Realising a More Sustainable Tourism Industry with Smart Edu-Tourism Mobile Applications

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02 May 2023

5 Min Read

Taylor's Impact Lab (Sustainable Tourism)
IN THIS ARTICLE

During the pandemic, Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) travel experiences gained popularity. VR provides almost-real experiences whilst AR enhances real-world experiences by superimposing computer-generated information. These technologies enabled armchair travel and offered environmental and accessibility benefits, as well as the ability to visit rare and delicate historical sites for interest or educational purposes. However, they may not entirely replace traditional travel experiences.

Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) travel experiences saw a surge in popularity during the pandemic. VR is the technology that provides experiences that are almost real and believable in a virtual way (for example, consider a tour of the Petronas Twin Towers done wholly online or through VR Goggles from the comfort of your home), whilst AR enhances real world experiences by superimposing computer-generated information on top of it (for example, related information on a historical building appearing on your device as you point the AR application at the real thing). Armchair travel afforded by these technologies allowed us to still experience tourist sites around the world even as we were confined in our homes by COVID-19.

 

Whilst sightseeing through VR and AR may never replace traditional travel experiences, the technology offers some interesting possibilities where people have environmental related concerns (those who want to reduce their carbon footprint and flights taken), accessibility issues due to mobility or economic limitations, an interest in visiting rare and delicate historical sites (no longer open to the public), and educational related objectives.

Revitalising the Local Tourism Industry with the “Go Edu Selangor” Mobile App

A group of dynamic Taylor’s University students, from the tourism, business, accounting and media and communication faculties, saw the economic and educational potential of the pairing of VR and AR technology with the needs of players in the local tourism industry. They came together as a multidisciplinary team to initiate a smart mobile application concept named “Go Edu Selangor” to serve as a much needed recovery strategy to rejuvenate the tourism industry that had been badly affected by the travel restrictions enforced during the COVID-19 pandemic. Aside from domestic tourism-related information, the proposed application also offers users interesting ways to engage with the travel content through virtual tour videos, quizzes, and reservation platforms. The application also has a unique feature as it is organised to also help educate the younger generation about local tourism destinations. 

Screenshot showing the application developed

The proposed mobile application will assist tourists to identify tourism related destinations at the state and district levels. Once the tourists click on a chosen state and district, the application will show information about the visitor attractions in an exciting and engaging way using VR and AR technology. Each visitor attraction page will provide descriptions on the location, videos on the destination and even a quiz to test the tourists’ knowledge and awareness level of that visitor attraction.

 

Meanwhile, the booking icon will lead you to useful information on available accommodation and food and beverage outlets in the area, as well as recommended tour operators. This will hopefully motivate the tourists to immediately reserve these tourism related services after watching the videos or exploring the information, leading to immediate sales conversions for the stakeholders involved. In a nutshell, this smart edu-tourism mobile application aims to provide tourists with all the information and assistance they need to enjoy and experience Malaysian tourism spots at their fingertips!

Screenshot showing the application developed

Dynamic Multidisciplinary Collaboration, Rich Knowledge Sharing with Tourism Stakeholders

Before the project was initiated, the students conducted several studies to explore the specific challenges faced by local industry players in sustaining the tourism industry, the current level of technology integration in the tourism industry and the receptiveness of customers to tourism related mobile applications with new features such as games, videos and reservation platforms.

 

These students had to work collaboratively under Taylor’s University’s Multidisciplinary Learning Experience (“MLE”) overarching umbrella platform. The students from the business faculty led the market research efforts whilst the students from the tourism faculty proposed suitable designs and features for the application. The accounting students came up with the pricing strategies, budgets and costings for the project, and the media and communication students took charge of the promotional strategies.

 

This collaborative way of working gave these students valuable insights into real-life working scenarios where diverse employees must work in multidisciplinary project teams to propose strategies, solutions, and innovations to address given industry and organisational problems.

Photo showing the knowledge sharing session with the stakeholders


Year 3 tourism student Mohamed Imaad Suhayb shared, “The “Go Edu Selangor” mobile application project made me more aware of the importance of integrating technology into future tourism. I enjoyed working on this and deeply appreciate the efforts of Taylor’s University to involve us in such a Multidisciplinary Learning Experience (MLE) to initiate this useful mobile application that aims to support the tourism related stakeholders who were severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic”.

 

Stakeholders and potential users also were enthusiastic about the project outcomes. “It is definitely a great idea to utilize VR and AR technology via a user-friendly mobile application to promote our travel related products and services to tourists. Our industry was badly affected during the last two years due to the pandemic. I believe this well-executed innovative mobile application concept that encompasses an educational angle and reservation platform will help to boost our businesses,” said Mr Alex Raj, a tour agent the students engaged with during the tourism stakeholders networking session held at Taylor’s University.

 

“This is a great idea since the mobile application allowed the users to experience numerous tourism sites virtually during the pandemic period. It is especially useful for our kids since it actively encourages them to learn more about interesting locations around Malaysia interactively through virtual tour videos and fun quizzes,” added Ms. Joey Pak Choy Har, a parent of young children whom the students approached for feedback on the mobile application. 

Photo showing the knowledge sharing session with the stakeholders
Logo for SDG Goals 9

Goal 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure

Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialisation and foster innovation

Logo for SDG Goals 11

Goal 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities

Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable

It is a good example of another meaningful project from Taylor’s Impact Labs, namely the Sustainable Tourism Impact Lab, where like-minded industry partners and external experts come together with motivated students and dedicated academic staff to work at furthering the sustainability of the tourism industry in Malaysia. 

 

Guided by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Taylor's Impact Labs aim to empower our communities and fulfil our purpose to positively impact different societies and ensure positive progression on societal problems. Work with us to make a postive impact on society.
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