Need a break from it all? We know what you mean, and from April 1, Contiki will hopefully offer it provided you’re near a VR headset.
As Oculus, Sony, HTC, and Samsung make in-roads to our virtual lives, holiday group Contiki may have found a way to pull virtual reality together with something we really want: a holiday.
This week, the company is unveiling “Virtually Unlimited”, a concept that will offer Aussie travellers the chance to experience virtual reality experiences for three hours at a time for $149 per person.
In essence, it’s like going somewhere without going anywhere at all, in a concept remarkably similar to what happened in the “Total Recall” movie from the 80s with Arnie.
“We have been experimenting with virtual reality for over 18 months now and are proud to be the first travel company in the world to introduce complete virtual reality travel itineraries for all senses,” said Katrina Barry, Managing Director of Conitki.
“As people increasingly become time-poor and technology improves, Contiki is redefining travel and taking it to the next level. Our new ‘Virtually Unlimited’ product is the future of travel and a disruptor to the entire tourism industry, especially for airlines and accommodation providers.”
It might sound a little peculiar, but a VR holiday could be something you do on a day off, giving your mind a temporary leave of absence without having to fork out expensive tickets for flights, accomodation, or even packing those bags.
You still need to go somewhere, however, with one of ten Contiki Virtual Experience Centres (or “VEC”) being used to let people strap on a headset and take a three-hour trip to Oktoberfest in Germany or Machu Picchu in Brazil, just without the excess drinking or altitude sickness each respectively gives.
“One of the main benefits of our ‘Virtually Unlimited’ itineraries is that travellers get the high of travel without the investment,” said Barry.
“They don’t have to leave the country, don’t need to take weeks of leave and don’t have to save up for flights and accommodation, and we predict this is the way people will ‘travel’ in the future. All it takes, is a three-hour visit to one of the ten Contiki ‘Virtual Experience Centres’ in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Cairns, Perth, Darwin, Adelaide and Hobart.”
Contiki won’t say much else, but for now, the best place to find information about the VR trips is to check out the website for the concept.
APRIL FOOLS!
Virtual holidays will likely never beat the real thing, and Contiki’s idea of a VR holiday is just a joke. But hey, you can enjoy plenty of VR adventures with one of the available VR headsets, or even a real one with a holiday. Wouldn’t a holiday be nice?
