Wanderlust while social distancing? These amazing virtual tours might help

The easing of COVID-19 related restrictions in Australia have seen us tentatively begin to have friends over for a meal and venture out a little more. While regular travel may be off the cards for the foreseeable future, virtual travel experiences have gotten better than ever. All you need is a good internet connection and a comfy chair.

In recent months some of the world’s most renowned museums, galleries, national parks and zoos have allowed us unprecedented access to their treasures through virtual tours. Of course, nothing can replace the experience of visiting these gems in person, but strange times call for creative measures.

Here are some of the best virtual reality tours I've come across during the pandemic:

Museum tours

Google Arts & Culture is a fantastic resource for art lovers and offers limited access to over 2,500 museums across the world. From London's Tate Modern to Mexico's Museo Frida Kahlo, you can spend many happy hours exploring. Its search feature also lets you search by artist, medium or art movements.
Le Musee du Louvre, Paris: The Louvre has it's own virtual tours experience - a great opportunity to enjoy a private tour of the world's largest arts and antiques museum.

The Seven Wonders and other major tourist attractions

Have you been thinking about hiking the Great Wall of China or the visiting the Taj Mahal? Perhaps reliving past adventures at the Colosseum or visiting breathtaking Machu Pichu? If you want to go somewhere but have had to postpone your trip because of coronavirus, it's worth checking online for available virtual tours.
Central Park, New York: New York city's iconic green centre is now available at the click of a button. This tour comes with a guide who shares anecdotes about the park's rich history.

Adventures

Disneyland without the queues. Yes, please.
If you're missing the water, perhaps these virtual dive galleries may help fill the void.

24-Hour live streams

Watch adorable animals be utterly unaffected by COVID-19 at our very own Zoos Victoria and Sydney's Wild Life Zoo or travel a bit further and tune into Yellowstone National Park's webcam to watch Old Faithful Geyser erupt on webcam.
Though, if we're going to travel, why not take ourselves to outer space and check out the views of our planet from NASA's International Space Station. Soothing, stunning and providing much needed perspective of our lives and the pandemic.

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