Immersive technology is a technology that creates a sense of immersion for users by blurring the boundaries between the real physical world and the virtual world ( Pratisto et al., 2022 ). Its core feature is the integration of physical and virtual environments through digital technological means (e.g., virtual reality, augmented reality, mixed reality, etc.), providing a multi-sensory experience that deeply integrates users into virtual or virtual-reality fusion scenarios at the cognitive, emotional, and social levels ( Liu & Sutunyarak, 2024 ). Immersive technologies are realized in a variety of forms, and their scope has expanded from the basic forms of virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), and mixed reality (MR) to emerging technologies such as meta-universes, digital twins, and blockchain.

Virtual Reality (VR) completely isolates the physical environment through head-mounted devices and somatosensory feedback systems, constructing a closed digital space for users to immerse themselves in a virtual scene at the visual, auditory, and even tactile levels ( Griffin et al., 2023 ). Augmented Reality (AR), on the other hand, superimposes digital information onto a real scene through devices such as smartphones, tablets, head-mounted displays, and smart eyes to realize dynamic interaction ( Tsang et al., 2023 ). And Mixed Reality (MR) further integrates the features of both to support real-time anchoring and interaction between virtual objects and real environments. In recent years, metaverse, as a comprehensive carrier of immersive technologies, has been used to construct a virtual social space that is both interrelated and distinct from the real world by integrating a variety of technologies ( Suanpang et al., 2022 ). For example, in the tourism industry, metaverse can be used to create a virtual tourism experience in which tourists visit museums and tourist attractions, etc., which reduces the cost of tourism and at the same time changes the consumption behavior of tourists and the way of tourism experience.

From the perspective of user experience, the core value of immersive technology lies in its multi-sensory stimulation (e.g., visual, auditory, tactile) and interactive design (e.g., gesture control, environmental feedback), which prompts users to generate in-depth participation in cognitive, emotional and social dimensions ( Liu & Sutunyarak, 2024 ). For example, VR stimulates users’ emotional resonance through panoramic scene restoration, AR enhances users’ cognition of cultural symbols through information superimposition, and MR facilitates collaboration and social communication among users through the integration of reality and reality. Such technical characteristics are highly compatible with the needs of cultural tourism marketing, and the attractiveness of cultural tourism scenes relies on the visualization of cultural connotations and the active participation of users, which can only be realized with the help of immersive technologies.

Cultural tourism marketing is a marketing method that takes cultural concept as the core, stimulates consumers’ deep participation and cultural consumption activities through scenario-based experience design and emotional value transmission, and realizes synergistic transformation of cultural protection and commercial value. Based on the theory of experience economy, the core of cultural tourism marketing lies in upgrading cultural consumption from single-function service to multi-dimensional experience supply, and shifting from purely providing products or services to creating a unique experience for tourists, which will leave them with deep memories and good feelings ( Lee et al., 2020 ).

Under the background of the digitalization wave and the deep integration of intelligent technology, the scenario of cultural tourism marketing is experiencing a leap from physical space to virtual and real symbiotic space. The connotation of cultural tourism marketing is also being further deepened, showing a paradigm shift from static display to dynamic interaction, and from one-way communication to co-creation and participation. For example, museums, through technology-enabled narrative reconstruction, transform cultural symbols into perceptible and dialogic experience carriers, and tourists are no longer just bystanders, but form emotional resonance with history and art through immersive scenarios ( Nechita & Rezeanu, 2019 ); at the same time, the value chain of cultural and tourism marketing has also been extended to the online and offline coverage of the whole area through the virtual-real fusion of the consumption scenario, which both enhances the breadth of cultural communication and strengthens the sustainability of commercial transformation ( Vishwakarma et al., 2020 ).

