We’ve discovered some of the top destinations for this type of tourism at the moment. But before we go any further, we should answer the question in the headline. We don’t like to succumb to sensationalism and clickbait and then leave the question unanswered.
Tech tourism is a term given to trips where destinations are chosen because of the country or city’s technological advances, which obviously means they must be one step ahead of the game and locations where technology is ingrained in all aspects of everyday life. In this category of tourism, we can also include travellers who travel halfway around the globe to visit a place where a highly anticipated video game is premiered or people who want to visit the garages where some of the leading tech firms of our times started out. And of course, the term also includes smart cities. So, now let’s take a look at some examples…
We begin with a surprise and somewhat exotic destination, which was probably not on your travel bucket list for 2018: Bangalore. You might even have to look it up on a map because we’re pretty sure most people have never heard of it before, but this is the Silicon Valley of India.
It’s a hub for information technology firms and all the major tech companies have established themselves in this spiralling metropolis that’s growing at an exponential rate. The towers in UB City in the Central Business District of the city have become a global icon and now provide office space for a huge number of foreign workers. Bangalore also boasts a bustling, modern nightlife to cater for the foreign community in the city.
We continue with the tech world’s promised land, the authentic and genuine Silicon Valley. The Athens of our time in San Francisco. This is where all the major tech giants have their headquarters: Apple, Facebook, Intel, Netflix, HP, and a long etc. Tourists visiting these companies have given the area a slightly Disneyworld feel with tourist centres, guided tours of the offices and the restoration of mythical garages like that of Bill Hewlett and David Packard.
Our next destination may not come as a big surprise as it’s been an icon of futurism for decades now: Seoul. It’s been described as the “world’s most wired city” and is recognised as one of the leading smart cities on the planet. It has 4G and Wi-Fi in all the city’s subway stations, an intelligent lighting system to reduce the city’s energy costs and the buses are fitted with touchscreen displays that provide local and tourist information.
We return to the United States again, but this time to Los Angeles, another important technological hub and the epicentre of all that’s happening in the video games industry. The city has been hosting the Electronic Entertainment Expo, commonly referred to as E3, for over 20 years now, which is recognised as the leading video game convention on the planet.
E3 was originally an industry-only event with specialised media also invited, but in 2017 it opened its doors to the public for the first time and became a place of pilgrimage for tech tourists and curiosity seekers from all over the world. But before you get too excited, it’s important to know that a one-day ticket to the event will set you back €100…
