It may not be quite the same as the real thing, but while we’re all avoiding airplane food, jet lag and mosquito bites for the foreseeable, that doesn’t mean we can’t still see the world virtually.
The global travel and events industries have been stung, but hosts and creators have adapted by creating a wealth of online content available around the clock and from the comfort of our own sofas.
Global events ticketing platform Eventbrite reports a 9x growth in searches for online events between February and April, with a 2000% increase in tickets for online events reserved in April 2020 versus the same month last year.
So while you’re stuck home with little to do, why not embrace the world at your fingertips, and maybe get some inspiration for some post-COVID real life travel in the process.
Where to?
Europe
- Italian cooking school Accademia Tostatti is taking cookery enthusiasts on a virtual tour of Italy with classes focussing on the specialities of different regions, plus a free pasta class every Tuesday.
- If history is more your thing, you can also virtually visit Rome with a local archaeologist as your tour guide – or why not combine the two, for the ultimate Italian staycation!
- National Geographic Traveller is also getting in on the virtual travel scene, with their first of many free “Travel Geeks” workshops, this one on Spanish gastronomy, planned for this week.
- And for those of us missing the fitness and meditation scene as much as the travel scene, a virtual trip to Ibiza might be just what the doctor ordered. Fitness and wellbeing retreats specialists 38DegreesNorth will do their best to recreate the magic of Ibiza through their May Bank Holiday Virtual Fitness Retreat, which is paid for by optional donation for those that can.
USA
- Heading further afield, experience the gritty beauty of LA’s Arts District with a live tour hosted by a local artist, who will showcase and answer your questions on the best of the city’s graffiti and murals.
Africa
- A very different kind of tour indeed comes from a Maasai Mara Guide who will show viewers Kenya’s largest wildlife reserve from the location itself, while sharing his expertise about the Serengeti ecosystem.
Asia
- And if your travel bucket-list is more focussed on Asia, why not check out the bustling streets of Delhi with a local guide, or, heading further east still, hone your origami skills courtesy of the Japanese Culture Center.
