Is a virtual visit to a heritage tourist destination informative? Design variables that influence intention to recommend the destination

Resumen

Virtual visits are a particularly useful way to learn about what a heritage tourismdestination is like. This article studies three main design variables of a virtual visit thatinfluence its perceived informativeness and intention to recommend the destination.The research analyzes the direct and interaction effects of (i) the type of technologyinterface employed by the visitor when experiencing the virtual visit (immersive -VRvs.non- immersive -Web-), (ii) the creative style of the extra-information contentduring the visit (only textual vs. textual plus pictorial), and (iii) the presence or not ofhistorical reconstructions explaining how the heritage destination must have been atthe time of its construction. We performed a 2 (Technology interface: Web vs. VR) x 2(Creative style of the information: Textual vs. Pictorial) x 2 (Presence of historicalreconstructions: Yes vs. No) between-subject experimental factorial design with 116Spanish tourists. Results confirm that the presence of historical reconstructions is aninformational cue valued by the visitor that influences the informativeness of the visit.Second, we find that the presence of historical reconstructions especially improvesinformativeness when is combined with only textual extra information (not mixed withpictorial information). Third, we found that if the visit is mediated by an immersive VRdevice, textual information cues influence more intention to recommend than pictorialones, but when the virtual visit is carried out using a less immersive technologicalinterface, the combination of textual and pictorial content (e.g., photographs, videos,etc.) influence more the eWOM. Theoretical and managerial contributions arediscussed.