New perspectives of experiential tourism: an exploratory analysis of live virtual tours during the COVID-19 outbreak

Abstract

Purpose This paper aims to find out if it is possible to consider live virtual tours, in the connotation assumed during the COVID-19 outbreak, as experiential tourism products. The paper focuses on Holbrook's “four Es” (“experience”, “entertainment”, “exhibitionism” and “evangelising”) to study the experience of live virtual tours. Design/methodology/approach This article develops an exploratory analysis and presents a content analysis of 1052 reviews of 108 live virtual tours posted on TripAdvisor and Viator. Findings The findings show that live virtual tours are perceived as experiences, all “four Es” are covered and two more sub-categories emerge. Research limitations/implications The analysis is limited to the perception of tourists that are confident with the technology, to a small sample and a period of travel restrictions due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Practical implications Live virtual tours create a new segment, which “travels from home”. This does not preclude tourists from deciding to physically visit the places seen virtually. Originality/value Research on the analysis of the reviews of live virtual tours has not yet been carried out.