The Use of Virtual Reality to Promote Sustainable Tourism: A Case Study of Wooden Churches Historical Monuments from Romania

Tudor Caciora,Ioana Josan,Ștefan Baias,Grigore Vasile Herman,Nicolaie Hodor,Alexandru Ilieș,Dorina Camelia Ilieș

doi:10.3390/rs13091758

Abstract

The accelerated development and expansion of cultural tourism in areas with unique tourist objectives, characterised by a high degree of risk in terms of their physical and chemical integrity, requires sustained efforts by all stakeholders to identify new methods, techniques, and procedures for their conservation, protection, and capitalisation, with respect to tourism. The aim of this study was to propose an optimal methodology for capitalising on tourism related to wooden churches, regarded as a structural item of tangible cultural heritage, with positive effects on the protection, conservation, information, and awareness of all stakeholders in tourism development. This involved the development of a web portal, in which were integrated the 3D models related to the analysed objects, the panoramic images inside them, the audio support, the photographs, and the accompanying text necessary to create and render a virtual reality (VR) production for purposes of virtual tourism (VT). The results obtained consisted of the creation of the website Bihor360°, which is freely navigable and whose content, including both textual and graphic information, can be easily accessed by all interested users. The aim involved was to release an online bridge for potential visitors to the fragile tourist attractions, facilitating the development of active knowledge and VR while raising awareness among the population and the local authorities about the role and the importance of the wooden churches in tourism and the local economy.

Highlights

Perceived reality is a specific feature of living beings that derives from their ability to interact with the other structural elements of the environment, of which they form a part
The approach tends mainly to be used for modelling buildings or other large scenes since it allows the smooth procuring of photographs while making even the most isolated parts of the object in question accessible
Of the 712 photographs taken of the interior and of the 862 photographs taken of the exterior, only 674 and 786 were considered to be suitable for alignment, resulting in the remaining photographs being removed from the database

Summary

Introduction

Perceived reality is a specific feature of living beings that derives from their ability to interact with the other structural elements of the environment, of which they form a part. A multitude of perceived, lived spaces exists, depending on the interaction capabilities of each person over time. In addition to endosomatic means, humankind has acquired, throughout its evolution as a species, a new way of perceiving the world in the form of ‘thinking’, which is the ability to reflect and to create an imaginary reality consisting of a mythical, imaginary space. At first sight, virtual reality (VR) seems to be the prerogative of a highly technological society, virtual-imaginary experiences have existed since ancient times, facilitated by people’s imagination and fuelled by texts, paintings, and other representations [1]. VR reconceptualises the idea of space and time, real and imaginary, with the authenticity of virtual experiences being found in the perception of each person concerned [2]

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Conclusion