Virtual reality concept creates travel search and booking experience

Transport company hopes to change the way travellers shop for trips by integrating the reality experience into browsing.

Spain-based transport tech company Navitaire has unveiled its virtual reality experience for travel searching and booking. Navitaires’s UX developer Justin Wilde took four months to create the concept, which he believes is the next step in technology for the travel industry.

The experience begins with the traveller wearing a VR headset so they feel they are standing on a platform in the clouds facing a giant globe of the world. The user can spin the globe to select a destination, and they are taken there. If the traveller likes what they see, they can purchase a flight and go through the entire booking process right through to payment. When selecting a flight, the traveller can walk through the plane cabin to find the right seat, and when booking a rental car they can hop in and try different cars. In the future, the VR experience could include hotel booking features and social functions so the traveller could see where their social media friends have been as they spin the globe.

Travel concepts are intriguing to consumers, with Springwise covering examples including a travelling bookstore that is touring France and an elevator that has visual display screens depicting different scenery. How could technology improve your travel experience?