ITB Electrical Engineering Graduate Creates Virtual Tourism Technology, Traveling Without Visiting the Location

Merdeka.com, Bandung – Bandung remains a magnet for both domestic and international tourists. Every weekend, tourists flock to Bandung's tourist destinations. Approximately 6 million tourists visit Bandung annually to enjoy its attractions.

This is what inspired Muhammad Isman Junian, a Master's degree in Electrical Engineering from Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB), to create technology that could help the city government promote tourism in Bandung. That technology is called the Bandung Virtual Tour.

Bandung Virtual Tour is an online platform that allows tourists to “feel” Bandung City virtually, so they can see what interesting experiences they can enjoy when they arrive in Bandung City. Virtual Tour is a collection of photos presented in three-dimensional form to make the viewer feel as if they are at that location.

"This technology allows anyone to visit any location in Bandung City virtually," said Isman in a press release received by Merdeka Bandung.

He registered his idea on the iuran.id website, which then led to him becoming the winner of the "If I Were Mayor" contest held by the city government and the HYVE community.

He himself didn't expect the mayor to appreciate his idea. He admitted he was pleased that it had piqued Bandung Mayor Ridwan Kamil's interest in making it a reality.

"I want the public to be able to use this immediately. This way, people can see the tourist attraction from a distance. This is great," said the man known as Emil.

Currently, several locations have been created for virtual tours, including themed parks, the Bandung Planning Gallery, the Cikapundung Terrace, the Grand Mosque of Bandung, West Java Province, and others. In the future, more popular locations in Bandung will be available for virtual tours.

Iuran.id is a website-based platform designed to serve as a platform for Bandung residents' ideas for city development. Last year, the Mayor of Bandung personally assessed which ideas were the best and could be implemented into government programs. The Mayor then selected two of the 16 finalists whose ideas would be implemented. The two winners also had the opportunity to participate in a full day of mayoral activities.