Introduction Postural coordination is essential for implementing efficient obstacle circumvention strategies during locomotion. While virtual environments (VEs) are increasingly used to replicate real-life conditions and safely assess or train patients on complex locomotor tasks, the extent to which coordination strategies in VEs differ from that observed in the physical environment (PE) remains to be elucidated. Material and methods The objective was to estimate the extent to which coordination strategies in the VE differ from the PE. Healthy young participants (n = 10) were assessed while walking towards a target and avoiding pedestrians approaching from different directions (left, centre, right) in a VE vs. PE. The VE, identical in size and appearance to the PE, was viewed using a HTC VIVE head-mounted display (HMD). Centre of mass trajectory (CoMt), as well as head, thorax and pelvis yaw, were measured using a Vicon system. Results In both environments, participants reoriented their body segments towards their heading direction during obstacle circumvention. In the PE, the reorientation sequence started with the head (2.94 ± 0.04 m from obstacle), followed by the trunk (2.74 ± 0.03 m), pelvis (2.71 ± 0.04 m) and CoMt (2.64 ± 0.04). In the VE, reorientation started with the pelvis (2.97 ± 0.03 m) and trunk (2.95 ± 0.03 m), followed by the head (2.79 ± 0.04 m) and CoMt (2.77 ± 0.04 m). Smaller maximum head reorientation (Δ = 1.72 ± 0.67; P Conclusion Head reorientation was smaller and delayed in the VE, which could be due to the characteristics of HMD and a need for longer visual fixation on the obstacle/target. These differences should be considered when using VR in locomotor rehabilitation.