Meet the Virtual Jeju Dol Harubang—The Mixed VR/AR Application for Cultural Immersion in Korea’s Main Heritage

Jeju Island comes second to only Seoul as Korea’s most visited destination, yet most visitors do not have the chance to go beyond brief visits and immerse themselves in the island’s history and cultural heritage. This project introduces the cultural heritage of Jeju Island to visitors through virtual reality/augmented reality (VR/AR) model visualization technology, namely JejuView, which provides an intuitive way to experience cultural heritage sites on the island. The proposed VR/AR application is designed to introduce a series of heritage spots on Jeju Island through (i) a printed Jeju map with embedded QR code markers that enable viewers to experience the locations without being present at the site, (ii) a mobile device with WebGL supported browser which allows 3D content to be rendered, and (iii) an AR library (A-Frame.io) that enables enthusiasts to recreate similar work. To test the effectiveness of the proposed VR/AR application, the authors conducted an experiment with 251 participants to test the research model based on the technology acceptance model (TAM) and employed generalized structured component analysis (GSCA) for the analysis. Results show that when using sensory new media such as VR/AR, consumers are more focused on the hedonic value than on the utilitarian value of the information. In conclusion, the proposed VR/AR application is complementary to existing studies and provides significant support to researchers, engineers, and designers developing VR/AR technologies for use in cultural education and tourism marketing.