With advancing communications, logistics and travel, both locally and internationally, people around the world now have better access to popular tourist destinations everywhere. At the same time, mass tourism poses many challenges for local sites which can be hundreds if not thousands of years old.

Dense tourist hotspots, changing weather and security concerns are some of the factors that push innovators to come up and embrace the relatively new idea of “smart tourism”.

With the help of advanced technological tools, digital literacy and the commitment to be “smart”, smart tourism can help improve tourist experience by streamlining tourist flow, introducing lesser-known tourist sites, strengthening internet connectivity between users, informing tourists about rapidly changing situations, as well as making communication much easier for tourists who cannot speak local languages.

Ultra-high definition live video streaming can also have huge potential in allowing tourists from distant lands to experience a tourism site virtually, potentially reducing tourists to the sites and allowing priceless heritage to be better preserved.

Heshun, a historical town in China’s Yunnan province, has been embracing the idea of “smart city”, intersecting modernity with tradition. All set in the palm of your hand, software systems allow visitors to pick modes of transportation, choose desired restaurants to dine, and book tourist sites in advance using high speed internet access.

In Guilin, a city famous for its natural scenery and striking mountain formation, specialised cameras are installed in connection to high speed 5G network and virtual reality software system. Known as Pilot Lock Camera, this piece of marvellous optical technology is capable of executing 8K live streaming, panoramically scanning the surroundings in real-time for viewers from different areas. Resistant to harsh elements, optical technology like this can have big potential in bringing hard-to-reach places much closer to homes.

Dunhuang, China’s ancient Silk Road hub, is also one of the prime historical destinations for millions of tourists annually. With the ultimate aim of transforming the site into a smart city, Dunhuang Smart Travel Company (DSTC) has utilised the idea of smart tourism to bolster the digital advancement. On top of the tools that help streamline tourist flow, DSTC has taken into account the hot weather of the sandy region by monitoring tourists’ health and issuing medical assistance in case of emergency.

Therefore, in this age of globalisation, technological advancement has made it possible to spontaneously protect and enhance the experience of tourism destinations, an idea that seems almost impossible in olden days.

Smart tourism is of course an important factor for sustainable tourism. With the right use of tools, we can ensure that our priceless heritages can survive for the future generations to see for hundreds, if not thousands of years.