The application of immersive technology in cultural tourism marketing focuses on reconstructing cultural resources through the integration of virtual reality and transforming static cultural resources into dynamic participatory experiences. In the field of cultural heritage revitalization, virtual reality (VR) technology is used to break through physical limitations, such as the “Digital Dunhuang” project launched by the Dunhuang Research Institute, where tourists can wear VR equipment to enter the unopened caves of the Mogao Grottoes, observe the details of the mural paintings at close range and participate in the virtual restoration process, thus integrating cultural relics protection and educational experience in depth. In the live tour scene, augmented reality (AR) technology through real-time image recognition and dynamic superposition, giving static landscape interactivity, such as Longmen Grottoes scenic area development of the AR guide system, tourists scanning the statue of Buddha can trigger the holographic projection of historical figures, to the first-person perspective, “dialog!” of the ancients, upgrading the one-way narration to an immersive narrative ( Deng et al., 2024 ). In the field of cultural IP derivation, blockchain technology is used for the secure storage and verification of meta-universe data to ensure the authenticity of cultural IPs and the trustworthiness of user interactions in virtual environments. For example, user behavior data is recorded in virtual communities to support personalized recommendation and precision marketing, while enhancing user trust in virtual experiences ( Corne et al., 2023 ).

The application framework of immersive technology in cultural tourism marketing is constructed with the synergistic logic of “technology empowerment - user perception - market transformation” as the core, forming a dynamic closed-loop system. At the technical level, the presentation and interaction of cultural resources are reconstructed through the synergy of virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), digital twin and blockchain technologies. The user level relies on technology-enabled scenario design to activate multi-dimensional experiences in cognitive, emotional and social dimensions. At the market level, value transformation is accomplished through the three-phase path of “social communication - brand building - market potential”. In addition, the release of technological efficiency needs to be adapted to cultural differences and scenario needs, for example, high power distance cultures rely more on the social communication attributes of AR ( Jung et al., 2018 ).

This study utilized the Web of Science Core Collection as the main data source to search for literature related to immersive technology and the cultural tourism industry through the subject field, and the keywords are shown in Table 1 . The time span is set from January 2014 to February 2025 to cover key phases in the development of technology and industry practices. The final screening obtained 115 valid documents involving 2733 citations, providing a solid base for the subsequent analysis.

Inclusion criteria. The literature screening criteria were established following the principles of systematicity, rigor, and contextual relevance to ensure that the literature included is highly relevant to the topic and methodological reliability. The inclusion criteria were developed across three dimensions: thematic relevance, methodological quality, and timeliness. First, studies must focus on the application of immersive technologies (e.g., virtual reality, augmented reality, mixed reality, and metaverse) in cultural tourism contexts, with content covering at least one core dimension: technical feature analysis, user experience measurement, or market impact assessment. Second, methodologically, priority was given to peer-reviewed empirical studies featuring clear research design, reliable data support, and logically sound conclusions. Finally, the temporal scope was limited to January 2014 to February 2025, with full-text availability required for in-depth analysis, ensuring coverage of immersive technology’s full developmental cycle from initial exploration to mature application.

Exclusion criteria. The exclusion criteria target deviations, methodological flaws, and non-academic content. First, studies on non-cultural-tourism applications (e.g., immersive technology in healthcare or education) or purely technical developments (e.g., hardware engineering or algorithm optimization, without involving cultural tourism application) were excluded. Second, commentaries, editorials, technical specifications without data support, as well as analyses with insufficient sample sizes or uncontrolled confounders, were removed. Non-academic materials (e.g., book chapters, conference abstracts, patents, policy reports) and literature with inaccessible full texts or data quality issues were also excluded.

The literature screening in this study strictly adhered to the principles of systematicity, transparency, and reproducibility to ensure the scientific validity and reliability of the conclusions. The screening process consisted of the following three stages:

Initial screening. A preliminary database search yielded 2273 records. After deduplication in EndNote, 872 articles remained. And excluded obviously irrelevant studies based on title and abstract screening, leaving 198 articles for full-text assessment.

Full-text screening. The 198 articles were thoroughly reviewed, and further selection was conducted based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 115 high-quality articles were finally retained. The primary reasons for exclusion were: studies deviating from cultural tourism marketing (32 articles), unclear methodology (28 articles), and insufficient data quality (23 articles).

Data extraction and classification. After analyzing the final 115 articles, core information extracted, including technology type (e.g., VR/AR/MR), application context (e.g., cultural heritage, virtual tourism), user behavior variables (e.g., cognitive, affective, social dimensions), and market impact (e.g., social dissemination, brand building). These were categorized and synthesized within a “Technology-User-Market” framework to facilitate subsequent cross-dimensional correlation analysis.

