The Virtual Truth Versus the Real Image of the Museums. Method to Analyse Virtual Visits to Museums

The virtualization of the museum heritage through virtual tours allows us to achieve the objectives of disseminating, preserving and promoting a collection, even if the museums are closed. During the COVID-19 pandemic, a massive invitation was made by the media and the museums themselves to reach their collections in this way, leaving the question of whether or not the way of presenting the information and access fits with the real image of the museums. To this end, this study proposes a methodology for the analysis of virtual visits to museums, through the definition of six key factors, their variables and identifiers. In addition, it applies the methodology to the ten virtual visits of museums most recommended by the media, to obtain a definition of the best practices in the virtualization of heritage and suggesting some practices around its interpretation. It concludes with the exposition of different typologies of virtual visits and the definition of what an ideal virtual visit to a museum should be.