Metaverses may influence real-world travel choices in 2023

Representatives of the online hotel booking service, Booking.com, reported on a survey among travel enthusiasts. They invited various people to answer a few questions related to the metaverse and travel.

24,179 people from 32 countries responded to this call. They answered questions about their interest in exploring destinations virtually when choosing their travel itinerary.

According to the people who took the test, many of them have already made attempts to visit virtual places through the metaverses. 45% of these travelers are Generation Z (people born between 1997-2012). In second place are millennials (people born between 1981 and 1996). They made up 43% of the total number of travelers in the metaverses.

It is noteworthy that about 43% of the people who completed the survey confirmed that when choosing a place to travel, they use the metaverses to finally make sure that their decision is correct. Approximately 4,574 people said they would first visit the place virtually, after which they would travel to their destination in the real world.

Another part of the volunteers admitted that they were ready to spend several days in the metaverse in order to get to know the area better and then go to a place in the real world, having certain knowledge. More than 35% of the people who passed the survey turned out to be such people.

According to Booking, advanced technologies such as tactile communication with the virtual world and others will help travelers improve their experience of staying in places where their foot has not set foot before.

Tactile sensations can better convey, for example, the charms of tropical regions in order to attract more travelers to those regions. In addition, Booking representatives believe that this is a great alternative for those people who especially do not like being under the scorching sun.

Those who do not fully recognize the effectiveness of the metaverse have many supporters. About 60% of the people who took the survey believe that virtual worlds will not be able to bring people closer to the experience that one could get in the real world.

In terms of the most popular places to visit in the metaverses, there have been a few tourist spots noted. According to Booking, Sao Paulo in Brazil, Pondicherry in India, Hobart in Australia and Bolzano in Italy were the most visited.

Microsoft also wanted to enter the realm of the metaverse, but faced a formidable obstacle in the face of the US Federal Trade Commission. The latter do not allow Bill Gates's company to acquire the game developer Activision Blizzard, since, in their opinion, Microsoft's monopoly is growing too much and will not leave a chance for its competitors, which will negatively affect the gaming industry.

Microsoft CEO and Chairman Satya Nadella said the $69,000,000,000 acquisition of Activision Blizzard could play a key role in the development of Metaverse platforms.