The role of virtual reality in enhancing tourists happiness in the context of special-interest tourism
Hyunae Lee, Namho Chung · Edward Elgar Publishing eBooks · 2022
As the COVID-19 pandemic has restricted the physical movement of individuals, all kinds of special-interest tourism (SIT) activities tourists have enjoyed in the past have stopped. In this situation, virtual reality (VR) tourism is regarded as the only way to cheer people up by providing a substitute for a real field trip. VR tourism is a means to stage constructive authenticity, which does not exist in individuals' daily life, and allows them to experience feelings of immersion, novelty, presence, and nostalgia. Moreover, VR journeys to digitally preserved or restored sites can satisfy the numerous desires of SIT tourists, albeit such visits take place in a virtual environment. Such VR journeys also allow people to think they are contributing to preservation. All of these benefits of VR tourism may increase the positive emotions derived only from tourism and prolong an individual's happiness for a long time during the COVID-19 pandemic.