From hype to value. Virtual Reality Tools in the Tourism Industry and their Influence on Booking Behaviour

Research Paper (postgraduate) from the year 2018 in the subject Tourism - Miscellaneous, grade: 1,0, Technical University of Munich (Lehrstuhl für Sport- und Gesundheitsmanagement), language: English, abstract: In light of fierce competition and fast changing markets, travel firms have to make reasonable use of new technologies in order to succeed. Virtual Reality (VR) enables travellers to experience a destination in advance and entertains hopes to positively influence the booking behaviour of travellers.

The author of this publication examines the effect of VR exposure on the booking decision process, specifically on the purchasing probability, the speed of decision-making and turnover. Different to other research, the book at hand analyses actual purchasing decisions from the perspective of travel sales agents instead of consumers expressing purchasing intentions in artificial laboratory situations.

The current technological development considerably affects the way how tourism destinations and touristic products are perceived and how booking decisions take place. In that context, it is crucial to understand consumer decision processes, especially in the travel and hospitality sector. ¿Virtual Reality Tools in the Tourism Industry and their Influence on Booking Behaviour¿ investigates consumer behaviour based on a structural model. Carola Epple offers handy guidelines for travel marketers how to best use VR for their purposes and supports managerial practice by indicating how the relevant constructs can be stimulated.