Through above methodology, this study ensures comprehensive literature coverage and a logically structured analytical framework, providing a reliable foundation for uncovering the multi-level impact pathways of immersive technology in cultural tourism marketing.

The rapid iteration of technologies such as Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), Mixed Reality (MR) and Metaverse, is reshaping the interaction mode between tourists and tourism scenes, but their impact is not one-dimensional. In order to systematically analyze the path of technology’s effect on tourism, research needs to start from a multidimensional perspective. Based on the existing literature, the direction of the impact of technology can be categorized into four categories: positive impact, negative impact, double-edged sword impact and uncertainty.

For example, VR significantly enhances tourists’ sense of presence and emotional arousal through high immersion characteristics, and its positive effects are reflected in the enhancement of satisfaction, revisit and recommendation intention in theme parks and cultural heritage sites ( Wei et al., 2019 ). However, the technology may also be counterproductive due to insufficient scenario adaptation or differences in user characteristics: when tourists’ expected enjoyment of a destination is low, highly immersive VR may inhibit actual visit behavior through the perceived similarity between virtual and real experiences ( Li & Chen, 2019 ). Meanwhile, existing research indicates that while highly immersive VR technology can enhance users’ sense of presence and engagement, it may also trigger health issues such as motion sickness and eye strain. These effects can diminish visitors’ physical and mental experiences, potentially reducing their acceptance of virtual tourism environments and willingness to continue using them ( Yoon & Nam, 2024 ). Such “double-edged sword” phenomena suggest that the effectiveness of the technology is highly dependent on the dynamic matching of user psychology and scene characteristics.

AR technology, however, focuses more on enhancing tourists’ interactions with physical scenes, such as in museums, where dynamic verbal cues combined with a high sense of virtual presence significantly enhance tourists’ willingness to pay ( He et al., 2018 ) However, the effectiveness of its application is limited by differences in the cost of equipment and users’ technological acceptance, and especially in the humanized digital experience in the context of virtual tourism, ethical and compliance issues are increasingly coming to the fore. Immersive devices often involve real-time collection and analysis of eye-tracking, facial expressions, and location data. Without effective oversight and safeguards, this may lead to risks of data privacy breaches and misuse for tourists ( Huang & Liu, 2021 ). Empirical research further indicates that in gamified smart tourism, user concerns about privacy risks related to information collection significantly inhibit willingness to use AR virtual tours ( Yoo et al., 2017 ). This suggests that future AR applications advancing technological implementation must balance transparent governance with minimized data collection to mitigate privacy resistance and enhance user adoption willingness. At the same time, metaverse, as an emerging technological paradigm, provides an innovative path for sustainable tourism and cultural heritage preservation through virtualized bodies, digital twins and cross-platform interactions, but its technological maturity and user acceptance still face challenges: on the one hand, its immersive experience relies on high-precision devices and network infrastructure, and its technological accessibility is insufficient in developing countries or remote areas; on the other hand, users’ trust in the virtual social mechanisms have not been perfected, for example, among the elderly, technology anxiety and operational complexity may weaken their willingness to participate ( Hao et al., 2025 ).

In order to present the complexity of technology impact more clearly, this paper synthesizes the core findings of 115 papers and constructs a categorization table of the direction of technology impact (see Table 2 ). This categorization suggests that the successful landing of technology needs to take into account technology maturity, scene suitability, and user psychological characteristics.

Next, the connotations of types of technologies and characteristics of technologies and their implications will be further elaborated.

The differentiated application of immersive technology in cultural tourism marketing stems from the multiplicity of its technological forms and interaction logic. Virtual reality, augmented reality, mixed reality and meta-universe, as the core types, have become the antecedent variables driving tourists’ behavioral transformations through unique perception reconstruction mechanisms and scene adaptation paths, respectively. The rapid development of immersive technology has given rise to diversified technological forms, while these technologies create differentiated immersive experiences for tourists through different interaction methods and presentation forms, becoming an important driving force for cultural tourism marketing innovation.

