Metaverse and Tourism: Current Applications and Future Perspectives

Tourism is an economic sector firmly anchored in the territory, not reliant on producing physical commodities but rather on providing diverse services that facilitate a unique and unrepeatable experience for the traveller within the destina-tion. Consequently, the concept of tourism within the metaverse understood as a virtual realm facilitated by advanced technologies such as augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), and mixed reality (MR), may appear to be a rather implausible proposition. However, it should be noted that the advent of the pandemic has given rise to new forms of ‘travel’ that have gained increasing popularity, enabling tourists to ‘visit’ places from the comfort of their homes. Consequently, new technologies have precipitated the emergence of new services and novel forms of cyber-tourism, thereby signifying that tourism competition is no longer confined to a physical realm. It is incumbent upon operators and destinations to adapt to this emergent paradigm. This contribution examines the interactions between tourism and the metaverse to illuminate their potential and criticalities.