Flip, Click, and Virtual Tourism: A New Trend in Experiencing Nature and Culture

This study examines the role of visual elements in the digital magazine Explore Kuningan and the Online Flipbook of the Vocational School at IPB University in shaping immersive virtual tourism experiences. Using a descriptive qualitative approach along with visual content and semiotic analysis, this study explores the contribution of color, layout, and typography in creating aesthetic impressions and conveying local cultural identity. The results show that visual design functions as a sign system that builds cultural perception and users’ multisensory experience, through color harmony, orderly layouts, and typographic expressions that reflect local and institutional values. This research introduces the concept of the aesthetics-locality nexus as a new theoretical framework connecting cultural identity with digital design in the tourism context. Its practical implications provide guidance for digital media developers and tourism agencies to integrate semiotic approaches into visual communication strategies. This study enriches the global literature with a Global South perspective and opens opportunities for further research using mixed methods to examine the relationship between visual elements and user responses.