Virtual reality (VR) constructs a completely virtual digital environment through head-mounted devices (HMD) or holographic projection, allowing users to break away from physical space constraints and realize a highly immersive sensory experience. In the cultural tourism scenario, VR technology is widely used in areas such as destination virtual preview, cultural heritage restoration and theme park entertainment. For example, by comparing the effects of traditional media and VR in cruise tourism marketing, some scholars have found that VR can more significantly enhance tourists’ behavioral intentions (e.g., willingness to visit and recommend) due to its high sense of presence and emotional arousal ( Yung et al., 2021 ). In addition, VR has also been used to stimulate demand for slow tourism, e.g., by triggering nostalgia, VR significantly increased tourists’ willingness to explore historical and cultural destinations such as Jinan ( Lin et al., 2020 ). However, there are also potential risks associated with VR technology, e.g., over-immersion may lead to tourists’ alternative satisfaction to real travel ( Deng et al., 2019 ).

Augmented reality (AR) superimposes virtual information onto the real scene through mobile devices or smart glasses, realizing an interactive experience that integrates reality and virtual reality.AR technology has been prominent in museum guided tours, heritage site interpretation and outdoor tourism. Some studies have found that AR’s dynamic language cues and high virtual presence design can significantly enhance tourists’ willingness to pay, and its effect is realized through the mediating role of mental imagery ( He et al., 2018 ). In cultural heritage scenarios, AR’s entertaining and empathic pathways have been shown to be key to engaging younger audiences, such as the Muresanu Family Museum in Romania, where visitors’ understanding of the social context of the exhibits was strengthened through an AR multisensory experience ( Nechita & Rezeanu, 2019 ). Notably, ethical compliance issues (e.g., data privacy) of AR also need to be emphasized in applications ( Huang & Liu, 2021 ).

Mixed reality (MR) combines VR and AR technologies to allow users to simultaneously interact with virtual and real objects in real time, and is suitable for immersive narratives in complex scenarios. It has been found that in Italian cultural heritage museums, functional elements of MR devices (e.g., haptic feedback and spatial mapping) can enhance the perceived heritage value of traditional exhibitions and drive post-experience behaviors (e.g., word-of-mouth) among visitors ( Trunfio et al., 2022 ).

Metaverse, as a multidimensional virtual space integrating VR, AR, blockchain and other technologies to support collaborative multi-user interaction and asset digitization, is reshaping the boundaries of cultural and tourism marketing. Research suggests that the Metaverse can enhance tourists’ emotional connection to green destination brands through features such as anthropomorphism, self-representation, and intimacy. However, the long-term sustainability and cultural adaptability of the metaverse are still urgent issues to be addressed ( Dayoub et al., 2024 ).

To summarize, various immersive technologies have empowered cultural tourism marketing through differentiated paths: VR builds alternative experiences, AR strengthens realistic interactions, MR integrates virtual and real narratives, and meta-universe creates a multi-dimensional social space. The choice of technology needs to be combined with the characteristics of the target scene and user needs to achieve a balance between experience optimization and commercial value.

The core features of immersive technology are embodied in six dimensions: interactivity, vividness, functionality, effectiveness, authenticity and media, which together constitute the infrastructure at the technical level, and through the synergistic effect of the technology type and the scene, they directly affect the user experience and behavioral results in cultural tourism marketing.

Interactivity and vividness. Interactivity, which refers to the two-way dynamic responsiveness between the user and the virtual/real environment, is a key feature that distinguishes immersive technologies from traditional media. For example, AR technology empowers users with real-time manipulation of virtual objects through environmental embedding and simulated physical control (e.g., gesture recognition), thus enhancing restorative experience and immersion ( Huang, 2021 ). In meta-universes, social interaction features (e.g., avatar co-exploration) significantly increase engagement and satisfaction by enhancing the user’s connection with the virtual environment ( Zhu et al., 2023b ). Vividness, on the other hand, emphasizes the extent to which the technology reproduces sensory stimuli. VR simulates real scenes through high-resolution images and stereo sound effects, which are far more effective in emotional arousal than static pictures or videos ( Yung et al., 2021 ). Research has shown that dynamic verbal cues with multisensory overlays (e.g., haptic feedback in AR) can activate users’ mental imagery and strengthen cognitive memory ( He et al., 2018 ).

