Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) Technologies for Accessibility and Marketing in the Tourism Industry

Abstract

The study investigated the roles of virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) for accessibility and marketing in tourism. Literature is reviewed in this exploratory study and examples of VR and AR for accessibility and marketing in the tourism industry are presented. The review was conducted with two perspectives: accessibility role and marketing role of VR and AR technologies in the tourism industry. As a result of reviewing, these technologies have both strengths and weaknesses for accessibility in tourism. VR has both strengths such as a secure environment, alternative access, and weaknesses such as user neglect, high cost. Similarly, AR has both strengths such as knowledge enrichment, enhancement of experience, and weaknesses such as high cost, lack of security. The high cost of both technologies restricts accessibility and marketing. Also, VR and AR have benefits as reducing strategy costs, attracting tourists with gamification strategies, ease of brand promotion, building brand loyalty, collecting data, and customized product development in tourism marketing.

Virtual reality: A review and a new framework for integrated adoption

“…The findings suggest that individuals who perceive VR as more useful are more likely to benefit from VR. Individuals identify the usefulness of VR based on its ability to enhance learning, training, simulation, collaboration, and entertainment (Beh et al, 2022; Du et al, 2018; Jung et al, 2021; Oriti et al, 2021; Ozdemir, 2021; Prabhakaran et al, 2022; Xi & Hamari, 2021). Because perceived usefulness is a key factor influencing VR adoption, organizations that are able to tailor their offerings to meet consumer needs (i.e., offering experiences that are relevant) can help address adoption barriers such as complexity and cost.…”

“…While the benefits of VR have been well documented (Abdullah et al, 2021;Bogicevic et al, 2021;Jung et al, 2021;Oriti et al, 2021;Ozdemir, 2021;Vaquero-Blasco et al, 2021;Xi & Hamari, 2021)…”

“…As a consumer benefit, VR can be used to access cultural and entertainment events that may not be available in the physical world (Bogicevic et al, 2021; Jung et al, 2021; Oriti et al, 2021; Ozdemir, 2021). VR can provide enhanced accessibility options and a secure touristic experience for consumers with limited mobility (Ozdemir, 2021). VR has also functioned to preserve heritage by providing an alternative means to access fragile or vulnerable sites (Guttentag, 2010).…”

“…As the utilization of VR in society becomes more common, disparities continue to exist in the access to and use of certain digital technologies. While the benefits of VR have been well documented (Abdullah et al, 2021; Bogicevic et al, 2021; Jung et al, 2021; Oriti et al, 2021; Ozdemir, 2021; Vaquero‐Blasco et al, 2021; Xi & Hamari, 2021), certain communities lack the access (e.g., high‐speed internet and computers) required to use VR technology. This may ultimately exclude certain individuals from any of the documented benefits of VR (e.g., enhanced remote collaboration, education and training, experiential shopping experiences), potentially leading to social exclusion from engaging with certain people and organizations.…”

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“…Additionally, some games are dedicated in different modules, for example, the computer module but also a VR module. In the literature, there are many papers that discuss applying VR, despite entertainment, in the following: medicine (Li et al, 2017), architecture (Bashabsheh, Alzoubi, Ali, 2019), psychology (Parsons et al, 2017), military (Pallavicini et al, 2016), aviation (Fussell, 2020), rehabilitation (Smits, Staal, Van Goor, 2020), manufacturing (Roldán et al, 2019), automotive industry (Lawson, Salanitri, Waterfield, 2016), tourism (Beck, Rainoldi, Egger, 2019), marketing (Ozdemir, 2021), in therapy (Caponnetto et al, 2021), to overcome depression (Baghaei et al, 2021), and many others.…”