Immersive technologies such as virtual reality (VR) enhance learning by enabling interactive exploration while being fully immersed in a virtual environment. Virtual heritage museums are an area that users from different demographics can benefit from, especially if they are unable to physically visit the museum. In virtual heritage museums within the metaverse, users can engage socially and explore cultural content together in real time. Platforms such as Spatial enable access to these museums via various devices, making them available to a wide range of users. Older adults represent an important user group that can benefit from immersive spaces such as heritage museums in the metaverse. However, to ensure that the experience in a metaverse museum is inclusive, accessibility must be integrated from the earliest stages of development. Accessibility ensures products are usable by people with diverse abilities and needs, including older adults whose sensory and cognitive abilities often decline with age. As the metaverse is still emerging, new solutions need to be offered to overcome barriers encountered by users with different accessibility needs. In this context, VR poses an additional challenge for accessibility due to the unfamiliar interaction paradigms.

In this paper, we evaluate how older adults assess the accessibility and user experience of a metaverse museum (prototype of a university museum of technological heritage) developed in Unity for the Spatial platform. To improve the accessibility and user experience of the metaverse museum prototype, we utilised specific design techniques relevant to metaverse museums in VR. The approach taken in implementing these improvements was based on the results of an evaluation of an initial version of the metaverse museum prototype. Design techniques implemented are related to the use of zoom options to improve the readability of posters, interaction with artefacts via buttons with visual support, reproduction of audio and video content, the use of teleport portals with confirmation, and textual instructions with visual support for navigation and interaction. In addition to implementing accessibility improvements, we have introduced new content related to specific museum artefacts and made changes to the interior design of the museum. The techniques and design changes introduced in the new version of the metaverse museum prototype were evaluated with older participants. For this study, the perceived accessibility and user experience were analysed and compared with the results obtained with the initial prototype of the metaverse museum. The results show that the improvements made led to a measurable enhancement in perceived accessibility and ease of use for older participants. Furthermore, the results of this study highlight important aspects that need to be considered in follow-up studies on older users and VR, such as navigation and onboarding for inexperienced VR users. These findings contribute to a growing body of knowledge on inclusive design for older adults in immersive educational environments, particularly in metaverse museums, and emphasize the need for greater developer awareness of accessibility. By addressing current limitations of the metaverse platform through targeted design improvements, this study helps reduce accessibility barriers and supports more inclusive educational experiences in metaverse museums.

Keywords: Metaverse, accessibility, education, museum, older users, virtual reality.