Functionality and effectiveness. Functionality is reflected in the ability of technology to adapt to user needs, including scene customization, information integration and multimodal interaction. For example, MR devices enable visitors to “touch” virtual artifacts through spatial mapping and haptic feedback, enhancing the perceived value of cultural heritage ( Trunfio et al., 2022 ). Effectiveness focuses on the actual driving effect of technology on target behaviors, e.g., VR’s sense of presence significantly enhances tourists’ impulsive travel desires by shortening the psychological distance ( Kang, 2020 ). Based on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), perceived usefulness and ease of use have been shown to be the core variables influencing users’ willingness to sustain use ( Huang, 2023 ).

Authenticity and communicability. Authenticity is the core ethical criterion for the application of technology in cultural tourism scenarios, and the objective and existential authenticity of AR can enhance tourists’ recognition of heritage values through dynamic visualization of historical scenes ( Zhu et al., 2024a ). The communicability nature emphasizes the efficacy of technology in disseminating information, for example, the media richness of VR (including multi-sensory channels and real-time feedback) is significantly better than traditional media, which can enhance cognitive and emotional images at the same time ( Ghorbanzadeh et al., 2024 ).

In the cultural tourism industry, the application of immersive technology has profoundly changed the user’s behavior pattern and decision-making path. The formation and change of user behavior is subject to the synergistic effect of cognitive, emotional and social dimensions (see Figure 2 ). Specifically, in the cognitive dimension, the user’s functional assessment of the technology, information quality, value judgment and barriers to adoption directly affect their acceptance of the technology and value perception; in the emotional dimension, through sensory stimulation, emotional perception and negative emotional feedback, the technology experience triggers the user’s emotional response, which in turn affects their psychological attitude; and in the social dimension, individual interaction and group communication through social identity and herd effect In the social dimension, individual interaction and group communication strengthen the social driving force of user behavior through social recognition and herd effect. These dimensions are eventually transformed into direct behaviors through psychological outcomes and further developed into long-term behaviors.

First, the cognitive perspective is the process of users’ rational judgment of technology functional attributes, information value and usage cost, covering four types of variables: technology function assessment, information quality, value judgment and technology adoption barriers. First, perceived usefulness and ease of use determine the technology adoption threshold ( Huang et al., 2023 ); second, information quality and sensory interactions positively affect tourists’ immersive experience ( An et al., 2021 ); subsequently, perceived value influences tourists’ willingness to adopt immersive technologies ( Vishwakarma et al., 2020 ); and finally, technology anxiety and psychological barriers may produce resistance to technology adoption behavior. ( Cham et al., 2024 ).

Second, the emotional perspective focuses on users’ emotional responses and psychological projections triggered by technology. At the sensory stimulation level, visual immersion and auditory feedback directly trigger hedonic experiences, e.g., cruise VR marketing simulates the pleasure of real travel through highly immersive design ( Yung et al., 2021 ). At the level of emotional perception, technological content elicits users’ emotional resonance through scene reproduction and narrative transmission. For example, cultural heritage application scenarios effectively stimulate users’ nostalgia through historical scene recreation, and this emotional connection has been shown to be a key mediating variable driving slow travel intentions ( Lin et al., 2020 ). However, negative affective feedback may undermine the beneficial impact of the technology. Overly realistic VR experiences may lead to an attenuation of interest in reality and reduce field visit intentions ( Deng et al., 2019 ). Such double-edged effects suggest the need to balance the association between depth of immersion and reality in technology design.

Third, the social perspective reconfigures the social attributes of the tourism experience through immersive technologies and promotes the transformation of individual behavior to group communication. For example, virtual social cues enhance user engagement through quasi-social interaction mechanisms, and the sense of co-presence and spatial presence brought about by immersive technologies significantly increase group collaboration willingness ( Zhu et al., 2024c ). In addition, users are more likely to share their experiences via social media after an immersive experience. Studies have shown that social interactions, while potentially weakening individual immersion, indirectly enhance user loyalty through group belonging ( Hudson et al., 2019 ).

