Virtual Reality as a Tool for Tourism Destination Marketing in Delta State, Nigeria

Delta State boasts rich cultural festivals, riverine scenery and heritage sites, but the lack of strong promotional reach limits visitor traffic, and many attractions are unknown to prospective travellers. The purpose of this study was to determine if virtual reality enhances destination marketing outcomes for Delta State tourism. The study was guided by a mixed-methods quasi-experimental design. The research recruited 420 prospective domestic tourists and tourism stakeholders through multistage sampling. Two matched groups were exposed to either a 360-degree virtual reality tour or a conventional two-dimensional promotional video. Survey responses were combined with on-site field measurements of internet bandwidth and device availability across seven attractions. Statistical analysis was done using SPSS version 27 and paired sample t-tests, multiple regression and Pearson correlation. The results indicated that the score of the destination image was significantly higher in the virtual reality exposure (M=4.18) than in the two-dimensional condition (M=3.46), with a t-value of 14.62 (p < 0.001). At R² = 0.61, 61% of the variance of the intention to visit is attributed to the combination of immersion, presence and visual attractiveness, and infrastructural preparedness was also positively correlated with adoption (r = 0.58, p < 0.001). The study provides a context-specific model for an emerging African destination linking immersive attributes, destination image and visit intention and determines were infrastructure limits delivery. Destination marketing organisations should promote 360-degree content for the flagship sites, put demo headsets at airports and hotels, and work with telecom operators to boost the bandwidth at attraction clusters.