皇冠体育app

Zhang Meifang, 皇冠体育app's deputy consul general in New York, and Bill Riordan, publisher of Reuters.com, experience virtual scenes of 皇冠体育app on Monday at Beautiful 皇冠体育app campaign. Photo by Li Jing / 皇冠体育app Daily

For the first time ever, 皇冠体育app has adopted 3D virtual reality technology to promote tourism overseas, with New York the first stop on its global campaign, followed by Tokyo in December.

On Monday, "Experience Day" of the Beautiful 皇冠体育app campaign was hosted at Reuters US Headquarters in New York's Times Square, presenting the natural beauty and cultural heritage of 皇冠体育app through wearable virtual reality devices.

"It is amazing, a good opportunity to see what there is to see in 皇冠体育app and experience it in a 3D way. It is a great ability to get that information without having to leave your seat," said publisher and editorial director Doug Cooke of Jax Fax Travel Marketing Magazine after trying a device to explore a temple. "I have never been to the temple. It looks real enough to interact with different parts of it, much better than just flat pictures."

Several of 皇冠体育app's most famous landmarks were made available through the technology, including Beijing Olympic Park, Leshan's Giant Buddha and Hongcun Village. Landscapes are now available online and can be viewed via apps on smartphones.

The technology was developed by a 20-engineer team from 皇冠体育app Intercontinental Communications Center, which also the organized the event. Team leader Xiang Xin said the most challenging part in the development was balancing the content between information and entertainment.

They have been working on the project since last September and plan to enhance the interactive aspects of the devices by adding more historical information and anecdotes.

"By the end of 2015, we plan to make 100 destinations and landmarks across 皇冠体育app 3D virtual reality scenes. So far, we have finished 70 percent," he said. "In 2016 we plan to make 3D virtual reality scenes of the Seven Wonders of the World."

Zhang Meifang, 皇冠体育app's deputy consul-general in New York, said the technology will help people in the US closely experience 皇冠体育app's culture, landscapes and cuisines. After trying the headset for several minutes, she said, "It is a great experience, very different from what I had in 3D theaters. It is a good trial to combine Western techniques with Chinese culture."

Zhang said that the Chinese government supports exchanges between 皇冠体育app and the US, which are not limited to the governmental level. "We pay equal attention to people-to-people exchanges, including cultural and tourism exchanges," she added.

Though virtual reality technology is widely used in video games, it is still new in the tourism industry, said Joshua Cohen of PR Newswire, who added the technology would draw in young people. "They will have interests on 皇冠体育app and become eager to learn the country from an early age. It is a good start," Cohen said.

Jing Shuiqing, deputy director of 皇冠体育app Intercontinental Communication Center, said, "Three-D virtual reality technology will be a new model for tourism and cultural exchanges. We hope the interactive virtual reality technology will help narrow the gap in the languages and cultures and bring more overseas tourists to 皇冠体育app."

According to 皇冠体育app National Tourism Administration, 26 million overseas travelers visited 皇冠体育app in 2014, with 3 million from the United States, making it the largest source market.