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Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality Application in Urban Heritage Tourism

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Tourism, Culture, and Heritage".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 April 2021) | Viewed by 34897

Special Issue Editors


E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Operations, Technology, Events and Hospitality Management, Manchester Metropolitan University, All Saints Building, All Saints, Manchester M15 6BH, UK
Interests: augmented reality; virtual reality; smart technologies

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Operations, Technology, Events and Hospitality Management, Manchester Metropolitan University, All Saints Building, All Saints, Manchester M15 6BH, UK
Interests: social media; immersive technologies; tourism and hospitality

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

With the advancements in mobile and wearable technologies, there has been a major shift towards how information are received pre-, during and after travel. These developments led to the increased importance of augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) for the tourism industry. Today’s tourists are used to the direct access of information to receive an enhanced experience through the projection of digital content into their direct line of view. These new developments have serious implications for urban heritage tourism. AR and VR offer new opportunities to create interactive, educational and entertaining experiences. Given these developments, this special issue invites papers to advance tourism researchers’ as well as practitioners’ understanding of how AR and VR affect the future of the urban heritage tourism.

This special issue offers a platform to identify new trends, developments and applications of immersive technologies in the context of urban heritage tourism from the perspective of sustainability. This special issue is interested in how Internet of things (IoT) is affecting urban heritage tourism; its consequences for DMOs, businesses and tourists at destinations. From the consumers’ perspective, this special issue is calling for papers on immersive on and off-site experiences using immersive technologies, AR & VR. From the suppliers perspective, this special issue furthermore looks into the role of immersive technologies for sustainable development and growth of urban heritage tourism.

Dr. Timothy Jung
Dr. M. Claudia tom Dieck
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • augmented reality
  • virtual reality
  • smart tourism
  • urban heritage tourism

