Acceptance level of participants in online guided virtual tours and stakeholders' approaches: The case of virtual phrygia

In this study, the factors affecting the level of acceptance of the participants and the approaches of the stakeholders towards online guided virtual tours accompanied by a tour guide were revealed. In this context, the factors affecting the level of acceptance of users participating in virtual tours and the effect of users' intention to adopt this virtual tour on the tendency to physically visit the destination were determined. Also in order to obtain in-depth information, the approaches of users, tour guides and academicians towards online guided virtual tours were revealed. In order to provide a holistic perspective on online guided virtual tours, quantitative and qualitative data were collected simultaneously within the scope of the convergent parallel design of mixed method research. Data were obtained from 464 participants through a questionnaire adapted from the Technology Acceptance Model in the quantitative phase and from 34 participants through interviews in the qualitative phase. It was determined that the acceptance level of online guided virtual tours is high, the tendency of users who experience the virtual tour to visit the destination on site increases, virtual tours are easy to use, their benefits are high, the willingness to pay a fee is seen and the fact that they are organized with a real tourist guide is at a distinctive level. The concept of "virtualrooming" was developed within the scope of the study, which explains the on-site visit of the destination after having a preliminary experience in an online guided virtual tour.