TELE-WORKSHOP FACT SHEET June 23, 2004 Virtual Tours: HARNESSING TECHNOLOGY TO PROMOTE AMERICA’S BYWAYSTM TELE-WORKSHOP SPOTLIGHT SPEAKERS Derrick A. Crandall President American Recreation Coalition 1225 New York Avenue NW,Suite 450 Washington, D.C. 20005 202-682-9530 Fax: 202-682-9529 dcrandall@funoutdoors.com Stephen W. Clyde Project Manager National Scenic Byways Online Utah State University UMC 4205, Room 401D Logan, Utah 84322-4205 435-797-2307 1-800-4BYWAYS, option 3, then 5 Fax: 435-797-3265 ATTN: Dr. Clyde Stephen.Clyde@usu.edu “...today’s technology offers new and exciting ways to integrate incredible volumes of data and then deliver customized data to individuals.” TECHNOLOGY ENHANCES TRIP PLANNING Research suggests that travelers are becoming increasingly computer savvy, using technology to enhance their trip planning while saving time and money. America’s Byways™ has reached travelers via the www.byways.org site on the Internet for several years.The number of visitors to the National Scenic Byways Online site continues to grow annually. The speakers believe that virtual tours for Byways can leverage advanced technology to showcase local features and assist with travel planning to ultimately boost tourism. By 2005, the National Scenic Byway Online team expects that all Byways can sign on with the Virtual Tour Project to develop their custom virtual tours. Initial investments may range from $5,000 to $10,000, plus costs for data collection, organization and annual operation. CREATIVE APPROACHES Prior to the Tele-Workshop, Stephen Clyde and the National Scenic Byways Online team at the Utah State University asked Byway leaders to peruse a special Web site (http://vbt.mdsc.com/vbt/ workshop) to gain an overview of the Virtual Tour Project and its possibilities for Byways. To begin the discussion, the speakers provided some background on the Virtual Tour Project and emphasized the potential for creative technologies to promote Byways. Certainly, guidebooks, brochures, signs, television advertising and other more traditional marketing tools remain popular and generate interest among tourists. And many Web sites show beautiful but static images. Sometimes the images are linked to pages and pages of information, but the data often doesn’t jibe cohesively with the images. SIDEBAR: VIRTUAL TOUR PROJECT GOALS 1.To use advanced technology to enhance the public’s ability to plan trips and experience the outdoors 2. To allow travelers to plan, share and learn about Byways 3. To develop partnerships between government, commerce and education According to the speakers, today’s technology offers new and exciting ways to integrate incredible volumes of data and then deliver customized data to individuals.This new technology harnesses the power of vivid aerial and computer-generated imagery augmented with Internet-based data, panoramic photos, audio tracks and more. The American Recreation Coalition, a partner of the National Scenic Byways Program as well as the Virtual Tour Project, offers this description on its Web site: A Scenic Byways Virtual Tour allows you to “fly” over a high-resolution aerial photograph on the computer screen, while an audio narration describes the corridor and icons of key features— from trails to campgrounds to museums to boat ramps— appear. Clicking on any of the icons brings up detailed information and visual images—and even allows actions such as making a campground reservation. The immediately engaging aspect of Byway virtual tours is the “fly over” imagery. Using TerraFly technology developed at Florida International University, potential visitors see scenery similar to what an airplane pilot sees flying over terrain.The system uses actual United States Geological Survey aerial photographs and satellite imagery.The TerraFly images can also be enriched with: • Byway, road and street names • Icons depicting campgrounds and trailheads, visitor centers and restaurants, historic places and museums, and even more categories of sites of interest to travelers • Icons that click through to specialized, in-depth information • Narration by knowledgeable spokespersons The speakers discussed examples of some of the potential special features of virtual tours, including integrated audio tracks with local celebrities and VIPs or local music.Other options might include panoramic photographs, 2-D elevations, webcams, weather and traffic links, and reservation links. FLEXIBLE CONTENT During the Tele-Workshop, Stephen Clyde explained that virtual tours could help potential travelers know where to look to optimize their on-land visits.Virtual tour technology organizes diverse data and images, sharing key stories through dynamic presentations about scenic byways and surrounding corridors to motivate visitors. The Byway supplies most of the data content, creating locally driven information. Decentralized design permits instant, low-cost updates such as schedule changes, special events and additions, so the content presentation is very flexible. And, due to the inherent vastness of the Internet, Byways enjoy nearly unlimited expansion capability. Some ideas for expansion include fund-raisers, such as selling books or souvenirs, links to reservation sites, downloadable coupons and special offers, and links to buy fishing licenses. From a marketing perspective, the virtual tour presents an opportunity for Byways to link to state tourism Web sites, major recreation organizations, reservation sites, USAToday.com and other high-visibility connections. It’s even possible that in the future these could be revenue-generating