What is it like to go travelling with a VR headset?

Nearly 60 years ago, Sir Cliff Richard first sang: We’re all on going on a summer holiday.

But this year, the word summer might need to be replaced by two letters: VR. Nope, not Very Relaxing, or Venice to Rome, but Virtual Reality.

From the comfort of your sofa, hammock or lounger, you can be whisked around the globe via a headset hopping from the Brooklyn Bridge to the Great Pyramids to rowing an Icelandic lake – or wherever you fancy – inside a few hours.

Which is lucky really, because depending on which member of the government you believe, the message for Britons seems to be you’re not going anywhere this year. 

Travel experience: It is unlikely a VR holiday can fill the beach void, but it could bring art galleries, museums and other adventures to life in your living room

What with that and winter really biting this week and lockdown blues hitting hard, an escape from reality might be needed. 

You could crank up the thermostat, stick on your swimwear, dip your toes in a bowl of warm water and go on a VR adventure. Or just stay in your PJs – whichever works for you.

The Government has flip-flopped about our chances of going on holiday in recent weeks. I still think it is too early to really know how it is all going to unfold.

For that reason, a large chunk of people will simply write-off 2021 as yet another that could be holiday-less – or at least, completely different to what they’re used to – not wanting to risk yet more waits for refunds or the uncertainty. 

They may be hunting an alternative option. Now wearing a VR headset to look around tourist hotspots may seem a bit Black Mirror, sci-fi and not exactly conjure up the same romantic images of driving around Europe in a double decker bus with Cliff, but it’s a growing trend.

This week, Consumer Trends looks at how VR could grow in the near future and whether you could be holidaying from your home this year – a so-called ‘no-travel’ trip.

Will VR grow this decade?

When it comes to VR, I have two visions in my mind. Firstly, the lead character in brilliant book Ready Player One (it’s not a bad movie either) based in a dystopian 2045 where people of the world game online with headsets.

The second is from TV show American Hustle, fronted by snooker star Ronnie O’Sullivan. He plays pool with a VR headset on and gets so caught up in it, he accidentally leans down, believing the table is actually there, and falls over.

That aside, VR is one of those technologies that feels like it has been bubbling away under the surface for a number of years, ready for a mass adoption that never quite happens.

That’s despite an entry level option from Google – the Google Cardboard, which has since been discontinued – that can be snapped up for a few quid on marketplaces such as eBay.

Essentially, you slip on one of these with your smartphone connected, and can move your head to look around 360 degrees.

Others that have more expensive headsets include Facebook-owned Oculus and Sony PlayStation VR. These give more in-depth experiences, but cost a few hundred quid – or the price of a return flight on a budget airline in the the height of summer. 

The global VR market size was valued at $10.3billion in 2019, according to Grand View Research – a market data firm based in the US.

This increased to $15.8billion last year and is forecast to reach $62.1billion by 2027. Meanwhile, German research firm Statista notes that the VR industry as a whole is ‘growing at a fast pace.’

It adds: ‘The market size of consumer virtual reality hardware and software is projected to increase from $6.2billion in 2019 to more than $16 billion by 2022.’

The forthcoming rollout of 5G will also provide more users with the ability to watch HD content as well as allowing businesses to stream live 360 video tours. It could be the catalyst that is needed for more take-up.

Virtually Visiting: ‘We’re not looking to replace travel’

One start-up looking to conquer a part of the VR market is Virtually Visiting, which aims to brings 360 degree tours and experiences from around the world to your living room. 

It hit its crowdfunding target earlier in the month within 12 hours and is set to launch in April.

Set up by travel and technology experts, it offers the chance for potential partners – suppliers and destinations across the world – a free service, capturing experiences in 360 video, editing and processing it before promoting and selling them to a global audience, with sales split.

Users will be able to purchase tours and experiences either as a one-off ticket, or through a subscription model.

We are not able to replicate a real travel experience with the smells and tastes… we can provide a window to the world for those wanting to try before they travel and those who are not able to whether that be for physical, financial or political reasons.’

Jonny Cooper – Virtually Visiting 

The subscription model, it says, could be based around a particular interest when the content grows. 

For example, you could subscribe to just the history tours, or alternatively just those based in a specific country or continent.

Jonny Cooper, managing director, tells me: ‘We want to turn anyone who has a smartphone into a global explorer.

‘Our intention is not to replace travel but to compliment. 

‘Right now we are not able to replicate a real travel experience with all the smells and tastes, however, we can provide a window to the world for those wanting to try before they travel and those who are not able to whether that be for physical, financial or political reasons.

‘We are working with passionate and knowledgeable local experts to create an immersive 360 video library.

‘We’re seeking to provide unique experiences that are nearly impossible to replicate in real life, such as visiting normally busy sites or having a safe face-to-face encounter with wildlife.

‘Although it can’t compete with the spontaneity of real life travel, it can compliment it. We’re also becoming more aware of our carbon impact, and this is a great way to explore without the airmiles.’

Sledding: One of the experiences already captured by Virtually Visiting, which is set to launch in April

Sledding: One of the experiences already captured by Virtually Visiting, which is set to launch in April

Will this type of experience be adopted by the masses?

Jonny says that the platform will initially launch on mobile, computer and tablet with users able to get a VR headset experience by using devices such as Google Cardboard with their phone – opening it up to as many people as possible.

He says it will then launch a dedicated headset app later. ‘We also see an interest in having apps on smart TVs where families or groups can then enjoy the experiences together,’ he explains.

What else could help push people into giving this a go? 

Jonny tells me: ‘Our aim is to have a “a good as there” experience.

‘We expect to have tours which are exclusive (without the crowds) and tours where the crowd adds to the experience, such as a tour of a downtown market in Delhi.

‘We also see the potential to access areas which are normally out of bounds if you were to visit in person. Behind the scenes or past the red rope accessing those areas normally inaccessible to visitors.’

And what about interactive experiences? A personal tour guide to see the Mona Lisa, for example, with unique commentary and questions answered. 

He says: ‘Initially our tours will be in a video format where the user will be able to watch and look around but not directly interact with the guide.

We expect to have tours which are exclusive (without the crowds) and tours where the crowd adds to the experience, such as a tour of a downtown market in Delhi.

Jonny Cooper – Virtually Visiting

‘However we are currently testing live 360 tours where users would be able to interact. The development of technology such as 5G will allow this to develop further.’

It is likely that art galleries, museums, theatres and other tourist favourites will start offering more of these type of experiences in the near future – what’s on your travel bucket list? 

Have a look on a search engine, typing in ‘virtual tour’ at the end to see if one is available already. 

It’s unlikely, however, that VR can replace your flop ‘n’ fly holiday to Benidorm. It would be quite a boring experience just watching the sky, laying on a beach, without actually being on a beach in the sunshine.

With travel up in the air this year and people craving adventure, it’s not outside the realms of possibility that more will be willing to give virtual experiences a go this year to try and fill the gap – some will find using a headset nauseating, or it simply doesn’t work for them.

But if the industry can capture new fans while they do give it a shot in a pandemic-hit world of travel, it could help it have a popularity timeline as long as Sir Cliff’s.    

Lee Boyce’s book: Never Go Broke

I’d like to tell you about the official launch of Never Go Broke, a book I have written with Jesse McClure.

Broken into three parts, we help readers make a pot of cash out of seemingly nowhere, then reveal our blueprint to turn this pot into a bigger one before showing where to do this in a practical way.

It will be published by Octopus on 6 May 2021 and it is not a get rich quick book, but a never go broke one. You can pre-order at all major bookstores, including: 

Amazon

Foyles 

Waterstones  

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