Your New Secret Weapon: Virtual Reality

With virtual reality (VR), travelers can tour Tokyo at peak cherry blossom season, greet alpacas at Machu Picchu or walk the gardens of the Taj Mahal — all from the couch. The idea that travelers can see the world without leaving home might sound like bad news for travel advisors, whose businesses depend on people getting on planes.

But VR won’t steal your job. In fact, it’s here to help. Embracing VR and related tools can give you fresh ways to impress clients, calm their nerves and turn wanderlust into real trips — complete with commissions. 

The State of VR: What Advisors Need To Know

Forget the clunky cardboard headsets and grainy videos that gave VR a bad rap a decade ago. Today’s VR goggles are light, sharp and extremely immersive, said Sam Neblett, senior AR/VR developer for Boeing and research committee co-chair of the Augmented Reality for Enterprise Alliance. 

And perhaps more importantly, the content has caught up, too, ranging from realistic tours of hotel suites and cruise ships to destination walk-throughs and 360-degree cultural experiences.

“People are uploading 4K and 8K [resolution] videos, and on top of that, we’re seeing more augmented reality (AR) content,” said Neblett, who has also served as a CES Innovation Awards judge for the AR/VR category.

So, how much does it cost to incorporate VR into your business? It can be as little as $300 for a Meta Quest 3S headset, which lets you access VR content from YouTube, tourism boards and major travel brands like Marriott and National Geographic. You can also create your own VR travel content with an Insta360 camera, which starts at $550. 

Some VR and AR experiences don’t require a headset at all — clients can access 360-degree videos, Google Maps Live View or translation features right on their smartphones. Travel advisors can add value by walking clients through these tools before they depart.

5 Ways Travel Advisors Can Use VR

Like the tech itself, the ways travel advisors can use VR are nearly endless — from sparking wanderlust at a consultation to supporting clients abroad with live translation and navigation.

Here are Neblett’s suggestions for practical ways to bring VR and AR into your travel business:

• Impress at the consultation: You can queue up tours of a few destinations you think a new client would love to visit on a VR device. Getting a taste of a place can build excitement and emotional investment — two powerful motivators for moving forward with a booking.

• Drive upgrades: Show clients the difference between a standard hotel room and a suite on a VR tour. “It’s a way to upsell and show people what to expect when they get there,” Neblett said. When travelers can see the extra space, better view or added amenities, they’re more likely to decide the upgrade is worth it.

• Scout new places: No matter how many FAM trips you take, you can’t see everything. But VR can help fill the gap, preparing you to answer client questions with confidence — even if you haven’t stepped foot on site.

• Support clients on the trip: Many AR experiences don’t require a high-tech headset — just a smartphone. Teach clients how to use Google Maps Live View to navigate or Google Translate’s “Live Translation” feature to read menus and signs. It’s just one more way to add value for your clients, positioning you as their trusted guide.

• Attract new clients: VR can also be a creative marketing tool. On your next trip, bring a 360-degree camera to capture immersive VR videos you can upload to YouTube or Google Maps. Add your agency’s name as a watermark, and your content (along with your firsthand expertise) becomes discoverable to travelers researching that destination. “That’s how to reach new customers,” Neblett said. 

Whether you use VR goggles to immerse clients in their next vacation destination or simply show them the magic of Google Translate on a foreign restaurant menu, these tools amplify your role as the expert who turns dream trips into actual reality. And that’s something no headset can replace.

Originally appeared in the Winter 2025 issue of The Compass magazine