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 784 KiB  
Article
Impact of Experiential Value of Augmented Reality: The Context of Heritage Tourism
by Seokho Han, Ji-Hwan Yoon and Jookyung Kwon
Sustainability 2021, 13(8), 4147; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su13084147 - 08 Apr 2021
Cited by 34 | Viewed by 5160
Abstract
The use of information boards tends to be regulated in many heritage sites to preserve these cultural heritage places. Although augmented reality (AR) has become a major approach for reducing negative experiences due to restrictions, limited studies have been conducted to understand the [...] Read more.
The use of information boards tends to be regulated in many heritage sites to preserve these cultural heritage places. Although augmented reality (AR) has become a major approach for reducing negative experiences due to restrictions, limited studies have been conducted to understand the effect of AR experiential value on destination-related behavior. Accordingly, the current work aims to investigate how the multidimensional components of AR experiential value (i.e., visual appeal, entertainment, enjoyment, and escapism) affect supportive behavior through AR satisfaction and experiential authenticity. Partial least squares structural equation modeling is performed to test the relationships. Results show that visual appeal, entertainment, and enjoyment exert significant positive effects on destination authenticity and AR satisfaction, ultimately increasing the supportive behavior of an individual. By contrast, escapism does not exhibit a substantial influence on experiential authenticity and AR satisfaction. These findings help practitioners and researchers create competitive advantages for destinations and improve tourist–destination relationships. Full article
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18 pages, 726 KiB  
Article
Mobile Augmented Reality Heritage Applications: Meeting the Needs of Heritage Tourists
by Celine Zhao Ying Yin, Timothy Jung, M. Claudia tom Dieck and Maria Younghee Lee
Sustainability 2021, 13(5), 2523; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su13052523 - 26 Feb 2021
Cited by 33 | Viewed by 4322
Abstract
As competition intensifies, value co-creation with tourists is essential for successful implementation of mobile augmented reality (AR) heritage applications. This study therefore aims to identify heritage tourists’ needs and involvement when developing mobile AR heritage applications using a grounded theory approach. Since AR [...] Read more.
As competition intensifies, value co-creation with tourists is essential for successful implementation of mobile augmented reality (AR) heritage applications. This study therefore aims to identify heritage tourists’ needs and involvement when developing mobile AR heritage applications using a grounded theory approach. Since AR applications are still in their infancy in the tourism industry the grounded theory approach was employed. Fifty in-depth interviews were conducted in Macau’s World Heritage Sites. The interview transcripts were analyzed by the open coding method with the NVivo software, the process of axial coding and the selective coding method. This study generated new requirements for mobile AR heritage applications that reflect the needs of the Asian tourist market, which are different from those of the European tourist market. The characteristic of tourist empowerment and the association between co-creation and tourism were also identified. This study contributes to provide a theoretical framework for designing mobile AR heritage applications and has implications for mobile AR application developers and tourism practitioners. Full article
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17 pages, 1132 KiB  
Article
Relationships among Beliefs, Attitudes, Time Resources, Subjective Norms, and Intentions to Use Wearable Augmented Reality in Art Galleries
by Timothy Jung, M. Claudia tom Dieck, Hyunae Lee and Namho Chung
Sustainability 2020, 12(20), 8628; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su12208628 - 18 Oct 2020
Cited by 18 | Viewed by 4722
Abstract
As a result of interactive and immersive technologies such as augmented reality, almost every service business has changed their ways of engaging with consumers. However, there has been little research on acceptance and use of wearable augmented reality (AR) in interactive services in [...] Read more.
As a result of interactive and immersive technologies such as augmented reality, almost every service business has changed their ways of engaging with consumers. However, there has been little research on acceptance and use of wearable augmented reality (AR) in interactive services in museums and art galleries. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the causal relationships among customers’ beliefs, evaluation, attitudes, perceived behavior control (time resources), subjective norms, and intentions to use wearable AR and visit a tourist attraction (an art gallery) using the theory of planned behavior. The results showed that time resources affected intention to visit an art gallery, while attitude toward wearable AR had an impact on intention to use wearable AR. Subjective norms were found to predict intentions, and the intention to use wearable AR was found to influence the intention to visit an art gallery. Full article
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22 pages, 1155 KiB  
Article
The Influence of Mixed Reality on Satisfaction and Brand Loyalty in Cultural Heritage Attractions: A Brand Equity Perspective
by Sujin Bae, Timothy Hyungsoo Jung, Natasha Moorhouse, Minjeong Suh and Ohbyung Kwon
Sustainability 2020, 12(7), 2956; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su12072956 - 08 Apr 2020
Cited by 62 | Viewed by 10365
Abstract
Mixed reality technology is being increasingly used in cultural heritage attractions to enhance visitors’ experiences. However, how the characteristics of mixed reality affect satisfaction and brand loyalty has not been explored in previous research. The purpose of this study is to identify factors [...] Read more.
Mixed reality technology is being increasingly used in cultural heritage attractions to enhance visitors’ experiences. However, how the characteristics of mixed reality affect satisfaction and brand loyalty has not been explored in previous research. The purpose of this study is to identify factors affecting satisfaction with mixed reality experiences at cultural and artistic visitor attractions and their influence on brand loyalty, which is connected with management performance. We propose a theoretical model based on brand equity theory in the context of mixed reality experience. Survey data were gathered from 251 respondents visiting a cultural and artistic visitor attraction in Seoul, Korea, using a stratified sampling method. Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was employed for the data analysis. The results suggest that the characteristics of mixed reality (interactivity, vividness) not only influence the affective aspects (perceived immersion, perceived enjoyment) of visitors’ experiences, but also positively affect brand awareness, brand association, and brand loyalty. Full article
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26 pages, 1147 KiB  
Article
The Historic City, Its Transmission and Perception via Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality and the Use of the Past as a Resource for the Present: A New Era for Urban Cultural Heritage and Tourism?
by Diego A. Barrado-Timón and Carmen Hidalgo-Giralt
Sustainability 2019, 11(10), 2835; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su11102835 - 17 May 2019
Cited by 32 | Viewed by 8245
Abstract
The objective of this study is to analyze the impact that augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) are having on our conception, appreciation, and use of urban heritage spaces. Although most evaluations that appear in the specialized literature are clearly positive in [...] Read more.
The objective of this study is to analyze the impact that augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) are having on our conception, appreciation, and use of urban heritage spaces. Although most evaluations that appear in the specialized literature are clearly positive in this respect, there is a critical line of thought that considers these new technologies as connected to prior theoretical assumptions about heritage, in terms of what we value, how we value it, and for what reasons. To contrast the two perspectives, we have selected and examined scientific literature evaluating the application of AR and VR in urban heritage spaces, in order to analyze whether, in addition to positive effects, certain negatives linked to the ‘virtualization’ of space are also at work. A qualitative methodology has been developed supported by the ATLAS.ti tool (Scientific Software Development GmbH, Berlin, Germany), which allows definition of the different thematic lines treated in the literature as well as the connections between them. Our main conclusion is that concerns around the critical aspects are very limited, with only a few perceiving the possible dangers of trivialization of heritage, the creation of virtual tourist worlds separate from the material space of socio-economic relations, negative effects on the way in which knowledge is constructed, or the difficulties for some user groups in accessing these technologies. Full article
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