To improve the visitor's experience and facilitate their visit to non-accessible tourist resources. With this aim, Calpe Town Council will implement digital tools in its museums and tourist offices with which tourists will be able to enjoy virtual visits or immersive virtual realities to some of the tourist attractions of the municipality that cannot be visited because they are not open to the public or because they have a full quota of visitors or because they are not accessible to groups with mobility problems.
These are, on the one hand, the Penyal d'Ifac - which in summer is usually fully booked, the Red Wall and the archaeological sites of the medieval Pobla d'Ifac and Banys de la Reina. In addition to making these sites of tourist interest more accessible, the idea is also to offer tourists a more attractive and differentiating visit compared to the traditional visit. "The main aim is to improve the tourist's visit to Calpe through immersive experiences, since the idea is to connect the tourist with the heritage resource that he or she is going to enjoy and interact with it with all five senses, a more original and different alternative to what we are used to, with which to provoke all kinds of sensations", highlighted the councillor for International Promotion and Next Generation, Marco Bittner.
This project is part of the Tourism Sustainability Plan for Destinations with the support of the Valencian Regional Ministry of Tourism - Turisme Comunitat Valenciana - and the Secretary of State for Tourism within the framework of the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan (PRTR) financed by the European Union - Next Generation.
The initiative is currently out to tender with a base amount of 250,000 euros and a three-year implementation period. According to the technical specifications, these virtual experiences can be offered through augmented reality glasses, virtual projections or sensory stimulation devices and other types of advances in interaction with the senses through ultrasound or vibrations, among others. The company awarded the contract will have to develop content for immersive and virtual experiences that tell stories and leave an impression on tourists. Likewise, audio-guides with explanatory narrations will be created to help tourists understand these tourist resources, as well as video guides in sign language.
This project reinforces the City Council's commitment to inclusive tourism as it will facilitate access for people with reduced mobility to these tourist resources and to sustainability as it reduces the weight of tourist influx on elements of the natural and cultural heritage that must be protected, all in line with what is advocated by tourism sustainability plans at the destination.