features for the Byways. A virtual tour can suggest itineraries as well, offering a description of each route, time required to drive it and the distance covered. Customized trip planning can allow visitors to fill in a form with the city of origin, time available to tour, and personal interests. Based on the input, the system can craft a customized itinerary consistent with points of interest. The interactive format supports data collection, too. Byways can learn about their virtual tourists with a pop-up questionnaire or longer in-depth survey to help identify demographics, motivational factors, and any missing information that visitors would like to see online. SIDEBAR: KEY COMPONENTS OF THE VIRTUAL TOUR • USGS aerial photographs • 2-D elevation guide • Byway or street names • Icons and labels for attractions and features • Helpful links to weather and traffic information • Webcams and seasonal “360° by 360°” images • Linked sites –– video clips and more • Audio intro and periodic, short segments –– language and content flexibility • Suggested itineraries (camping, hiking, historical sites, wildlife, etc.) • Trip reminder – places you want to go THE FIRST TOURS The Virtual Tour Project has now completed prototypes of the major components, wrapped up the initial market research and finished the initial Web site design.Ten Byways have agreed to participate in the project, and they’re actively loading data now. These Byways plan to go “live” with their tours November 2004, and this will be the “beta phase” of the project to test the functions and work out any kinks. BEYOND THE BETA PHASE Developing the Virtual Tour Project has been a large undertaking that cost more than $300,000.The Virtual Tour partners, FHWA, America’s Byways Resource Center and participating byways are sharing the beta-phase costs, which total more than $150,000. After the beta phase, the Byway Virtual Tour Web site will be completed and all byways, as well as trails, rivers and heritage corridors, are eligible to develop their virtual tours. As many as 20 Byways may offer virtual tours by 2005. Are you ready to harness technology’s power? FIRST 10 PARTICIPATING BYWAYS Centennial Byway (Wyoming) Creole Nature Trail, All-American Road (Louisiana) El Camino Real, National Scenic Byway (New Mexico) Great River Road, National Scenic Byway (Arkansas) Historic Columbia River Highway, All-American Road (Oregon) Indian River Lagoon Scenic Highway, National Scenic Byway (Florida) Logan Canyon Scenic Byway, National Scenic Byway (Utah) Pacific Coast Scenic Byway, All-American Road (Oregon) Seward Highway, All-American Road (Alaska) Woodward Avenue, National Scenic Byway (Michigan) PARTNERS & RESOURCES: Just how did this Internet-based method of promoting Byways begin? The American Recreation Coalition (ARC),a nonprofit association comprised of more than 100 national and regional recreation/leisure organizations, started tackling the billboard issue—a task that required offering alternative visibility for businesses along scenic corridors. Simultaneously, the nonprofit Public Lands Interpretive Association (PLIA) began mapping out a Canada-to-Mexico trek exclusively on public lands, called American Frontiers: A Public Lands Journey, and they realized the Internet might provide tools to enhance travel planning. With ARC as the cornerstone partner and driving force, casual discussions led to collaborative efforts. Soon the National Scenic Byways Program, America’s Byways Resource Center and National Scenic Byways Online joined theVirtual Tour Project. Today,the roles for Washington-based ARC on the Virtual Tour Project include overall project design and coordination, liaison with FHWA staff, liaison with byways managers nationally, project marketing and project financial reporting. Another project partner, Multimedia Data Services Corporation (MDSC), located at Utah State University, manages National Scenic Byways Online and provides project management, facilities, equipment, data acquisition, and research and development for www.byways.org and www.bywaysonline.org. Miami-based Florida International University-High Performance Data Research Center, is also a key partner.The renowned NASA-supported facility, under the direction of Dr. Napthali Rishe, integrates graphics/data, adapts TerraFly to byway applications, hosts the database and program, and designs audiotour options. ONLINE RESOURCES http://www.funoutdoors.com American Recreation Coalition http://www.americanfrontiers.net/about/ Public Lands Interpretive Association:American Frontiers http://www.terrafly.com Florida International University http://vbt.mdsc.com/vbt/workshop Virtual Byway Tours - background information http://demo.byways.org Logan Canyon pilot virtual tour demonstration http://www.recreation.gov/ Public recreational venues www.reserveamerica.com/ Camping and campground reservation site http://www.usatoday.com Information link America’s Byways Resource Center provides information, connections and expertise that help build better byways. State coordinators, local groups, volunteers and organizations with tie to nationally designated scenic Byways look to us for hands-on assistance in planning, preserving, promoting and managing scenic Byways. Please join us for the next 2004 Byway Leader Tele-Workshop: October 6 Compelling Stories Steve Denning,Author/Organizational Storyteller America’s Byways Resource Center 227 West First Street, Suite 610 Duluth, MN 55802 Tel: 218-625-3469 Fax: 218-625-3333 1-800-4BYWAYS (1-800-429-9297) Ext. 5 www.bywaysonline.org © 2004 America’s Byways Resource Center