The City of Helsinki has set the goal of being a pioneer in sustainable tourism while reinforcing their reputation as a city that uses the latest digital innovations. This is what Helsinki aimed to showcase at the SLUSH start-up and tech conference in Helsinki and Tokyo.

Soon all you need is a VR headset to travel across the world. Virtual tourism will enable trips around the world, both in the present and in history, while being the most eco-friendly way to travel.

However, this isn’t only about virtual tourism or Virtual Helsinki. This isn’t only about creating the most realistic virtual reality ever seen. It’s also the perfect example how new technologies can be used in creating memorable brand experiences. At SLUSH, we used VR to position Helsinki as the XR hub of the north, and projection mapping to attract visitors to try the VR experience.

Virtual Helsinki is an interactive city that can be explored in VR. The measurements are based on open data, but everything else is 3D-modeled based on real-life references. Helsinki is the first city in the world that can be visited virtually.

VR Helsinki was launched in the start-up/tech event SLUSH in Helsinki (December 2018) and Tokyo (February 2019). The booth needed to create a “wow” factor and make the passers-by stop and want to discover more. So, we built a futuristic-looking cube that used projection mapping to project a changing city silhouette on the exterior of the cube. This was a true eye-catcher and attracted huge queues to the booth.

When entering the cube, you didn’t know what it was about yet. The moment you put on the VR headset, you stepped into a different world. You would travel to the Senate Square of Helsinki, see the seasons change in Lonna Island and visit the house of architect Alvar Aalto - all with a carefully planned soundtrack to make the experience more powerful.

The virtual city experience helped positioning Helsinki as a XR hub of the north, and projection mapping used in the booth attracted SLUSH visitors to try the VR Helsinki experience. The project helped boost Helsinki’s brand image and the international media coverage has been huge: the advertising value was estimated at 700 000€ and potential reach at 80 million (until April 2019).

According to the Project Director of Helsinki, Nita Pilkama, the project exceeded expectations while helping to build brand awareness and reputation as a digital forerunner and a sustainable travel destination. Virtual Helsinki will continue to serve as a marketing and communications tool and strengthen the city brand, support reputation building and help Helsinki reach its digitalization and sustainable tourism targets.