Management of immersive heritage tourism experiences: A conceptual model

Abstract

There is potential for immersive technology, such as augmented and virtual reality, to create memorable tourism experiences, specifically for heritage tourism. However, there is a lack of conceptual clarity surrounding the management of heritage for memorable tourism experiences. Subsequently, this research note proposes a four-stage conceptual model of heritage preservation for managing heritage into digital tourism experiences. The four stages include the presentation of historical facts; contested heritage; integration of historical facts and contested heritage; and/or an alternate scenario. This research note demonstrates that integrating history with cutting-edge technology in immersive environments has the potential to not only preserve and manage heritage but to enrich the visitor experience and subsequent engagement with history.