Virtual reality technology isn’t just a Star Trek episode, but a useful tool becoming more and more mainstream by the year. Though currently more of a luxury travel feature, as with most technology, it’s expected to filter down into all types of travel eventually.
Stay on top of this rising trend by learning how you should be utilizing virtual reality for your travel club now.
- Tour Before You Book
Booking hotels half across the globe with photos only picturing the perfect angle of a room, don’t really give you the full sense of the room before you commit your group to staying there. Virtual reality allows a 360-degree view so you can feel you’ve toured the hotel and it’s mountain top view before you decide.
- Watch Adventure Demos
Whether you watch from your computer or slip on a virtual reality headset for an immersive experience, a five-minute demo video of an adventurous activity to see if your group could handle it or not. If you decide to make it an optional excursion, you could also send the video out to your group so they can decide if they are up for the zipline in Costa Rica or not.
- Explore Entire Cities
A virtual reality video of someone exploring a city can give you a more accurate feel of the area. See for yourself how accessible the city is for pedestrians or what the city streets look like from all angles.
- Sell Exotic Destinations Easier
It always helps group travel planners to have experienced a destination firsthand before they start convincing their club members to go. The further away the destination, the more expensive and time intensive. However, with virtual reality, you can visit corners of the world you might not otherwise think possible for your group to book.
- Choose Room Types
For groups that want different room types, send them the hotel’s virtual reality videos of each of the available rooms. Each group member can decide for themselves if they want an upgrade or not from looking all around the room.
- VR Goggles Hitting Conference Floors
The next time you attend a travel conference, the odds are you will be able to put on a virtual reality headset to experience the destination that booth is marketing. These fun toys will grab your attention, as well as give you a thorough understanding of the location.
- Pump Up Your Group
Whether you send out virtual reality videos to your group via email or whether you save the virtual reality headset for a preview party, there are several ways you can use virtual reality to build excitement for your upcoming trip.
- Create Memories
Consumer-friendly virtual reality headsets and cameras continue appear. One recent offering, the Sphericam 2, records spherical video in high resolution comparable in price to other high-end cameras. You can then send your latest group trip 360-degree video for your members to their computers or give them a chance to get the full picture with a headset.
