Travel has always been an incredible tool for enlightenment and personal growth. When we travel the world, we discover new cultures, see amazing sights, and make fantastic memories. Over the last few years, the way we perceive travel has begun to change drastically.
For decades, the travel industry has consistently searched for an effective way to help people explore the world more easily. During the pandemic, when country borders were closed, and flights were cancelled, this meant turning to technology to provide a different mode of escape.
The challenges of the pandemic became the catalyst for one of the more interesting modes of travel to appear in some time: virtual travel. Armchair, or virtual travel through XR promises people access to new experiences, without asking them to step foot on a plane, train, or bus.
Here’s how the World XR Forum created a virtual travel experience for travelers during lockdown, within a Crans-Montana lounge.
Exploring the Potential of Virtual Travel
The concept of virtual travel was an idea in the sci-fi and cinematic landscape long before XR technology became more mainstream. However, it wasn’t until the pandemic emerged that we began to see companies leveraging this concept for the first time.
While travelling to a different location virtually might not match the experience of actually being there, it serves an important purpose. XR can offer an escape which supports mental health during difficult times. The same technology can also allow people who wouldn’t be able to travel in other circumstances. The World XR Forum decided to explore this idea in greater depth during the pandemic, when people were stuck at home, with nowhere to go.
Building on the growing popularity of virtual conferences and events, and embracing the rapidly evolving momentum of VR adoption, the World XR Forum joined forces with SOMNIACS. Creating a unique experience in the renowned VR platform, “Birdly”, the team was able to build an immersive simulator.
This VR solution, which even allows people to feel as though they’re flying through the air, with the use of fans and unique hardware, bridges the gap between people and unreachable places. The finished project was a virtual travel lounge, located in the Swiss town of Crans-Montana.
Powerful XR Experiences
The virtual travel lounge was designed specifically to address the pain and discomfort people were feeling when trapped in their own home. The goal, according to the team, was to provide a taste of some of the experiences people had been missing. What’s more, it gave users a chance to see what the future might look like with the possibilities of XR travel.
The ideal for the travel lounge actually started at a time when the World XR Forum was searching for a way to increase visibility and brand awareness. The company was already gaining steam as a pioneer in the virtual reality world. However, many users still didn’t have a full view of what companies like the World XR Forum could do.
The travel lounge also gave the World XR Forum a chance to display its home town of Crans-Montana as a hub for cutting-edge ideas and new technologies. The tourist destination offers a range of world-class outdoor experiences in winter and summer. With the travel lounge, the location took on an entirely new avenue of travel options.
The Birdly intelligent VR experience was launched as part of a modern gallery in the middle of the Crans-Montana business district. Users were invited to book fifteen minutes of virtual travel at a time through an online app. This experience included three Birdly “flights”, which users could choose themselves, and a soundtrack they picked at the start of the experience.
More than your standard VR interaction, the Birdly hub allowed people to feel the experience of soaring through the air, laid on a moving table, with wind effects and spatial sounds. The World XR Forum staff members also treated guests to first-class service every step of the way. Beverages were included, snacks, and additional VR and XR experiences were offered too.
Capitalizing on the entertainment value the experience had to offer, the World XR Forum highlighted the experience as a “wellness” solution. The service was offered as a way to experience a few minutes of complete immersion and freedom, at a time when many travellers were feeling trapped.
Looking into The Future
During the pandemic, the virtual travel lounge created by the World XR Forum proved to be a phenomenal success. This has prompted the company to continue operating the experience into the future, providing continued unique experiences, alongside more traditional travel experiences. The team even found the virtual travel lounge helped to draw new visitors to the town.
Though many people have assumed virtual travel was a solution intended only for the pandemic, it has a lot of potential to offer in future too. This kind of immersive travel experience could be ideal for those who want to explore somewhere new, without the expense and time associated with travelling around the world. The World XR Forum believes the success of the virtual lounge highlights a new need to think carefully about the potential of VR in tourism.
People are growing increasingly comfortable with the idea of bringing XR technologies into their day-to-day lives. The use of the right XR experiences could provide travel and tourism operators with a new way to support their customers, beyond just providing unique marketing experience.
Tools like the World XR Forum travel lounge create a low-cost solution with minimal environmental impact, to give people experiences unlike anything they’ve seen before. It will be interesting to see what this successful case study helps to inspire in the future of the travel industry.
