Thanks to new technologies such as augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR) and edge computing, virtual tours in an immersive environment are already here, and the next step may be virtual tourism in Metaverse, where the digital realm and the physical realm merge. At Metaverse, AR and VR can allow people to explore and interact with the destinations and resorts they’ve always dreamed of visiting. With the power of 5G, even the sky is no longer the limit.
Katrina Woznicki has traveled to five continents, and her reports and articles have appeared in National Geographic Traveler, The Washington Post, Lonely Planet and others. In this article, she explains how 5G technology enables immersive tourism in Metaverse, through augmented or virtual reality, without the need to get on a plane, cross borders and airports, or stay in expensive hotels. Everything is done from home using the computer, smartphone and breakthrough technologies such as 5G.
Currently, we interact with our devices primarily through sight and sound. As the Metaverse evolves, the emerging 5G technology, with low latency and high throughput, can enable new multi-sensory (immersive) experiences. You might get to hug family members on the other side of the world instead of waving goodbye through a screen, as many of us did during the pandemic. You can smell freshly baked bread in Parisian cafes or taste fine wine from the vineyards of Tuscany.
According to Prof. Yesha Sivan, CEO and founder of DigitalRosh , guest lecturer at the Technion and editor-in-chief of the Journal for the Study of Virtual Worlds, there will not be one Metaverse, but many. Currently, the Metaverse is treated as a single entity, but it is likely that there will be many Metaverses that will eventually connect, similar to how there are an infinite number of websites on the Internet. Users will be able to move from one Metavers to another, perhaps like taking the Channel Tunnel train from London to Paris for a weekend.