Immersive technology significantly shapes users’ psychological attitudes and emotional connections to a cultural tourism destination through the synergistic effects of multidimensional experiences. Satisfaction is a core representation of users’ psychological outcomes, and studies have found that VR’s high sense of presence positively influences users’ overall satisfaction with virtual tours by enhancing emotional arousal and hedonic experience ( Yung et al., 2021 ), whereas AR’s dynamic verbal cues and high-virtual-presence design further strengthens users’ satisfaction with the museum experience by enhancing the vividness of mental imagery ( He et al., 2018 ). Emotional attachment, on the other hand, is formed through technology-enabled anthropomorphization and self-representation mechanisms, e.g., virtual avatars in the meta-universe deepen users’ emotional attachment to the green brand by enhancing their intimacy with the destination ( Huang & Liu, 2021 ). In addition, trust is crucial in the application of technology; AR enhances users’ trust in cultural symbols through information transparency and dynamic authenticity, while technological anxiety counteracts the hedonistic aspects of the AR experience, which in turn reduces their satisfaction ( Sancho-Esper et al., 2023 ). Cultural identity is a unique psychological outcome in cultural tourism scenarios, and cultural heritage VR inspires users to deeply identify with the cultural values of the destination through nostalgic narratives and historical scene restoration ( Lin et al., 2020 ). However, the double-edged sword effect of technology may lead to psychological conflicts, e.g., overly realistic VR experiences may weaken users’ interest in real destinations ( Deng et al., 2019 ), suggesting the need to balance the emotional connection between the virtual and the real ( Li & Chen, 2019 ). In conclusion, psychological outcomes are mainly characterized by attitude change and emotional reinforcement, a process that not only relies on a single dimension of efficacy, but also requires a dynamic balance of technological features, emotional stimulation, and social interaction.

User behavioral outcomes show a dynamic correlation between short-term response and long-term conversion. Direct behavioral outcomes include willingness to adopt technology, willingness to pay and intention to visit. Studies have shown that VR’s sense of presence significantly enhances visitors’ impulsive travel desires by shortening the psychological distance ( Kang, 2020 ), while AR’s interactive design directly drives willingness to pay by enhancing the value of the experience ( Huang, 2021 ). For example, the dynamic verbal cues of AR tours in museums led to a significant increase in visitors’ willingness to pay a premium ( He et al., 2018 ). Long-term behavioral outcomes are reflected in brand loyalty and word-of-mouth communication. Immersive technologies strengthen user stickiness through emotional resonance and social interaction, e.g., virtual collaboration in the meta-universe significantly enhances users’ willingness to revisit a destination through a sense of co-presence ( Zhu et al., 2024b ), whereas social sharing behaviors after a VR experience indirectly enhance brand loyalty through a sense of group belonging ( Hudson et al., 2019 ). It is important to note that short-term behavioral outcomes, such as willingness to pay and visitation intent, gradually accumulate through sustained experiences and interactions, ultimately transforming into long-term outcomes like brand loyalty and word-of-mouth promotion. Furthermore, behavioral outcomes are moderated by user characteristics, with younger users more likely to generate visit intentions due to technological novelty, while older users’ technological anxiety may inhibit behavioral conversion ( Cham et al., 2024 ). In addition, unexpected events (e.g., epidemics) reconfigure the behavioral logic through risk perception, and users’ willingness to adopt virtual tours is significantly higher and may translate into postepidemic field visit behavior ( Li et al., 2022 ).

Technological innovation in the tourism sector is gradually changing the competitive landscape of the tourism market, and its impact is mainly reflected in three aspects: social communication, brand building and market potential. Social communication accelerates the diffusion of destination information through user-generated content and interactive mechanisms; branding enhances emotional connection and value recognition through immersive experiences; and market potential is empowered by technology to expand user coverage, optimize supply and demand matching, and drive industry innovation. Existing research shows that the application of technology has not only changed the traditional tourism marketing model, but also given rise to new market behaviors and business models ( Yung et al., 2021 ). The following is a specific elaboration of the three aspects mentioned above.

