Virtual travel experiences and entertainment

While some countries start to ease lockdown restrictions and all kinds of places begin to open, it’s unlikely that most international flights will be taking off anytime soon. For many, this means summer holiday plans have been halted. However, that doesn’t mean we have to give up on our travel aspirations! There are plenty of famous museums, beautiful gardens, even world-renowned landmarks you can easily tour from the comfort and safety of your home.

To make it easy for you, we’ve gathered a list of places you can “visit” virtually along with plenty of music and entertainment options. While some of these events and tours are paid, many are also free to make it easy on your wallet.

Museums

From art, exhibitions and sculptures, we’ve got something for all the history buffs and art lovers out there. Here’s a list of museums from around the world you can visit and explore straight from your screen, in various ways:

• British Museum (London)
• Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum (New York City)
• Rijksmuseum (Amsterdam)
• Musée d’Orsay (Paris)
• Uffizi Gallery (Florence)
• MASP (São Paulo)
• National Gallery of Victoria (Victoria)
• Picasso Museum (Barcelona)
• National Gallery of Art (Washington D.C.)
• Hong Kong Heritage Museum (Sha Tin)
• Art Institute of Chicago (Chicago)
• Tate Modern (London)
• National Palace Museum (Taipei)
• Museum of Modern Art (New York City)
• Louvre Museum (Paris)
• Vatican Museums (Vatican City)

Gardens

If you’ve been suffering from cabin fever, perhaps these virtual garden tours are just the “outdoor” escape you need. Stop and smell the roses (figuratively speaking) at these popular botanical gardens from home:

• Shukkeien Garden (Hiroshima)
• New York Botanical Garden (New York City)
• Gardens of Villandry (Villandry)
• Jardim Botânico (Rio de Janeiro)
• The Gardens of Versailles (Versailles)
• Hawaii Tropical Botanical Garden (Papaikou)
• Hidcote Gardens (Bartrim)
• Chicago Botanic Garden (Chicago)
• The Cincinnati Botanical Garden (Cincinnati)
• Birmingham Botanic Gardens (Birmingham)
• RHS Wisley (Wisley)
• Kew Gardens (Richmond)
• United States Botanic Garden (Washington D.C.)
• RHS Chelsea Flower Show (London)
• Butchart Gardens (Brentwood Bay)
• Giardini Botanici Villa Taranto (Verbania)

Landmarks

Had a fabulous trip planned this summer to walk the Great Wall of China? Or maybe you were planning to climb the top of Machu Picchu in Peru. While it’s unfortunate many vacation plans have been postponed, you can still feed a bit of your travel bug with these incredible digital alternatives:

• Great Wall of China (Huairou)
• The Colosseum (Rome)
• Petra (Jordan)
• Machu Picchu (Eastern Cordillera)
• Taj Mahal (Agra)
• Christ the Redeemer (Rio de Janeiro)
• Cliffs of Moher (Burren)
• The Canadian Rockies
• Acropolis (Athens)
• Great Pyramid of Giza (Giza)
• Eiffel Tower (Paris)
• Angkor Wat (Siem Reap)
• Stonehenge (Wiltshire)
• Chichén Itzá (Yucatán)
• Piazza San Marco (Venice)
• Buckingham Palace (London)

Zoos and aquariums

Miss nature and wildlife? You can still hang out (virtually) with exotic creatures via live webcams. Some zoos are even offering personal cam time with some of their animals. That’s one way to put the zoo in Zoom.

• Smithsonian's National Zoo (Washington D.C.)
• Chester Zoo (Chester)
• Wild Life Sydney Zoo (Sydney)
• Ripley’s Aquariums (Toronto, Myrtle Beach and Gatlinburg)
• Taronga Zoo (Sydney)
• Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary (Fig Tree Pocket)
• The Cincinnati Zoo (Cincinnati)
• San Diego Zoo (San Diego)
• Monterey Bay Aquarium (Monterey)
• Georgia Aquarium (Atlanta)
• Atlanta Zoo (Atlanta)
• Dublin Zoo (Dublin)
• Houston Zoo (Houston)
• National Aquarium (Baltimore)
• Paignton Zoo (Paignton)
• Bronx Zoo (New York City)

Music and dance parties

Museums and old landmarks not your thing? Why not let loose and unwind instead with some live music and concerts? There have been plenty of musicians and DJs who’ve put on incredible shows via live streams during Covid-19. Some upcoming concerts and parties not to miss:

• The Metropolitan Opera (New York City)
• Claptone in the Circus
• U Sexy Beach Digital Dance Party
• DGTL LIB
• J2v
• Boiler Room: Streaming From Isolation
• Seattle Symphony (Seattle)
• Club Quarantine
• Club Q
• Together at Home
• Questlove Quarantine Qoolout
• Ceek
• New York Philharmonic (New York City)
• Slay at Home
• United We Stream
• Ben Gibbard: Live From Home

Oh, the places you'll go… virtually, that is. Have you joined any online get-togethers or gone on any virtual journeys while at home? We’d love to hear about them. Talk to us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or drop us a line at community@monese.com.