For two consecutive years, we developed an interactive Christmas-themed application for La Città Dei Balocchi, with the 29th and 30th editions held in Cernobbio.

Through this app, participants-including children and adults-wore visors to immerse themselves in virtual reality. Sitting on a reindeer-drawn sleigh in the grounds of Villa Erba in Cernobbio, the journey began and took them to Santa’s headquarters in Lapland.

An elf, our guide within the experience, commanded the various stages of the journey:

  • Departure from the park of Villa Erba
  • Overflight of the city of Como and the first basin of the Lario River
  • Crossing the clouds
  • Arrival in Rovaniemi
  • Entrance to the Toy Factory
  • Interactions with Santa Claus
  • Receiving and sharing gifts
  • Return to Cernobbio

Using 3D graphics, participants were represented as avatars within the application, positioned exactly where they were sitting in reality. This, along with the ability to hear one’s own voices, see and use one’s hands within the app to interact with the environment, was the highlight of the experience. Because of this total involvement, participants truly felt part of the virtual journey.