The core of social communication lies in how technology stimulates users’ active sharing behavior and expands the reach of information. Studies have shown that the vividness and interactivity of virtual reality significantly enhance users’ media richness perception, which in turn promotes information search and sharing behaviors ( Lee et al., 2021 ). For example, virtual social cues in VR tours inspire users to generate more vivid mental imagery through enhanced interactivity and quasi-social interactions, which ultimately enhances sharing intentions ( Zhu et al., 2024c ). In addition, augmented reality gamification design prompts users to share game achievements and destination experiences on social media through location binding and knowledge transfer mechanisms, forming fissionary communication ( Lacka , 2020 ). It is worth noting that the effect of social communication is affected by cultural differences and user characteristics, for example, users in collectivist cultures are more dependent on social influences ( Jung et al., 2018 ); furthermore, younger users are more inclined to share technological experiences in travel on social platforms, while older groups may be less willing to share due to technological anxiety ( Cham et al., 2024 ). Whereas avatars in meta-universes with cross-cultural socialization scenarios may alleviate this limitation ( Jin, 2024 ).

Branding focuses on how to provide differentiated experiences through the use of technology to strengthen destination image and user loyalty. Research has shown that immersive technologies can enhance brand experience through highly immersive experiences that create a sense of “being there”, thereby increasing the emotional value of the brand ( Bogicevic et al., 2019 ). For example, museum AR tours significantly enhance tourists’ willingness to pay and brand identity through dynamic language prompts and high virtual presence design ( He et al., 2018 ). In addition, humanized digital experiences in the meta-universe deepen users’ emotional attachment to green destination brands by satisfying their self-representation needs ( Huang & Liu, 2021 ). Studies have also found that branding requires a differentiation strategy, and for low-awareness destinations (e.g., Jinan), VR can reconstruct the cognitive image through nostalgic narratives, prompting tourists to experience the destination more deeply and enhancing their destination image ( Lin et al., 2020 ). However, the application of technology may produce a “double-edged sword” effect, such as overly realistic VR experiences may weaken the motivation to travel in reality ( Deng et al., 2019 ), and the complementarity between virtual and reality needs to be balanced through content design.

The market potential is reflected in the technology’s ability to drive user scale, consumption scenarios and industry growth. In terms of user reach, immersive technologies can break through geographic and physical constraints to attract potential tourists to participate in virtual tours and convert them into on-site visit intentions ( Sancho-Esper et al., 2023 ). For example, a VR experience in a retirement community significantly improves older users’ willingness to recommend it by reducing technological anxiety ( Sancho-Esper et al., 2023 ). Regarding the expansion of consumption scenarios, the rise of the meta-universe concept has opened up new scenarios for the tourism market, such as virtual destinations attracting users to participate in the experience through digital twins, which in turn translates into actual intention to visit ( Deng et al., 2024 ). Meanwhile, the acceptance of non-contact travel technologies by users has significantly increased after the epidemic, and VR is perceived as a complementary tool to field trips ( Kim et al., 2021 ). In addition, sustainability orientation has become an emerging trend, and VR fits the low-carbon market demand by reducing the carbon footprint of field trips and promoting awareness of regenerative tourism ( Liu & Hao, 2024 ). However, the release of market potential is limited by the cost of technology and the lack of standardization, for example, cheap VR devices may increase penetration but may sacrifice the quality of experience ( Vishwakarma et al., 2020 ), which requires policy and industry collaboration to develop technical specifications.

In the study of technology application in the field of cultural tourism, it is summarized that moderating variables such as technology iteration cycles, application scenarios, user characteristics and contingencies significantly affect the acceptance and effectiveness of immersive technologies. These variables not only shape users’ perception and behavior towards immersive technologies, but also determine the applicability and sustainability of technologies in different contexts. Existing studies show that technology iteration cycle determines the maturity of technology functions and user acceptance threshold, differences in application scenarios shape the applicability boundaries of technology functions, user characteristics perceive the heterogeneity of technology through demographic features and personality traits, and emergencies reconfigure the demand for technology and the direction of market competition through external shocks.

