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The Use of Virtual Reality in Tourism Destinations as a Tool to Develop Tourist Behavior Perspective

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  • Ionica Oncioiu

    (Department of Economic Sciences, Faculty of Finance-Banking, Accountancy and Business Administration, Titu Maiorescu University, 040051 Bucharest, Romania)

  • Iustin Priescu

    (Department of Informatics, Faculty of Informatics, Titu Maiorescu University, 040051 Bucharest, Romania)

Abstract

The role of new technologies in tourism is changing rapidly, leading to the development of customer relationships through the use of virtual reality in the marketing of tourist destinations. In addition to focusing on the influence of travel intentions that has prevailed in practice so far, the use of VR is expected to have an impact on the travel experience on the spot. This exploratory research study was conducted with 824 respondents to identify the role of virtual reality in choosing a tourist destination, as well as the expectations of potential customers that could rekindle the tourism industry for a post-pandemic world. The results pointed out that highly used virtual reality applications for destination marketing aim to create a certain image for a tourist destination and to communicate this to the outside world in a consistent and coordinated manner. The findings also reinforce the importance of developing future scenarios for virtual reality as a decisive factor for strategic planning in the tourism sector.

Suggested Citation

  • Ionica Oncioiu & Iustin Priescu, 2022. "The Use of Virtual Reality in Tourism Destinations as a Tool to Develop Tourist Behavior Perspective," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(7), pages 1-15, April.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:14:y:2022:i:7:p:4191-:d:785068
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    6. Nuno Sousa & Filipa Jorge & Mário Sérgio Teixeira & Nieves Losada & Miguel Melo & Maximino Bessa, 2023. "An Exploratory Study about the Effect of COVID-19 on the Intention to Adopt Virtual Reality in the Tourism Sector," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(11), pages 1-13, May.

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