visits cannot be replaced by virtual visits, as concluded by Losada et al [18].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Thus, it is important to provide a pleasant experience to the user to stimulate the interest to physically visiting it and achieve satisfaction, considering VR as a complementary tool for the tourism industry, as defended by several authors [16][17][18][19][20]. It means that the feelings and the emotions felt during "real" visits cannot be replaced by virtual visits, as concluded by Losada et al [18]. Perceived similarity is another important concept regarding virtual tourism and, more specifically, concerning the relationship between virtual and real tourism scenarios, and it is closely related to the concept of mental imagery [21].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

The Relationship Between Cybersickness, Sense of Presence, and the Users’ Expectancy and Perceived Similarity Between Virtual and Real Places

et al. 2021

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This paper aims to explore the impact of sense of presence and cybersickness on the users' expectancy and perceived similarity between virtual and the corresponding real environments. Two virtual reality setups were tested (non-immersive and immersive) to achieve further conclusions. This research encompassed a quantitative analysis using data collection based on questionnaires, applied to a sample of 45 participants. A virtual experience was conducted (to explore users' cybersickness and sense of presence), followed by a visit to the actual real sites (to determine the degree of perceived similarity between the virtual and the corresponding real environment and if their expectations were fulfilled). Our results show a positive correlation between the global sense of presence and perceived similarity and users' expectancy for the nonimmersive VR setup. A positive correlation was also found between the global cybersickness on both perceived similarity and users' expectancy for the immersive VR setup. Implications of such results for virtual tourism are discussed.

show abstract

Section: G Proceduressupporting

confidence: 80%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

The Relationship Between Cybersickness, Sense of Presence, and the Users’ Expectancy and Perceived Similarity Between Virtual and Real Places

et al. 2021

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Currently, the consensus seems to be that VE and VR can only act as a supplement, as an aid to exploring a destination from a rational or cognitive point of view, but not as a proper replacement (Prideaux, 2002;Losada et al, 2020). Twenty years ago, Sussmann and Vanhegan (2000) and Prideaux (2002) analysed the general perception of VR and concluded that the participants almost unanimously rejected VR travel as a substitute for real travel.…”

Section: Virtual Experiences and The Challenge Of Monetisationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Introducing Amazon Explore: a digital giant's exploration of the virtual tourism experiences

Alegro

Turnšek²,

Špindler³

et al. 2023

JTF

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

PurposeAmazon Explore is a new online experience product from Amazon, which offers live stream sightseeing of destinations around the world. This paper aims to provide a first insight into how exactly Amazon Explore enters the virtual experience (VE) industry, and discuss the possible implications of its business model for the future of virtual and offline travel experiences.Design/methodology/approachQualitative and quantitative methods of content analysis methods were employed in this study. The sample of this research consisted of 175 Amazon Explore products. Firstly, the authors analysed the content of each product, and then quantitative method were used to present the data. With this analysis, the authors presented how Amazon Explore is testing the foundations for new business models, and discuss the possible implications for the future of tourism. One year later, those same Amazon Explore products were reviewed again to check development progress. The following were the main questions regarding VE: How interactive are Amazon Explore products? How does Amazon Explore aim to ensure the monetisation of these products in an economically sustainable way in order to go beyond the “freemium” business model, often associated with VE as just another destination marketing tool?FindingsThis article presents the discussions of VE and virtual reality (VR). The authors determined the level of interactivity of the diverse VE offered themes with a model of four levels of interactivity. The results show that the analysed products achieve mostly only low levels of interaction. Regarding monetisation, Amazon Explore shows three possible future directions in the development of VE: as a marketing tool, as an extension of the offline experience and as potentially someday replacing real travel as part of the future monetisation scenario.Originality/valueThe article offers the first insights into Amazon's extension into the realm of VE in two time periods in 2020 and 2021, and, based on these preliminary results, discusses four possible scenarios for the future development of VE monetisation.

show abstract

“…Tourism is also being targeted in studies to research if users intent to experience tourism is increased by previewing those experiences firstly in VR [9]- [11]. Other studies are addressing the potential of this technology to protect cultural heritage by giving users a similar realistic experience as if they were really there [12], [13].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Systematic Review on Realism Research Methodologies on Immersive Virtual, Augmented and Mixed Realities

et al. 2021

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Could Virtual Reality Substitute the ‘Real’ Experience? Evidence from a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Northern Portugal

Cited by 14 publications

References 17 publications

The Relationship Between Cybersickness, Sense of Presence, and the Users’ Expectancy and Perceived Similarity Between Virtual and Real Places

The Relationship Between Cybersickness, Sense of Presence, and the Users’ Expectancy and Perceived Similarity Between Virtual and Real Places

Introducing Amazon Explore: a digital giant's exploration of the virtual tourism experiences

Systematic Review on Realism Research Methodologies on Immersive Virtual, Augmented and Mixed Realities

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About