NEW APP LAUNCED BY REUNION ISLAND TOURISM
(Posted 13th November 2014)
Reunion’s tourism office IRT yesterday launched their latest App offering users the very best of current technological advances with a complete 360o experience on their smart phone, phablet or tablet.
Words like ‘leap motion’ or ‘augmented reality tour’ will probably be best understood by tech geeks but everyday users of the new platform will swiftly come to realize that indeed they have been given a tool which will address their every need and can answer every question about the islands’ wide range of attractions and locations including, on gadgets enabled for that, in 3D. The new phone application will allow users to virtually fly over the island and experience the ride from high up over the rugged interior, even the volcano Piton de la Fournaise or along the beaches.
To use the new app to the fullest extent and to explore the stunning scenery of Reunion, users can just print the mapping (sort of QR code ) and point at it with a phone: The contours of the island and viewpoints of the volcano or the beaches then appear on the screen as by magic for a unique travel experience in Reunion!
To make the experience even more intense, panoramas and 360° videos are accessible right from the map. To start a video 360o, users need to just aim with the blue pointer. The 360° panoramas are, in turn, accessible from the map, directing the smartphone to the yellow icons giving the opportunity to discover beautiful spherical photos of the island of La Reunion. And finally, for that ultimate experience and immersion, it is possible to enjoy the view in three dimensions using Google Cardboard glasses.
In 2012 IRT, short for Ile de la Reunion Tourisme, had won the special ‘Innovation’ award for its application ‘Virtual Tours Reunion’ from ‘Travel d’ Or’ while in 2014, the IRT was honoured among the five finalists in this category again for its new free application ‘Reunion Island’. This accomplishment gave the island also the status of ‘Geekiest destination’
The Reunion Island VR application is available on Google Play and via reunion.fr where also added information about Destination Reunion can be found.