The technology iteration cycle continues to influence users’ perception and behavioral intention towards the cultural tourism industry through functional innovation and experience optimization. Early technological devices have a lack of presence due to rigid interaction, which limits their application in cultural tourism scenes. With the improvement of technical functions and experience optimization, technological breakthroughs have further expanded the application scenarios. For example, the introduction of haptic feedback technology makes the touch experience of cultural relics in virtual museums more realistic, and users can perceive the texture details of cultural relics through the haptic interface, which prolongs the exploration time and enhances the user’s experience ( Ceccacci et al., 2021 ). At the same time, technology iteration drives business model innovation, with initial meta-universe tourism relying on simple 3D modeling, while the current combination of blockchain’s NFT digital collections and cross-platform virtual economy systems derives a sustainable cultural tourism consumption ecology ( Corne et al., 2023 ). However, the rapid iteration of technology may lead to user cognitive load and technological anxiety, and some users hold barriers of skepticism and resistance to the use of VR technology for tourism, which may directly affect users’ willingness to adopt the technology ( Cham et al., 2024 ).

The differences in application scenarios require that technology design and functionality should be highly adapted to specific contexts, and existing research focuses on three major areas: cultural heritage scenarios, live tourism scenarios, and cultural IP derivation scenarios. In cultural heritage scenarios, AR technology enhances the cognitive authenticity and emotional resonance of tourists by superimposing historical information and dynamic narratives, for example, the AR navigation of Taishan Mountain enhances tourists’ satisfaction by constructing authenticity ( Zhu et al., 2023b ). Live-action tourism scenarios emphasize technology’s enhancement of physical space and experience optimization. For example, cruise tourism utilizes VR previews to enhance tourists’ perception of itinerary certainty and reduce decision-making risks ( Martínez-Molés et al., 2022 ); while theme parks stimulate tourists’ sense of control through VR roller coaster programs, significantly increasing the willingness to revisit ( Wei et al., 2019 ). Cultural IP derivation scenes rely on technologies such as meta-universe and blockchain to promote digital innovation and user co-creation of cultural symbols. For example, the developed scalable meta-universe platform is more flexible than other platforms, and users’ satisfaction with the meta-universe system is higher, contributing to the sustainable development of tourism ( Suanpang et al., 2022 ).

User features reflect the heterogeneity of technological influences in terms of both demographic characteristics and personality traits. In terms of demographic characteristics, younger users are highly receptive to meta-universe socialization and virtual tours, and their behaviors are driven by entertainment and technological novelty; whereas older users are technologically anxious about virtual tours and this anxiety reduces the perceived ease of use of VR devices ( Sancho-Esper et al., 2023 ). Cultural background also plays a key role, with users from collectivist cultures relying more on social recommendations than on independent exploration ( Jung et al., 2018 ). Among personality traits, users with high technological readiness quickly adapt to complex features and enjoy personalized experiences on virtual tours, which in turn enhance brand attachment ( Huang & Liu, 2021 ). In addition, users with strong nostalgic tendencies respond more positively to roaming designs for cultural heritage VR, driving emotional resonance and destination loyalty ( Lin et al., 2020 ).

As an important contextual variable, emergencies can regulate the path and effect of technological innovation in the cultural tourism industry. Among them, COVID-19, as the most representative global emergency in recent years, forced the LCS industry to accelerate technological integration and model innovation. During the epidemic, immersive technology became a core alternative to on-site tourism, and tourists preferred virtual tourism due to risk perception ( Li et al., 2022 ). Meanwhile, the epidemic catalyzed the demand for non-contact services, and augmented reality (AR) mirroring technology increased users’ willingness to make virtual purchases through AR body reproduction and AR selfie sharing activities ( Huang et al., 2023 ). In terms of long-term impacts, outbreaks reinforce the role of technology in supporting sustainable tourism, mitigating the environmental impacts of on-the-ground tourism behaviors, and promoting responsible tourism ( Adnan et al., 2024 ). Beyond public health crises, other contextual factors may also reshape the trajectory of technology adoption. For instance, major economic transformations could alter tourists’ spending patterns, while geopolitical conflicts might propel virtual tourism into a vital alternative for cross-border cultural exchange. Thus, the ongoing impact of outbreaks suggests that technology needs to be resiliently adapted to cope with future uncertainty.